Outcome

I am NOT happy with the outcome of the meeting yesterday. The decision is / was based on Harley being a danger to self, other students and staff--otherwise they wouoldn't get away with doing this....

Harley will now attend school from 10:45 to 2:00 (regular day is from 7:10 to 2:00, so he will miss the first 3.5 hours of school). He will start with his math class, which is being changed to a math lab class where there are only 7 students (vs. 31). This I agree with. Then he will go to lunch. His aide is NOT with him during lunch...we discussed that other students can be mean and say things to them and they vehemently denied that to be the case because "their students aren't like that" and because "there is always an adult monitor in the lunchroom, although not assigned to Harley personally". Then he will attend the 5th period class in the Challenge Program working on life skills (rather than his cooking class) where there are only 3 or 4 other students with special needs. He will end his day with his Language Arts lab class which also has 7 students (this is not a change in his schedule).

I told them that when we were discussing his placement last year that I didn't feel this school was the right setting as I didn't feel it could meet his needs. I was told at that time that they were doing a pilot Challenge program for ASD students this year at that school and that is why they placed him here anyways. They asked who I worked with and I gave them the names of the two special ed directors I worked with last year...I got the standard response of "oh we weren't aware because they are no longer with the district"...

They again refused to allow Harley's behavior therapist to come in and train them in what works for them with Harley. The psychologist at the school feels most of these issues revolve around his hallucinations and he needs a medication evaluation. Since I refused to take him to the ER -- the earliest appointment we could get was the 14th, they have decided until his meds are straightened out and we see a reduction in hallucinations this will remain his schedule, then as he shows improvement, they will add hour by hour to his day. Hopefully by the end of the school year they will have him going full days...that is the goal...

I explained that I and the behaviorist felt that although he's most likely having hallucinations he is exaggerating them because he knows how much it upsets the administration -- and then he gets his way. They said I could not make that call, neither could the behaviorist because we are not doctors...

Now yesterday I kept him home because it was the first day with the anti psychotics doubled. It turned him into a glassy eyed zombie for a good part of the morning...but still around 11:30 he began having hallucinations. I guess that's another reason this schedule makes no sense to me...Since the school reports they see the hallucinations, behaviors and violence around 11:30, they are having him start at 10:45?

They will be bussing him to school but not until Tuesday of next week. Today I will drive him to school and he will try out his new schedule. Friday we have Tyler's preschool parent orientation and my endo appointment so he won't be attending school tomorrow...which puts a real wrench in Andrew being able to attend my endo appointment with me...So today I am on the phone trying to figure out if I can find someone who is willing to sit with Harley, Tyler and Zachary...it's only for 3 hours or so...