Enormous challenges face school districts and parents of autistic children, as was well-described in a July 14 Denver Post story, “Ruling hobbles school district.” But these challenges should inspire cooperation, not conflict. They should prompt compassion, not bitterness. This is an important lesson for many school officials to keep in mind.
Autism requires extraordinary efforts on the part of parents, siblings, teachers, therapists and paraprofessionals. There is much to be celebrated in the partnership of family and school that so often occurs to meet the needs of these special-needs students.
Children with autism, like others facing disabilities, frequently bring out the finest qualities in individuals. It is apparent every time you see typical students embrace and lovingly protect their autistic classmates. It is apparent every time you see the genuine joy in the face of an educator who achieves incremental but precious developmental progress in one of their autistic students, after a long and often exhausting process of highly structured teaching.
Unfortunately, some school officials respond to this challenge in misguided ways. The Post article quotes the spokesman for the National Association of State Boards of Education describing the “bitterness” that school districts feel about the cost of meeting the educational needs of autistic children. And Jane Urschel, associate director of the Colorado Association of School Boards and one of the finest educational leaders in our state, disappointingly appears to be pitting families of autistic children against families of typical children, stating that “it is every student who helps pay for this kind of expense.”
What is characterized as “this kind of expense” and a source of “bitterness” is the cost associated with educating our society’s most vulnerable children, a significant but relatively small percentage of school districts’ overall budgets. But despite the cost, it is a moral obligation.
The contrast between school districts that are committed to serving children with autism, and those that are committed to complaining about it, is readily apparent to any parent of a disabled child as soon as they enter a classroom.
The good news is that many school administrators and education officials embrace the opportunity to provide the highest-quality education to students with autism. They do not see the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as a burden, and they do not see the responsibility to educate children with severe disabilities as something they do only to the extent they must in order to avoid litigation. The Cherry Creek School District, where my daughter attends an elementary school in west Aurora, is one shining example.
These districts, their school boards, administrators, teachers and other staff have a commendable passion for providing the best services possible to autistic children; they have a deep and inspiring commitment to continuing education and striving toward excellence in this area.
Certainly, they recognize that federal requirements regarding special education are “unfunded mandates.” We all do. But they also recognize that these laws are among the most profound and meaningful expressions of our nation’s humanity and compassion, which serve to enrich us all. And they recognize that these educational services are nothing less than a lifeline for the millions of parents and families who care for severely disabled children.
These wonderful educators and administrators do not look to promote divisiveness among parents of typical and special needs children. Instead, they look to build coalitions between all parents and the external business and civic and non-profit communities to obtain additional public and private funding. They are generously dedicated to weaving special-needs students into the fabric of their schools.
Those of us with severely disabled children are deeply grateful to them.
Shepard Nevel is chief of staff for Colorado entrepreneuer and philanthropist Jared Polis. He and his wife are the parents of three school-age children.
