Education at Edgecombe YDC: school courses, GED and special education services
If your child is at Edgecombe YDC, school doesn't stop. Here's what education looks like there, what options may be available for older youth, and how to protect credits and special education supports.
Education at Edgecombe YDC runs through the Juvenile Justice section, which operates as a local education agency. Teachers are licensed by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction - so your child is learning from credentialed educators, not just facility staff.
Most youth at Edgecombe YDC follow the standard public school track. Your child stays enrolled in regular courses while in the facility - they're not shuffled into some separate program.
- ✓ GED study (for youth age 16 and older)
- ✓ Post-secondary vocational courses (for youth age 16 and older)
- ✓ Online college courses offered in cooperation with local community colleges (for youth age 16 and older)
If your child has an IEP or needs special education supports, those services should continue while they're in the youth development center system. Edgecombe YDC is required to provide special education services, but your job is making sure the right paperwork and school history follow your child into placement.
Tip: Ask your child's home school for a copy of their current IEP and any recent evaluations. Keep copies yourself. Having those documents ready helps the facility's education team set up services without delays.
- Gather school records now - Request transcripts, report cards, and current class information from the home school so you can support standard course enrollment and protect credits.
- Pull special education paperwork (if it applies) - If your child has an IEP or evaluations, collect the most recent versions and share them as needed so required special education services can continue.
- Ask what the current academic plan is - Confirm whether your child is in standard public school courses and what the course expectations are while they’re at Edgecombe YDC.
- If your child is 16+, talk through older-youth options - Ask whether GED study, post-secondary vocational courses, or online college courses (through cooperation with local community colleges) make sense for your child right now, and what the steps are to enroll.
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