MCPS in newsweek mag for cutting autism support

[Anonymous]

quotes from the article
"On March 19, 2024, parents representing elementary school children with autism sat patiently while the superintendent of education eloquently described the strengths neurodiversity brings to education and the ....BOE enduring support for Autism Awareness Month. Yet, only months prior, the BOE decided to terminate a program designed for children with autism and parents were waiting to give testimony urging them to reverse it."

" "Equity" would be expanding these autism-specific programs across the county and the nation. Every child with my son's autism phenotype deserves the program that my son is enrolled in today.

Touting autism awareness while silently pulling the rug of support from under them are incongruous acts."

https://www.newsweek.com/schools-killing-son-autism-support-i-veil-equity-1891131

[Anonymous]

oops I see someone else posted this so please remove if possible

[Anonymous]

I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

This may provide a clearer explanation:

https://www.mymcmedia.org/school-district-changing-where-students-with-autism-diagnosis-are-enrolled/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

This may provide a clearer explanation:

https://www.mymcmedia.org/school-district-changing-where-students-with-autism-diagnosis-are-enrolled/

Thank you. Do I have this right?

There are currently 60 kids at Darnestown, all of whom will finish the program there.

However, moving forward, MCPS will set up new autism programs in a larger number of schools, and so fewer kids will go to Darnestown in particular, unless that's the program geographically closest to them?

I ask this with all honesty - how is that bad, and what does it have to do with "equity?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

This may provide a clearer explanation:

https://www.mymcmedia.org/school-district-changing-where-students-with-autism-diagnosis-are-enrolled/

Thank you. Do I have this right?

There are currently 60 kids at Darnestown, all of whom will finish the program there.

However, moving forward, MCPS will set up new autism programs in a larger number of schools, and so fewer kids will go to Darnestown in particular, unless that's the program geographically closest to them?

I ask this with all honesty - how is that bad, and what does it have to do with "equity?"

It's unclear from this article, but what I understood is that Darnestown will no longer be specialized in autism. Children with autism that would have attended this program will instead go to "Learning Centers" that already exist across the county, do not specialize in autism, and have less staffing. This page on the X Minds website describes Learning Centers vs the Darnestown program under the "Diploma-Bound" heading: https://xminds.org/elementary-services

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

This may provide a clearer explanation:

https://www.mymcmedia.org/school-district-changing-where-students-with-autism-diagnosis-are-enrolled/

Thank you. Do I have this right?

There are currently 60 kids at Darnestown, all of whom will finish the program there.

However, moving forward, MCPS will set up new autism programs in a larger number of schools, and so fewer kids will go to Darnestown in particular, unless that's the program geographically closest to them?

I ask this with all honesty - how is that bad, and what does it have to do with "equity?"

I think there's also a reduction in paraeducators even though current kids at Darnestown will remain at Darnestown.

The messaging on this has been incredibly muddied and it really hasn't helped people understand the nature of the concern nor the reason for the changes. It's a mess, which is typical of MCPS and its abhorrent communication skills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've now read this op-ed twice and I still don't know what is being described.

The author claims that the program is being "emaciated" in the name of "equity." But it's not clear what is actually happening, and why.

This may provide a clearer explanation:

https://www.mymcmedia.org/school-district-changing-where-students-with-autism-diagnosis-are-enrolled/

Thank you. Do I have this right?

There are currently 60 kids at Darnestown, all of whom will finish the program there.

However, moving forward, MCPS will set up new autism programs in a larger number of schools, and so fewer kids will go to Darnestown in particular, unless that's the program geographically closest to them?

I ask this with all honesty - how is that bad, and what does it have to do with "equity?"

I think there's also a reduction in paraeducators even though current kids at Darnestown will remain at Darnestown.

The messaging on this has been incredibly muddied and it really hasn't helped people understand the nature of the concern nor the reason for the changes. It's a mess, which is typical of MCPS and its abhorrent communication skills.

At the board meeting, they said that the reduction in staff would follow the reduction in number of students as kids move on to middle school.

[jsteele]

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1199826.page