HILLSBOROUGH: Summer autism program cuts questioned

By Andrew Corselli, Staff Writer
   Several parents voiced their displeasure at Monday’s school board meeting about reductions to the district’s extended school year program.
   The parents, all of whom have children in the autistic program, were upset with the changes, which will cut hours of the six-week summer program by about one-half. The board maintained the reduction wasn’t made for budgetary matters; rather it was teachers voicing their concern about students’ attendance and attentiveness.
   ”Fifty percent of the enrolled students did not attend full time (a total of 29 days),” said Dr. Lisa Antunes, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. “Twenty percent of those enrolled students attended 27 days or less and 30 percent attended 25 days or less. There were a handful — seven or eight — of students who were there 100 percent of the time.”
   Attunes said teachers noticed that the autism students were more lethargic in the afternoon after a four-hour energetic morning, leading to the conclusion to eliminate the afternoon session. That struck a chord with one parent.
   ”My son is in the autism program so I have the benefit of having him go the whole day,” said Mary Downie of Beverly Drive. “It’s an invaluable piece of his overall education to be able to not lose his skills during the summertime.
   ”If the afternoon is more recreational and the kids are burnt out, I would question why during the school year we manage to keep the children engaged for the whole school day,” she asked. “Also, why wasn’t there an initiative to improve the afternoon rather than cut it?”
   The changes would cut the July-August program, which reinforces lessons learned during the school year, to 24 days from 29 by reducing it from five days a week to four for the six weeks. In addition, the autism program would be reduced to 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., instead of ending at 3 p.m. The preschool program will run from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., which is cut by one hour, and the K-12 LLD/mild and moderate programs will remain unchanged, according to Dr. Antunes.
   Parents of children in an ESY program were notified of the changes by letter about two weeks ago. That sent up a red flag and riled up the families.
   ”I have a couple of concerns about this letter,” said Tim Jordan of Brokaw Court, who said the issue was addressed in 2003 but was rejected upon a vote. “I feel as though the hours should not be cut… not only because I think those additional two hours are important to the children, but I question the reasoning behind the letter.
   Antunes said the Hillsborough program would continue to be equal and in many cases better than most of the county school districts the board surveyed.
   ”I find that more disturbing than taking the hours away,” said Mr. Brokaw. “I don’t want to be compared to other school districts. Just because Bridgewater or Manville or Montgomery does something and we don’t, I don’t care. I want this school district to be the best it possibly can. If I wanted to just have the minimum requirements that the state dictates, then I’ll move somewhere else. I want the best for the students of Hillsborough… I want to exceed in all areas.”
   Board member Gregory Gillette spoke of his disapproval for the cutbacks and the lack of board input on the situation.
   ”I have to say I agree wholeheartedly with (the parents),” he said. “I don’t understand the lack of school board input. We approve every textbook, every field trip destination. We can spend an hour talking about whether we’re going to eliminate an assistant cheerleading position but now we’re talking about reducing education for some of our neediest children from 195 hours to 96. That’s more than a 50-percent reduction.
   Mr. Gillette pressed for a reason why the board would vote to approve the reduce program.
   ”I don’t understand why this doesn’t fall under the calendar, the budget or some part of the curriculum that we vote on,” said Mr. Gillette. “I’m sorry, parents, that I can’t vote on this for you.”
   Kelly Neuberger of Crestmont Drive voiced her displeasure with the cutbacks, especially after hearing the reduction was not for budgetary reasons. She spoke of how a program that has been valued for “at least a decade” could suddenly be deemed unvalued. She pleaded for reconsideration — and may get it.
   ”Can we request a meeting like the one we had six years ago?” she said. “Can we have a meeting with the superintendent, with the administrators so that we can discuss our concerns with them about regressions?”
   Superintendent Jorden Schiff seemed to say yes, but asked the parents for time so the administration could review the proposal and comments.
   ”I suspect that based upon the parent outcome that we’ll have further discussion about it,” Dr. Antunes said after the meeting.