Success is at their fingertips!

This video put tears in my eyes: http://www.slide.com/r/iuh0R78L6T-c6OKGktGBSae57oYHscfS

This young man loved the game, loved the team, and loved life. He tried so hard to make this team great and now this team made him feel better than ever! This just goes to show someone with autism can and will be successful at whatever they want if someone can give them the chance. Whether it be a team, a school, or a family; success can be right there. That child or adult living with autism just needs to be given the chance! If schools around Missouri would just give all children with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) a chance, they can succeed. Let them have that chance, let them attend a school that is capable of giving a good education. The students stuck in schools that are not equipped to do so will forever suffer because of it. Just like this young man, they can all be great!

Cause of Autism still unclear

The diagnosis rates of autism are alarming. Those numbers have been increasing and do not seem to be slowing down. According to the CDC, 1 in every 150 born is autistic. Those numbers are substantially higher than they used to be. There are several speculative reasons behind autism. One cause for the rise was the use of thimerosal in vaccines for infants and young children.

However, studies are presenting conflicting results. According to an older article in the Medical News Today:

An article in the March 10, 2006 issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons shows that since mercury was removed from childhood vaccines, the alarming increase in reported rates of autism and other neurological disorders (NDs) in children not only stopped, but actually dropped sharply - by as much as 35%.

More recently, this article was posted on The Autism Bulletin Blogspot:

California public health researchers have found that the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in young children has risen, even after doctors stopped using a mercury-containing preservative thimerosal in the vaccines babies receive.

The study, "Continuing Increases in Autism Reported to California Developmental Services System," is published in the January 2008 issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

The Wall Street Journal also describes these unfortunate results here.

The bottom line is, the rates are still rising! From the most recent studies, the rates do not seem to be affected by the use of thimerosal as once thought. Either way you look at it, we need to find the best possible ways of treatments and educating these children while we discover the causes. We need to deal with this problem, and deal with it now. These children have every right to a decent education. Not every school is capable of giving them the attention, tools, and care they need to succeed. The parents should have the right to remove them from those schools and transfer them to schools that can and will meet their needs.

It is not a problem that seems to be going away, so we need to do what is right for them now.

Missouri Needs a Scholarship Program for Children with Disabilities

The Center for Disease Control estimates every 1 in 150 children are diagnosed with some form of autism. This estimate cannot account for those who are never tested, whatever the reason may be. Therefore, autism is more prevalent than we think. Most of these children can succeed with proper treatments and proper education. Unfortunately, not every school is equipped to educate these children adequately. The government passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA); that includes revisions and amendments. This act clearly says children with autism spectrum disorder should be given a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) . Some parents cannot afford to send their children to schools that are more capable of educating them, whether it is another public school, private school, or a special education school. Several other states have passed legislation that tries to solve this problem. Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, and Utah all have passed some sort of disability or special needs scholarship programs. I would like to focus on Florida’s program. The John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program provides students with disabilities to attend a public school other than the one assigned, or provide a scholarship to a private school. Any student that has been given an Individual Education Plan (IEP) can apply for these scholarships.

The program does not cost the state anything. The children are awarded the amount the state would have been paying for them at their assigned school, including the costs to accommodate the disability or the cost to attend the private school, whichever is less.

I bring up Florida because it is something Missouri could benefit from. It would not cost the state anything, and these children can get the education they deserve. Is it fair to not give these children a chance to succeed in life? I think not.