Pretty tech-savvy kid, that Tommy. Did you guys say he's 13? Fourteen, maybe? (Or am I thinking of your daughter?)

Anyway, I blabbed away on four threads...

I am writing up several responses. Great homework assignment. For Tommy, and me!

Tommy is 17. Walking the stage at Bearden High School on May 16 and if all goes well, he'll pickup studying to be a Vet Tech at Lincoln Memorial University in the Fall.

Tommy's education was far different than most but I contend that if I didn't point it out, you wouldn't know. Until the 7th grade, he didn't have school books within the Knox County school system.

Doug McCaughan
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Tell Tommy to check his spam holding tank. My last post went there for some reason.

I have no clue why Spam Karma moderated those. I think that could very well be the first false positive I've ever seen with Spam Karma.

Thanks to all for your wonderful comments!

Btw, my previous comment made me reflect a bit. I should have linked to where Cathy tells Tommy's story (see the first comment in that link). In short, Tommy was kicked out of kindergarten after the 2nd week. He spent first grade in a CDC classroom. He was kicked out of Bluegrass Elementary at the beginning of the 2nd grade. He spent 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade at KAEC with no school books learning only "behaviors." Cathy's efforts helped launch the first Asperger classroom at Bearden Middle where Tommy spent 7th grade with a wonderful teacher who aggressively mainstreamed Tommy. This is when his formal education began then stalled. This excellent teacher had to enter early retirement for health reasons and for the 2nd half of the 7th grade Tommy found himself under the guidance of untrained, non-special ed substitutes (which he found he could get to quit in an average of 2-3 days). We were told the Asperger classroom would be abandoned thus we home schooled Tommy for the better part of the 8th grade. We wanted him to go to a public high school so toward the end of the 8th grade we re-entered him into the school system so that he could adjust to the process and much to our surprise, the Asperger classroom was there and functioning! We were simply never told. The school encouraged us to fail Tommy for the 8th grade so that he could spend one more year "learning behaviors" before going to high school but we insisted he move onto the 9th grade. The 9th grade was a difficult transition but the teachers and staff at Bearden High School worked so hard and helped Tommy succeed. He had some CDC type classes but for the most part was mainstreamed.

I am proud to say that Tommy, having basically started his education in the 7th grade, scored a 28 on the ACT, will graduate with a regular education diploma, and proceed onto college.

When he was 6 we were told "he will never read." When he was 10 we were told "lock him away, he cannot be saved." And now, I'd challenge you to identify Tommy as anything but "normal" in a crowd of 17 year olds. He still has challenges in front of him but I'm proud of all that he has made of himself.

Doug McCaughan
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