Thursday, September 06, 2007

City Districts Open with Few Problems (unless your kid is special ed)

The reporter who covers the local schools is great, but in this case, I think she has been misinformed. I have heard rumblings on the local autism listservs about school districts being short drivers - regular ed students are seemingly given some sort of priority in terms of students. Their routes are the first to be straightened out and their buses arrive on time. Special ed students, on the other hand, are the last priority for pick up and arrive to school late. Jimmy has not been picked up before 8:30 this week - the same time that the tardy bell rings at his school. I am furious - it's almost like he isn't given the same instructional time as other students because of his disability, that because of the serious nature and the need for him to ride a bus with an aide, the school system doesn't really care when he shows up. No one person has said that, but that is how I feel. It is my understanding that nothing will change for us until they hire another driver (they are down two now in Manassas Park.) Why should he lose out on his education because he rides a different bus?

I know the natural solution would be to have my husband drop him off. The kiss and ride isn't equipped for a child who does not separate well and can't walk to the door by himself. Moreover, most schools have a holding area for hundreds of students until the bell rings. Jimmy couldn't function there either. So Jimmy misses instructional time and my husband gets to be late to work everyday until this problem is solved. I wonder how long his boss will tolerate that.

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