WAVERLY, Ohio (WCMH) — A father said his child has autism but was denied special education services from his local school district.
Russell McCarty said he found out the hard way how local school districts can make their own determinations if a child gets into an individualized education program, and he is not too happy about it.
He said it all started the day Waverly City Schools explained to him why his daughter would not be placed in an individualized educational program.
“She said, ‘Well, I see kids with autism every day. Kids with autism are not verbal, they have bad motor skills, there’s a lot of things going on and that’s not her,” McCarthy was told by a school official.
It was at that moment McCarty was in disbelief.
“We said, ‘What do you mean? She’s being evaluated at Children’s for autism, so we’re under the impression that something’s potentially there,'” he said.
He explained that Waverly City Schools provided him with a two-page report on why his daughter, Beverlie, would not receive special education services.
The report stated, “As a result of the screening, no disability is suspected.”
“I was very upset,” said McCarty. “It took a lot of tongue biting not yell at her.”
It was a few weeks later that McCarty went to Nationwide Children’s Hospital where his daughter had another evaluation.
The hospital’s 28-page report concludes that Beverlie has “Autism Spectrum Disorder.”
The report later states, “Beverlie’s parents may wish to re-apply for special needs preschool enrollment.”
A recommendation he said he took back to the school district but claimed nothing happened.
“I contacted everybody asking how is this possible? Explain to me how this is a factor because I don’t understand how this works,” McCarty said.
School Psychologist Catherine Barr and Director of Special Programs Ashlee Stulley both said they have to follow Ohio Board of Education policies when evaluating a child.
RELATED: Read the Ohio Board of Education’s special education policy
“I think it’s important for parents to understand that medical terminology is not the same as educational classifications,” Barr said.
She explained that they have to see if a child can function in a normal class setting regardless of any diagnosis.
“So we often look at cognitive functioning, adaptive functioning, social, emotional. We look at academic achievement as well,” Barr said.
Barr added that while the school conducts an educational evaluation, they do take medical diagnoses into consideration.
NBC4 asked if a medical evaluation shows a specific diagnosis, will that change their decision to allow a child into an individualized education program?
“Not necessarily,” Barr said.
Stulley added, “It really does depend on the information and what the team decides.”
Those are answers that McCarty does not like.
“It’s frustrating that you can have a diagnosis from Nationwide Children’s, you know, from amazing medical professionals, I mean it’s a nationally renown hospital, and you can get a piece of paper from them stating, ‘Yes, this child has autism and yes, we recommend that they be involved in early intervention resources,'” said McCarty. “Then you take that to a school, and you’re just kind of looked at like, ‘And what’s this. We already made up our mind.'”
McCarty said he will continue to look for other options for his daughter.
He added he may appeal the current decision and could get another evaluation done by the school district or an independent evaluation which the district would have to pay for Beverlie to take.
