As Minneapolis Public Schools administrators move to dismantle the district’s popular citywide autism program, parents of current and future autism program students are fighting back.

A brief article by the Minneapolis Star Tribune on June 22 tapped into the brewing discontent over MPS’ plans for the citywide program, which involves sending “level 1 and 2” autistic students (considered higher functioning by the district) to their neighborhood schools rather than to autism-focused sites throughout the city.

The district says this move is about providing more “resources” to neighborhood schools, and about mainstreaming special ed students.

But a group of Minneapolis parents with kids in the autism program are not buying these arguments, and in the last 48 hours they’ve gotten active, putting together a Change.org petition—intended to “preserve the rights of students with autism”–and sending out a press release outlining their complaints. 

The press release was sent via email by Emily Goldberg, whose five-year old twin boys are students in the citywide autism program. It does not mince words. Calling MPS’ stated reasons for taking apart the program nothing more than “rhetoric,”  the parent-crafted document offers a blistering critique of the district’s stance.

Here’s a look at the press release, called “Rhetoric vs. Reality” and signed by over 30 parents (bold type and font color are part of the document):

1. The District Says: Our new plan will allow more inclusion.The Truth Is: The autism program is already inclusive. It is arguably the best inclusive special education program in Minneapolis Public Schools and is currently recognized statewide for its inclusion and successful education of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The ASD licensed teachers and ASD trained staff give students the support they need to function in a mainstream environment. Teachers say the Citywide Autism Program also allows more inclusion opportunities for (Federal Setting III) students than they will have in the new plan.  

   The change the district is making will put more students with ASD on the caseloads of resource teachers (SERTs) who do not have knowledge of and expertise with ASD; the job does not require them to have the training to know how to educate and support these students. Without proper support, many students will fail academically, behaviorally, socially and emotionally—and will need to spend more time in special education settings.

2. The District Says: The autism program is not being closed. We only closed three classrooms to fund supports in neighborhood schools. The Truth Is: It is effectively being dismantled. In addition to officially shutting down three classrooms, the district also quietly closed off several more program sites to incoming students this year, with the clear intention of starving out those sites. Teachers have been ordered to remove all references to the Citywide Autism Program from the adaptations specified in current students’ IEPs. The program was designed to serve students…who required a high level of support by staff who have expertise and knowledge in Evidence Based Interventions; now, it will no longer be available to the majority of kids it was built for. (Higher needs) students no longer have access to modeling and increased inclusion opportunities, and some will be served in classrooms with kids of other disabilities and lose their individualized support.
3. The District Says: This is not about budget cutting.The Truth Is: There is no other rational explanation for these changes. Or if there is one, no one from the district has shared it or consulted with teachers and families. How much money will the district save in five years when there are no Federal Setting I & II students left in the program and the majority of current Autism Program site schools are closed down?

   Why is the district cutting access to early childhood ASD classrooms and raising caseloads from 6 students with ASD to 8 students with ASD in a classroom? Providing intensive interventions when children are young can improve the prognosis for when they get older. Many of the autistic behaviors can decrease or cease. Increasing caseloads to 8 will make it almost impossible to meet the individual needs of the students and turn this essential service into a day care. What reason for that is there besides budget?

Other areas of dispute are outlined in the letter, such as push back against the district’s classification of some students as “mildly autistic.” There is no such thing, the parents say:

Even kids who appear to function fairly well in the classroom much of the time can have violent outbursts, severe sensory deregulations and debilitating anxiety issues. They may sit quietly in the classroom but not learn. Sometimes kids’ classroom behavior is affected for minutes, other times for months. Their needs can change on a dime, and can be hard to identify without ASD knowledge and training. These children need special education services (Evidence Based Interventions) specifically tailored to the characteristics and needs of students on the Autism Spectrum. This is why the Citywide Autism Program exists.

The letter ends on a cautionary note, and with a plea for reconsideration from Minneapolis officials:

We…foresee disruption for general education students, and school-wide frustration for general and special education staff across the district. We predict this will lead to many students and staff leaving the district for greener educational pastures, while the children of families with less means will be left behind to fail.

We urge the district to keep all of its students’ best interests at heart. Please put a halt to this hastily implemented plan that will not serve anyone well. All of our city’s children deserve better.

Minneapolis Public Schools administrators, the ball is now in your court.