“Transitioning Autistics Back To School”

It can be found with many other Autism Spectrum Podcasts at http://www.mic.mypodcast.com

To:
Charlie.Crist@myflorida.com, – the Governor of Florida
Jeff.Kottkamp@myflorida.com, – the Lt. Governor of Florida
MillerJ@stlucie.k12.fl.us, – Vice chair of the school board
HilsonC@stlucie.k12.fl.us, – St. Lucie County School Board Chair
lannonm@stlucie.k12.fl.us, – St. Lucie County Schools Superintendent
cullym@stlucie.k12.fl.us – Morningside Elementary Principal
Chancellor.Haithcock@fldoe.org- Dr. Frances Haithcock,Chancellor, Public Schools,
Florida Department of Education
portillow@stlucie.k12.fl.us- Teacher's email Ms. Wendy Portillo

Subject: Alex Barton- Voting the Autistic Kid Off the Island

In a world where bullyism is supposed to no longer be tolerated Miss Portillo has basically endorsed and given these kindergarten children carte blanche to abuse and victimize someone for being different. Basically because Miss Portillo and the school are woefully inadequate to teach and pinpoint any learning issues in children she has chosen to make this child's classmates the bad guys and used and manipulated them into doing her dirty work. Now this child has the psychological scars Miss Portillo has allowed to be inflicted on him to deal with in addition to his neurological and learning differences. This kind of attitude is what led not only to the Holocaust but other similar atrocities being visited on mankind. I have always held that no teacher/ minister etc. should be allowed access to the most vulnerable and precious of our society as our children without a thorough battery of psychological tests being administered and clearance from a panel of three psychiatrists/psychologist who have reviewed the test results and interviewed the person giving clearance for that person to teach. No wonder so many people home school their kids.

I am emailing Alex Barton’s story and this email to as many people as I can. I am also forwarding all of your emails as well so that you may hear how others feel. Maybe Miss Portillo will now be singled out and ridiculed and then maybe she will get a small sense of what she made this precious child suffer through.

Lenore Myers, Esq.

PS This child's job was not to make it easier for Miss Portillo to teach. Her job was to find a way to teach him despite his differences. I wonder how Miss Portillo, who is obviously a minority, would have handled being singled out for her differences like this child.

PPS As appalled as I was at reading this story I am not surprised. In my experience with my own son who is on the spectrum and other parents who have children on the spectrum many schools across the country are for whatever reason- lack of training, funding or community support- failing these children miserably everyday; treating these children and their behaviors as problems instead of seeking solutions to helping them overcome their issues and enabling them to learn. It is common knowledge that the earlier children on the spectrum receive support and therapy the more likely they are able to heal their neurological injuries and go on to lead fairly neurotypical lives. Without these appropriate services being given in the schools where they are required to spend the majority of their young lives, they may never become functional enough to support themselves and may just become another burden on the taxpayers. Society needs to wake up and realize that just because they don't want it to be their problem today does not mean that it may not be their problem tomorrow when it has grown to gigantic proportions. This is not a matter of someone’s actions not being politically correct. Autism is an epidemic that is sweeping our nation and robbing us of our children. Though finding the cause is important- finding the cure is more important for our children, because they have already been injured. Most of us have become financially ruined to get our children the therapies that they have so desperately needed because they were not covered by our insurance and not provided by our schools. We have no retirement, no savings, our jobs are at risk or we live on one income because our children require so much of us. We sacrifice so much for them because there is nowhere else for us to turn for help. Then after all this hard work and sacrifice we get out child to this certain point of success and someone like Miss Portillo comes in and destroys the fruits of our labor. And who suffers most is our child. Shame on this world to be so self- centered and only interested in their own bottom line as to give our most precious resource, our children, the barest minimum when big government and big business get the big paychecks.

Also see Squid's take — her son has autism