News
School Says Autistic Student Has To Transfer
By: Megan Moseley
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Charla Gretz said she was shocked when a representative at Morrison Elementary said her autistic daughter would have to transfer schools.
"We've been preparing for her to go to Morrison for a year. This has been a very slow process," she said.
Superintendent Carl D. Martin said the issue is not with Shyanna, but with her service dog. Shyanna’s teacher at Morrison Elementary is allergic to dog dander.
Martin said he would have originally placed Shyanna at East Elementary if he had known earlier about the teacher’s allergy prior to school starting.
“I didn’t know until the first day of school,” he said.
Martin and the school district are recommending Shyanna be moved to East Elementary.
“I believe the best thing to do is have the child attend East Elementary where we have a wonderful program with a wonderful teacher,” he said.
Gretz argues such a change could easily cause Shyanna to have a "complete meltdown" since Shyanna does not adapt well to change.
Now Gretz said she will have to enroll Shyanna in online classes until the issue gets resolved. Although Gretz is confident Shyanna can cope with being homeschooled, it’s “not the same.”
“It’s important for her to meet other students, make friends and get to experience going to school,” she said.