Copy of Letter to the Editor

Published 11/13/10

As a parent of a child with autism, I would like to express my great concern over what is going on in the Cedar Rapids School system.



My son was given a chance to participate in a terrific case study by the University of Iowa. This study provides free training to all guidance counselors who participate in the case study. Counselors would be trained on 2 different models, Video Modeling and Social Stories. Both of these methods have been proven to reduce behaviors in children with autism.



After being declined, I spoke with the associate superintendent, Mr O'Malley. During our conversation, I explained with this is so valuable, and the training is free to all participants. Mr. O'Malley told me upfront he did not know much about autism, but he would reconsider.



Less than 24 hours later, I had a 2nd decline, saying that too many resources would be used to participate.



How many resources are spent when a child is pulled out his classroom for a behavior that could have been prevented using social stories or video modeling? Does the school not see the influx of special needs kids coming up the ranks? I spoke with Mr. O'Malley again, and he told me I was right, but was unwilling to have Cedar Rapids participate in the case study. After speaking with my son's staff, they were disappointed as well.



How can we expect improvement in our children when the school is unwilling to provide the tools?