04-09-2005, 03:46 PM
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_64948.asp
Quote:
School Officials Weighing Whether To Go To Supreme Court On Autism Case
posted April 5, 2005
Hamilton County School officials said they are weighing whether to appeal on to the U.S. Supreme Court on an autism case they have been fighting since 1999.
School officials said they "believe the final outcome of this case will determine how school systems across the country will educate students with special needs. The financial impact of this decision is enormous and would have a negative impact on the school's budget not only locally, but for other school systems across the state and nation."
Phil Deal, who filed the suit, said the schools could have met the needs of his son, Zachary, "for less than they paid just one expert."
He said, "I am disgusted that they spent all this money fighting an autistic child who cannot speak rather than finding ways to help him and work with our family."
The county schools have spent some $2.3 million on the case, including $1.7 million for Atlanta lawyer Charlie Weatherly and some $600,000 for experts.
If the decision in favor of the Deals by the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals stands, the schools will also pay for the Deals' attorney and make reimbursements to them. Mr. Deal said that will be "less than what they spent for the experts ($600,000)."
He said, "I cannot understand why their attorney cost more than four times what ours did. It's a disgrace that they are spending that kind of money fighting a child who wanted programs that many other school systems in Tennessee and across the country already provide."
Mr. Deal, who said his son is moderately to severely autistic, said Zachary was at Ooltewah Elementary when he was 3 and 4. He said they pulled him out of the county schools when they could not get the program they wanted when he was five. He said the program would have involved providing an aide to help him function in a class with non-disabled students.
Mr. Deal said, "The program we felt Zachary needed was individual instruction in an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) format (based on the work and scientific studies from UCLA by Dr. Ivar Lovaas http://www.lovaas.com), daily speech therapy, occupational therapy and meaningful opportunities to be educated and socialized with non-disabled peers with an aide to assist him."
He said the child later returned to the county schools and attends Westview Elementary.
He said Zachary Zachary got the ABA program after an administrative law judge ruled for the Deals. He said Westview Elementary was already providing him at the time of the ruling (August of 2001) with an aide and speech therapy and occupational therapy and inclusion opportunities with non-disabled peers. He said only the ABA program was cut off when Federal Judge Al Edgar ruled against them later.
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed Judge Edgar, saying the county schools had not given the parents the proper input in their son's education program.
Mr. Deal said the family tried to settle the case on at least two occasions, but the county would not go along.
County school officials said they were disappointed that the U.S. Sixth Circuit judges declined to rehear the case. They said they will decide in the next 90 days whether to go on to the nation's highest court.
County school officials said "they will continue to comply with the federal Individual with Disabilities Education Act, which outlines regulations for special needs students."
posted April 5, 2005
Hamilton County School officials said they are weighing whether to appeal on to the U.S. Supreme Court on an autism case they have been fighting since 1999.
School officials said they "believe the final outcome of this case will determine how school systems across the country will educate students with special needs. The financial impact of this decision is enormous and would have a negative impact on the school's budget not only locally, but for other school systems across the state and nation."
Phil Deal, who filed the suit, said the schools could have met the needs of his son, Zachary, "for less than they paid just one expert."
He said, "I am disgusted that they spent all this money fighting an autistic child who cannot speak rather than finding ways to help him and work with our family."
The county schools have spent some $2.3 million on the case, including $1.7 million for Atlanta lawyer Charlie Weatherly and some $600,000 for experts.
If the decision in favor of the Deals by the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals stands, the schools will also pay for the Deals' attorney and make reimbursements to them. Mr. Deal said that will be "less than what they spent for the experts ($600,000)."
He said, "I cannot understand why their attorney cost more than four times what ours did. It's a disgrace that they are spending that kind of money fighting a child who wanted programs that many other school systems in Tennessee and across the country already provide."
Mr. Deal, who said his son is moderately to severely autistic, said Zachary was at Ooltewah Elementary when he was 3 and 4. He said they pulled him out of the county schools when they could not get the program they wanted when he was five. He said the program would have involved providing an aide to help him function in a class with non-disabled students.
Mr. Deal said, "The program we felt Zachary needed was individual instruction in an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) format (based on the work and scientific studies from UCLA by Dr. Ivar Lovaas http://www.lovaas.com), daily speech therapy, occupational therapy and meaningful opportunities to be educated and socialized with non-disabled peers with an aide to assist him."
He said the child later returned to the county schools and attends Westview Elementary.
He said Zachary Zachary got the ABA program after an administrative law judge ruled for the Deals. He said Westview Elementary was already providing him at the time of the ruling (August of 2001) with an aide and speech therapy and occupational therapy and inclusion opportunities with non-disabled peers. He said only the ABA program was cut off when Federal Judge Al Edgar ruled against them later.
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed Judge Edgar, saying the county schools had not given the parents the proper input in their son's education program.
Mr. Deal said the family tried to settle the case on at least two occasions, but the county would not go along.
County school officials said they were disappointed that the U.S. Sixth Circuit judges declined to rehear the case. They said they will decide in the next 90 days whether to go on to the nation's highest court.
County school officials said "they will continue to comply with the federal Individual with Disabilities Education Act, which outlines regulations for special needs students."