<p>My ADHD son needs an well-organized college and is asking me for suggestions. I think Landmark is out. He's bright with a 3.6 weighted GPA, 1300 SAT (as a sophmore)and 215 PSAT (this fall). His counselor says he is competitive for any school is Ohio and I think he can manage as long as the school is not overwhelmingly large or poorly organized. Any ideas?</p>
<p>I gave a link to Landmark college in Vermont but as it is specifically for students who have ADD or LDs your son may not be interested.
I think any college is going to be much more hands off than high school, he isn't going to have anyone going through his backpack and while profs may email him if he misses class, they aren't going to get him out of bed.
My daughter has ADD, and she didn't need any accomodations in high school because it was : private, had a learning specialist, already had small classes etc. She had aboHowever she did get identified for college, which made her eligible to meet with an ADD coach every week to go over strategies.
He may want to look at a small school like St Johns ( maryland) that is very strong in lit and history</p>
<p>I know University of Arizona is huge but I think they offer a special program of support that you pay extra for.</p>
<p>My son has ADHD. We researched many schools with learning disability programs and settled on Fairleigh Dickenson in N.J. They were great! They have a lot of practical programs to choose from, a great learning center with tutors for many subjects and much more. My son has a 3.25 average after 2.5 years,which has completely surprised me! I can't recommend that school enough. It also has a very pretty campus.</p>
<p>I should note that many kids go home on weekends; thus, it tends to be dead on those days. However, this gave my son time for uninterrupted studying, which he did a lot of. As you know, these kids can be easily distracted. Having some "mandatory" quiet time for studying turned out to be the secret.</p>
<p>I appreciate the ideas and will check them out, but would love to keep him closer to home (we're in Cleveland, Ohio). Within a five hour drive would be great, more than a ten hour drive would be hard (because we'd probably have to put him an a plane and heavens knows where he'd end up!)</p>
<p>Ohparent, it may help if you describe a little more what you mean by well-organized - small, with small classes where a kid falling behind would be noticed, special accomodations like extra time on a test, availability of a tutor/mentor similar to what Ekitty described? Does he have a specific problem with math or writing for example, or just organizational difficulty.
I guess where I'm going with this is that a college with few distribution requirements might be good for a kid who justs needs to avoid math; a large college might have more specific resources for anADHD student, but have the disadvantage of being overwhelming.</p>
<p>Closer to home, the College of Wooster, Muskingum College, Mt. St. Joseph College and Hiram College - all in Ohio - provide support services for kids with learning disabilities. All are warm and supportive schools where it's hard to get "lost in the cracks."</p>
<p>With your son's stats, unless he is accustomed to heavy micromanagement, any of the smaller Ohio schools will probably be fine. You are so fortunate to be in a state that has a nice selection of such schools. I know that Ohio Wesleyan, Wittenberg, Wooster, Otterbein are all nice, nurturing schools. My friend with a son with stats not as high as your son's and with the same issues did well at Augustana College in Illinois. She could not say enough about the personal attention he received there. Do not know how far that is from you. Lake Forest outside of Chicago is also a very caring and nurturing school. In Western PA, I can recommend Westminster, Allegheny, Grove City, Washington & Jefferson and St Vincent's.</p>
<p>Check the websites of the colleges jamimom mentioned. I would suggest Ohio Weleyan also. (The Sagan ARC = Academic Resource Center) This is from the OWU website:</p>
<p>Learning Disabilities Assistance Center » The LD Assistance Center provides services for meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities and/or attention deficit disorders. This office works in cooperation with others in the more comprehensive Sagan ARC and with the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. Reasonable academic accommodations are coordinated and adaptive strategies are employed to help students achieve academic success.</p>
<p>I just heard from a student that I recommended Ohio Wesleyan to. He visited there and loved everything about the school. His definite favorite on the Ohio circuit, and he is going to a top prep school here on the east coast. But some kid prefer the other Ohio "W's". All a matter of personal preference.</p>
<p>Interestingly the GC at my son's private school told me that some of the traditionally "heavy-hitter" schools are starting to change their views about ADD kids, realizing that some have giftedness in other areas and many will be quite successful in later life. So I believe attitude towards ADD is in flux at many colleges.</p>
<p>Obviously colleges just opening up to ADD students would not have the same support services, etc.</p>
<p>I do want to caveat my suggestions with a note to check out some guides for colleges for LD students if the student has severe ADD that needs a lot of accomodations. There are some school, Landmark is one, as is Curry College in Mass, that cater to kids that have such issues. Indiana U of Pennsylvania also specifically deals with the issues. </p>
<p>I think colleges are showing some interest in this issue because of the increases in the number of kids coming up with this problem. I read somewhere that the number of kids need dispensation for time or other issues for testing has skyrocketed in the last several years. Also the records and test scores of many of these kids show that they can do well in college level work if some accomodation and recognition is given for their disability. For schools that are giving extra care and nurturing and have small numbers, the extra level of care is not that big of a deal and can open the admissions field wider.</p>
<p>Actually, there is a book published which is "Peterson's Guild to Schools With Learning Disabilty Programs." I think this is the title,but I can be off a bit. Thes guide lists the schools with LD programs and lists the types of services that they provide.</p>
<p>There is also a K & W guide to colleges for Learning Disabilities, but I want to suggest that he be tested and diagnosed if he hasn't been already. He will need it to get services in college, even if he isn't using accomodations in high school.</p>
<p>Jamimom, This is the first time I have heard anyone on the board mention Augustana College in Illinois. My daughter and I are hoping to visit - it looks like a great school.</p>
<p>cangel - My son attends a small public high school (800 total students, 200 in his grade) in a conservative, homogenous, mid to upperclass suburban community. He does okay academically but hasn't found a good social fit. People don't know what to make of him because they know he's very bright but he can say and do the strangest things. He blends in better with an arsty, intellectual crowd. He will probably pursue a major in the liberal arts, fine arts, or social sciences. All things considered, I think he'd be best off at a school big enough to have some diversity (both in course offerings and student composition) but small enough that he wouldn't get lost. I was thinking that distribution requirments would be good because they'd add some structure to his curriculum and would let him to know exactly what he had to get done. I don't believe that he would avail himself of special services for his disability unless it was absolutely necessary, but it would be nice to know that there was help available. He has seen a few schools - loved the library at Univ. of Maryland but thought the campus was awfully big, liked the small classes at Case Western, and was unimpressed on a quick visit to RIT. I'm not sure where to take him next.</p>
<p>Take him to see the College of Wooster.</p>
<p>jamimom and others - Thanks for the tips on Ohio colleges. I will definitely check them out. FYI - my son can bearly be managed, let alone micromanaged!</p>