Moving to Fort Bragg Area - Special Ed Questions (Hope Mills: house, to buy)

[lynchfamilyof5]

We lived in Hope Mills from 2002-2005 and are finishing up a 5 year tour in Germany. We will be headed back to Bragg in late summer. We had small kids last time so schools weren't much of an issue. This will most likely be our last move so we're ready to buy the house we plan to stay in for a long time. Our challenge is that our youngest will be in third grade and is nonverbal with autism and our middle son will be going into fifth grade and needs a gifted/talented program. Then we also have to worry about middle and high schools since our oldest is going into 8th grade. Any suggestions for school districts? Are there any elementary schools with specialized autism programs? Or should we just live on post and use the DoDDs schools - we've been in DoDDs schools for the last 5 years so its really all we know. Thanks for any help anyone can provide!

[aphorista]

From my understanding, the DOD schools would be a better choice for your family. I have worked with families with similar circumstances and they preferred the DOD schools. However, I think you should contact the DOD schools on Fort Bragg directly to find out what they offer.

[faabala]

Our three year old son will be going into the county school district's autism program this fall. It is all new for us but it seems they have a well developed program. We are friends with families with a 5 year old and a recently diagnosed 15 year old. All of us are either active or retired military. If you need more help let me know.

Here is the source...

CCS' - Exceptional Children's Services

There are also many programs via Army Community Service and EFMP.

http://www.fortbraggmwr.com/efmp.php (broken link)

Autism Society of Cumberland County

http://www.autismcc.org/