'She just wants a friend': Families push for full school days for children with disabilities

‘She just wants a friend': Families push for full school days for children with disabilities

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Advocates say schools across the U.S. are removing students with disabilities from classrooms, often in response to challenging behavior, by cutting the days they’re allowed to attend. Parents and advocates argue the move amounts to discrimination. (June 21) (AP video: Manuel Valdes, Claire Rush)

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Khloe Warne, 12, browses the shelves at the Josephine Community Library, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe loves drawing, writing and especially reading — in second grade, she was already reading at a sixth grade level. But she only goes to school one day a week for two hours and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, uses a computer at the Josephine Community Library, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Alyssa Warne and her daughter, Khloe, 12, read at the Josephine Community Library, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Across the U.S., advocates say, schools are removing students with disabilities from the classroom, often in response to challenging behavior, by sending them home or cutting back on the days they’re allowed to attend. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, makes cupcakes with her mother, Alyssa, at the family bakery Beef Cakes, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Not being able to attend school regularly has saddened Khloe, stunted her education and isolated her from her peers, her mother says. It has also upended her family’s life. Her mother had to quit her job for a time in order to stay home with her. She described the fight to get her daughter back in the classroom as exhausting, stressful and sad. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, makes cupcakes with her mother, Alyssa, right, at the family bakery Beef Cakes, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, looks for an ingredient in a freezer at the family bakery Beef Cakes, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, hugs her mother, Alyssa, as she becomes emotional while explaining Khloe’s school experience, Thursday, May 18, 2023, at their bakery Beef Cakes in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Khloe Warne, 12, stands for a photo with her mother, Alyssa, at the family bakery Beef Cakes, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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People walk by River’s Edge Academy Charter School, which Khloe Warne now attends only one day a week, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Khloe, 12, was put on shortened school days by her school district after incidents in which she fought with students and threw a desk in outbursts her mother, Alyssa, attributes to a failure to support her needs. Now she only attends school one day a week for two hours, and hasn’t been on a regular school schedule for years, instead spending much of her time at her mother’s bakery or at the local library. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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A Grants Pass School District 7 school bus drives under a city slogan sign, Thursday, May 18, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, uses an airway clearance system that uses vibrations to clear mucus from her lungs while getting ready for school, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at their home in Grants Pass, Ore. Scarlett reads at her grade level, but is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food. Because of her medical needs, the school must have a resident nurse on site. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, plays on her tablet in her room, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Chelsea Rasmussen prepares one of several medications for her 8-year-old daughter, Scarlett, at their home before heading to school, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. After the pandemic, Chelsea agreed to start Scarlett on a three-day school week to ease her into in-person learning for the first time. But it took months of meetings and persistence to bump her up to five days a week, she says. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, watches a video on her tablet as mother, Chelsea, administers medication while they get ready for school, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at their home in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea, has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at school after starting with a three-day school week. She says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, watches a video on her tablet while using an airway clearance system that uses vibrations to clear mucus from her lungs while getting ready for school, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at their home in Grants Pass, Ore. Scarlett’s mother, Chelsea, says, “Every day I woke up with this immense burden: ... My child does not feel like she belongs. She can’t access a meaningful education. And there’s absolutely nothing I can do about it. ... I felt like I was drowning. ... We wasted a year with a child that could do grade-level work.” (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, looks on with service dog Riptide as her mother, Chelsea, drives them to Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea fought for more than a year for her 8-year-old daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Vivien Henshall, a long-term substitute special education teacher, walks with Scarlett Rasmussen as Scarlett’s mother, Chelsea, follows with service dog Riptide, at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea has fought for more than a year for her 8-year-old daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Vivien Henshall, a long-term substitute special education teacher, works with Scarlett Rasmussen separately as other classmates listen to instructions from their teacher at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea has fought for more than a year for her 8-year-old daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen’s Dynavox, a tablet tool she uses to communicate, sits on the couch Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at her home in Grants Pass, Ore. Scarlett, 8, is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Vivien Henshall, a long-term substitute special education teacher, talks with Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, during recess at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, lies underneath a play structure during recess at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, tosses a ball with other classmates underneath a play structure during recess at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, gets into the car of her mother, Chelsea, after a short school day at Parkside Elementary School Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Grants Pass, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen has fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Jessi Hendrickson, a ranch attendant and instructor assistant, left, and riding instructor Atarah Brown, right, work with Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, as she laughs while riding horse Callie at the Foundation of Southern Oregon, May 17, 2023, in Rogue River, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Jessi Hendrickson, left, and Hollie Tenberge, right, work with Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, to ride horse Callie at the Foundation of Southern Oregon, May 17, 2023, in Rogue River, Ore. Chelsea Rasmussen fought for more than a year for her daughter, Scarlett, to attend full days at Parkside and says school employees told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs, which the district denies. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

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Scarlett Rasmussen, 8, sits at home with her tablet and service dog Riptide before getting ready for school, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at their home in Grants Pass, Ore. Scarlett is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate, but reads at her grade level. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food, requiring her to need a resident nurse at school. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

By CLAIRE RUSH

GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) — One Thursday morning in May, instead of sitting at a desk in her sixth grade classroom in the Oregon mountains, Khloe Warne sat at a table in her mother’s bakery, doing her schoolwork on a laptop and watching her favorite clips of anime.

Khloe, 12, loves drawing, writing and especially reading — in second grade, she was already reading at a sixth grade level. But she only goes to school one day a week for two hours. The district said she needed shorter school days last year when Khloe threw a desk and fought with students in outbursts her mother attributes to a failure to support her needs. Khloe, who has been diagnosed with autism, ADHD and an anxiety disorder, had no individualized education plan for her disability when she returned to in-person learning after the pandemic.

Not being able to attend school regularly has saddened Khloe, stunted her education and isolated her from her peers, her mother says. It has also upended her family’s life. Her mother, Alyssa Warne, had to quit her job for a time in order to stay home with her. She described the fight to get her daughter back in the classroom as exhausting, stressful and sad.

“She just wants a friend,” Alyssa Warne said. “It’s not asking much to send your kid to school for at least one whole day.”

Across the U.S., advocates say, schools are removing students with disabilities from the classroom, often in response to challenging behavior, by sending them home or cutting back on the days they’re allowed to attend.

Schools say the move can be necessary to keep students and teachers safe and prevent disturbances. But parents and advocates argue the shortened days, often referred to as informal removals, amount to discrimination and violations of students’ civil rights. Under federal law, it is illegal to bar a child from receiving the same education as their peers based on conditions stemming from their disability.

Alyssa Warne sued her daughter’s school and school district this month, alleging disability discrimination. School officials did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit. In an earlier email, the school director said she couldn’t comment on individual students because of privacy concerns.

In Oregon, a clash between parents and schools culminated this spring at the Statehouse. A bill to curb the use of shortened days, essentially giving parents veto power over such a decision, is pending in the House of Representatives after near-unanimous passage in the Senate. Pressure from school boards and superintendents has hurt the legislation’s chances, its chief sponsor said.

“It shouldn’t have been controversial because these kids have had this right for such a long time,” Democratic state Sen. Sara Gelser Blouin said of her bill. “I wish that we could serve these kids, respect these kids and lift these kids up and honor their rights without being ordered by a court to do so.”

Dan Stewart, managing attorney for education and employment at the National Disability Rights Network, said he wasn’t aware of other states with laws limiting schools’ use of shortened days as Oregon’s bill would have. But a number of states have issued guidance through their departments of education informing schools that shortened days could potentially amount to discrimination under federal law.

Since the 1970s, federal law has guaranteed students with disabilities the right to a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. This means, as much as possible, they should be learning alongside their peers who don’t have disabilities, with necessary accommodations. It’s illegal for school districts to cite a lack of money or staff as a reason for not educating a child with disabilities.

But states don’t always enforce the law, advocates say. Instead of hiring specialists, training teachers or providing tailored services, they say, some schools are shortening students’ schedules as a way to manage difficult behavior.

Oregon is embroiled in a lawsuit over schools’ use of shortened school days, filed by the nonprofit advocacy group Disability Rights Oregon in 2019. Experts appointed by the court to research the issue found about 1,000 Oregon students with disabilities — most of them in elementary school — are on shortened schedules.

“While less than 2% of students in special education are placed on a shortened school day, for those students and their families, this amounted to often a dramatic decrease in the amount of instruction received, a loss of opportunities for interaction with peers, and an educational program that put them in a position to lag further and further behind their peers in both academic and social emotional skills,” the experts’ report said.

This spring, in the debate over the bill, teachers unions said a lack of specialized training and a post-pandemic crisis in student mental health were putting them in harm’s way and disrupting classrooms.

“Education employees are reporting frequent injuries caused by students, and yet they are provided with limited training and scarce options to protect themselves from harm,” wrote Susan Allen of the Oregon School Employees Association.

But schools receive federal and state money for kids with disabilities that they should use for training and staffing, advocates say.

“Resource allocation is a decision, and school districts have decided not to invest,” said Meghan Moyer, public policy director for the nonprofit advocacy organization Disability Rights Oregon.

For some Oregon families, the bill’s stalling is only their latest setback.

Another parent in Grants Pass, Chelsea Rasmussen, has been fighting for more than a year for her 8-year-old daughter Scarlett to attend full days at school.

Scarlett reads at her grade level, but is nonverbal and uses an electronic device and online videos to communicate. She was born with a genetic condition that causes her to have seizures and makes it hard for her to eat and digest food. Because of her medical needs, the school must have a resident nurse on site.

After the pandemic, Scarlett’s mother agreed to start her on a three-day school week to ease her into in-person learning for the first time. But it took months of meetings to bump her up to five days a week, Chelsea Rasmussen said. School employees, she said, told her the district lacked the staff to tend to Scarlett’s medical and educational needs at school.

Officials at the school system attended by Scarlett, Grants Pass School District 7, said staffing was not a factor in her case.

“We try not to shorten days for students with special needs,” said Vanessa Jones, the district’s director of special services. “It’s a team decision and we use it as sparingly as we can.”

At home, Scarlett kept showing her mom online videos of children playing or Sesame Street lessons. She longed to be at school, her mother said.

“We wasted a year with a child that could do grade-level work,” Chelsea Rasmussen said.

She plans to continue speaking out — both for Scarlett and other families struggling with the same issue.

“How can you not allow a child to have an education?” she said. “We don’t feel like we should have to fight that hard for a student to feel like they belong.”

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Claire Rush is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.