THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2006

Parents of Autistic Children Displeased With NSSEO Cuts

By BARBARA DOLAN

Journal Reporter

Parents of children with autism told the NSSEO Governing Board that they are not happy with the decisions to reduce payroll by redesigning and cutting out some support services for children with autism.

The North Suburban Special Education Organization (NSSEO) made tough decisions to reduce staff earlier this year, based on recommendations made by each member school district's special education representatives. Those representatives meet with NSSEO Superintendent Tim Stoudt monthly.

The programs that were recommended to be cut resulted in elimination of positions that were included in the almost 36 FTEs (full-time equivalents) personnel approved by the governing board for termination at the June 7 meeting. That 36 FTEs resulted in about 76 individuals receiving reduction-in-force notices, effective June 30.

Included in the program redesign cuts was the Early Childhood Extended Day program, which provides pre-schoolers with a longer day of services.

Some pre-schoolers, who attend school in the morning, were provided a social lunch and then had their day extended two hours in the afternoon. Students, who attended pre-school in the afternoon, had a day extended by two hours in the morning.

Linda Hoeck, NSSEO autism coordinator, explained that the Early Childhood Extended Day program was for "specific children who needed more services to meet their needs."

The cuts were made based on what the NSSEO member school districts determined to be their needs, Hoeck said. "It was a long process. They met several times with the finance committee, looking at each of the programs and how they were functioning, to make the determination."

In addition to eliminating the Early Childhood Extended Day program, staff cuts varied from program-to-program, Hoeck said. Some reductions were made of autism assistants in other programs. Some cuts were also made of technology assistants "who basically help set up the computers and provide assistance for computer and technology services for the children," Hoeck explained.

Parents with autistic children believe the staff reductions are detrimental to their children.

"They (the school districts) were told 'This is it,' but I don't think any of them really understand what autism is," said Gemma Nissen, a Elk Grove Twp. Dist. 59 Rupley School parent with an autistic child.

"They don't know what it like to have a child with cerebral palsy, for instance. They don't live with our kids 24/7 and know all the we have to do - go to music therapy, go to speech therapy," said Nissen. "We aren't telling them that we want them to do it all. We want to give them an understanding of what we are all about."

Nissen and other parents will continue to advocate for the needs of children with autism. She is a founder of Pay It Forward For Autism (PIFFA), a proactive nonprofit grassroots organization that provides education for families, school personnel, public servants and community members to advocate for and improve interaction with autistic children. The organization has a web site at www.piffa.org. "We are trying to educate the community and students about our kids," Nissen said.

While rehiring some staff may occur when positions become available, Nissen is concerned that many of the excellent staff working at NSSEO will lose their patience with the layoffs and find other positions. "We are losing a lot of high quality people," she said.

Nissen said the parents will continue petitioning the governing board to reconsider its decision and rehire the terminated staff. "We are hoping that some of the people on the board will change their minds," she said.

"I don't think they understand that these are kids you would love to know," Nissen continued. "But there is a lot to communicating with them -- what you say and what you do. We want to give them (the governing board) an understanding of what these kids are all about. We are hoping it will help. It is an investment now, but once these kids get to high school, they can be productive people. I keep telling people I think there are a lot of Helen Kellers out there."

Joanne Prifti-Nicholas, a parent in Mt. Prospect School Dist. 57, told the NSSEO governing board that there is a disproportionately high number of autistic children in Mt. Prospect, and her child is one of them. "Having a child with disabilities is like being a woman at the turn of the century," Prifti-Nicholas commented. "We are people with no rights."

Prifti-Nicholas encouraged the governing board to reconsider its decision. "My biggest concern is that these cuts were made due to financial constraints, and the needs of the children were not considered," Prifti-Nicholas commented. "These budget cuts have the potential for having a huge negative impact on the kids."

Prifti-Nicholas offered that seven years ago when her son was diagnosed on the autism spectrum, the rate of autism in the general population was 1 per 1,000. Today the rate is 1 per 166. "It is an epidemic," she said. "I believe because of the huge number of increases in autism now, it will be a social service nightmare later. Every dollar that you spend now is $3 that you don't have to spend later."

She questioned if NSSEO had put in place alternative services to those being cut. "Programs change, and that is okay, but it needs to be thought out. I don't believe it has been. New programs have to be in place. It can't be something they just hope will work," she said.

Bridget Smith said that her child will be an NSSEO student in the fall. An economist by training, Smith said that she has first hand experience with her child. "With a little bit of support, it makes the difference between a good day and a day of screaming," Smith offered. "With just a little bit of investment, you can make the difference."

Smith continued, "One less assistant can have an impact on an autistic child for years and years and years."

Maria Bellantuono, a Wheeling Dist. 21 parent, said her 9-year old son is in the Riley School program. "I think that basically cuts were made based on a budget number. They cut positions that seem to be minor and insignificant, but they really impact the program," Bellantuono said.

"They will train all the current aides, they said. But you can't just cut a position until they know the new person is trained. I think they should make sure it is going to work," Ballantuorno commented. "Autism assistants are very important to our kids."

"My hope is that the school districts and the board representatives revisit this before the kids are impacted," Prifti-Nicholas offered. "They have the time to do this before school begins." Prifti-Nicholas added that parents of autistic children are not asking for "Cadillac services. We just want the free and appropriate education that the state requires."