The need for autism education reform in Missouri

Bombardiers or Babies?

Hope the title was catchy enough! When I think of Bombardiers I think of black and white war stills, and, of course, Yossarian in Catch-22.

Our diligent Senators are “working pretty much around the clock,” to create a package to bring the Montreal-based Bombardier Aerospace to Kansas City. With a hurting economy, no one can deny the value of an economic tax credit to create jobs and bring new industry to Missouri. But the entire situation strikes me as odd. They are working around the clock to make Kansas City look sexier than Bombardier’s first choice—a city outside of Montreal—possibly to meet a deal-breaking deadline. While we’ve been told that this tax credit will create lots of secure jobs, there are some small voices cautioning that it may cost the state more than it benefits. Senators have pushed the bill through quickly and left little time for scrutiny.

This push has left Missouri’s scholarship tax credit in its wake, and that has made me wonder about the priorities of our Senators. Tax credit to tax credit, economic development and education are both important—vital—to Missouri. We’re offering more choice for a sector of our economy that is struggling, so I’m wondering what is different about offering more choice for a sector of our education where some children and families are struggling. Why aren’t Senators working around the clock to open up education opportunities for special needs children? Why isn’t there a bipartisan rallying cry for an education tax credit like there is for the Bombardier facility?

Personally, I’d like to make sure the next generation has the chance to develop their skills and work at one of these 2100 new jobs that will be created.

Do what makes sense for students with Autism

This article had some compelling thoughts about Autism and the need for additional choices in education.

According to a study from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that the rate of autism is much higher than even the frighteningly buoyant numbers we’ve seen in recent years. In fact, as many as 1/500 children have some variation of Autism Spectrum Disorder, or ASD.

It’s unclear if this is indicative of a real increase, or just an increase in accuracy of diagnosis and awareness of autism, but one thing is certain: educating children with autism is expensive, between 2 to three times the national average per pupil. It’s no wonder then, that many public schools are not equipped to educate children with autism.

Expecting every public school to accommodate the increasing number (real or diagnosed) of children with autism is not fair to teachers, parents and most importantly the students who deserve an appropriate education. It’s not fair to the communities supporting public education to expect them to recreate the vast range of services that are already available to special needs students.

House Bill 1886 offers an equitable and intelligent solution for these problems. Private donations would create a scholarship fund to help special needs students get an education that will prepare them to be active in society and even get back into mainstream public education. A tax credit stimulates the funds available, and makes it available where it can benefit students the most.