The Pierce Mansion in Gardner.

Shrewsbury ABA focused as well.

There is no replacement for ABA. We rejected ABA based on input for autistic adults. My son had speech and occupational therapy. Other than that we just let him be his authentic self.

I have an autistic son at Worcester Tech. It has changed thankfully. The school has been very supportive especially during those awful covid times.

He did not go to elementary or middle school here. He had an out of district placement. So I can not say if it has gotten better on that level.

What is the replacement for ABA?

Colonial Inn in Concord has haunted rooms you can stay in.

I'm not surprised by any of the answers here, but things are improving, our new Superintendent is really pushing fixing this issue.

There were some big updates/info dump on Feb 4th's school committee meeting (see u/TracyNovick 's blog here: https://who-cester.blogspot.com/2023/02/what-happened-at-first-february.html ) and they are hiring a bunch more paraprofessionals and mental health workers. We definitely have a ways to go but it does seem like things might go decently well in the not too distant future.

shit that's awful. when was this? i am a product of the late 80s-90s wps and there were teachers that were indefensibly rotten to some of the kids for a variety of shitty reasons.

i always looked back on that as a "different time" where those things just happened. i would really hate to think that stuff still goes on like that. it's very damaging and traumatizing. sorry you went through that.

SK Pierce Mansion in Gardner does tours. It was on the Ghost Hunters tv show.

Wachuset district and Shrewsbury MA is good. Also Grafton, I spoke with the town representatives back in 2014 for a project and Grafton spends more money per child than other districts.

Seconding hudson. Check out rail trail for food or the speakeasy and then new city for ice cream. Really cute downtown area to walk around.

Worse.

It has gotten worse.

Hahaha no.

Please do not enroll your kids in Worcester public schools if they have asd, they are unlikely to be well served.

Also please do not use anything "ABA" related, it's seriously outdated and generally condemned by the autism community.

Steer clear of any with a puzzle piece logo or public association with "Autism Speaks" as they are literally a hate group focused on elimination of autistic people and provide almost no actual support to real autists.

You SHOULD get connected with the Autism Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN), and look into homeschooling resources for autistic learners and educate yourself on asynchronous development.

The modern age has become a much better place for autistic people, because various forms of technology have provided ways for people to connect and interact that were totally impossible before. Get connected with the Autism community itself - you'll find the best people and support there, not in "the system".

Hudson has cute places, cheese shop, restaurants, creamery

Spooner Well in the Brookfields? I live nearby in Warren and I believe I've been to this place.

One of my favorite places. Always find something cool and creepy there.

Bocado restaurant in Worcester has a really nice vibe and isn’t overly expensive.

Worcester is very behind in general curriculum so for ASD accommodations or any learning disabilities I would recommended looking in to surrounding districts

Polar Park has a Valentines dinner, looks cool https://www.polarpark.com/valentine

Bathsheba Spooner? Yikes what a story.

[deleted]

[removed]

Mom threatened to sue my high school sophomore year for violating the ADA, it got that bad

Oh man that is messed up. I hope Worcester has gotten better.

I went to the “best” elementary school, “best” middle school, and “best” high school in Worcester with learning disabilities. Almost all my teachers growing up would not accommodate my 504, mock me, call me stupid, etc. I pray times have changed but stay away from WPS, my experience was a nightmare and I have no idea how I made it out alive