I have not looked at all. His therapist says she thinks we need to be prepared for him needing or being told he has to move to a school better equipped for his needs (this would be if he has an rage episode or runs away at school).

Insideschools.org may have good info - I'll poke around and see if I can find anything.

msbelle, don't know if this is any help, but here's NY State's webpage for kids with special health needs:

[link]

msbelle, continuing good thoughts for you.

Legally, employers with more than 50 staff have to give unpaid leave for up to 12 weeks as "maternity leave." It's the unpaid part that's the pisser. Many, many workplaces have no paid maternity leave at all, or require you use short-term disability insurance to cover it.

Wow. That's not the best situation. I employ no more than three people at a time (as PCAs), but they all have the right to maternity leave. It's paid by the government - at a low rate, but there is payment - for 39 weeks. Some employers are much better than this, because they can afford to be. My sister, who works for the NHS, got a certain number of weeks on full pay, a certain number on half pay, and then took a few more unpaid. I forget the exact numbers of weeks, but she had at least nine months off work in the end, and much of that time was paid.

You might call this org, Resources for Children with Special Needs. I can't quite tell, but they may be more focused on physical disabilities, but at least they may be able to point you in the right direction? [link]

We provide help by phone or by appointment at our office. Just call us at (212) 677-4650. The staff person who answers will ask you about your needs and wishes and the staff member who can help you best will call you back.

I love Buffistas. Watching the mobilization for msbelle and mac is wonderful.

Also, there's this thing called Positive Behavior Intervention -- again, not sure they are the right people, but it looks like they at least address anger management.

Bonnie Brown, Superintendent bbrown3@schools.nyc.gov

Gary Hecht, Deputy Superintendent ghecht@schools.nyc.gov

Michele Pierro, Director of School Safety and Positive Behavior Supports mpierro@schools.nyc.gov

Amy Steiger, PBIS Project Director asteige@schools.nyc.gov

Yeah, Jesse, those are the people in charge of District 75. It looks like the place to start, at any rate. The other name/number that jumped out as a possibility was:

Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports Satish Moorthy (212) 802-1548;smoorthy@schools.nyc.gov

The problem with District 75 is they cover all disabilities and special needs, and it doesn't look like there's an easy way to figure out what school/services are for what.

I feel really shallow posting this at the moment, but there's a cloud outside my window that looks exactly like Serenity. Where's a camera when you need one?