Tikkabik

In previous entries I've described my son's condition - ADHD with Oppositional Defiant Disorder, or ODD. He's a good kid, but get him backed into a corner or ask him to do something he doesn't want to, and he can be really difficult to deal with.

A week ago last Thursday his teacher found out just how hard he can be to deal with: After what seemed like a minor altercation involving where his bookbag was placed, he kicked her, then stomped on her foot. It was enough to land him a five day suspension.

Yesterday we went in for what was ostensibly his "re-entry meeting." We had requested months ago that an Individual Education Plan (IEP) evaluation be done for him as well, so they told us they were piggybacking the two meetings.

Ultimately, there was no re-entry meeting, because it was decided in the course of the IEP meeting that Robert and the school aren't a good match. They want him outplaced, preferably to one of two schools in commuting range that specialize in children with behavioral problems. They say they haven't the resources, the expertise or the therapeutic environment someone like him needs.

On one hand, I'm delighted with the prospect of getting him the hell out of there, because our local school administration has done nothing but drop the ball since we had them evaluate him at three years old, because we felt he had issues that deserved special attention. They've disagreed every time we've brought it to their attention, including a request for an IEP we made three years ago. It apparently took him to assault their staff before they took it seriously enough to come to some sort of cogent plan of action.

On the other hand, I can't help but feel like the school's letting him down, and letting us down, for the same reasons.

What's more, I don't trust them. Part of it is just an inbred distrust of authority that I've had since I was a kid (I come by it honestly enough, and what the hell -- maybe it's a long family history of ODD). Part of it is the knowledge that this school system has let special needs kids down before -- enough so that they've been taken to court and lost.

So suffice to say, Bonnie and I are reviewing all of our options at this point and calling on every available resource to help us.

This comes only a couple of months after we finally stabilized Robert's younger sister on medications to help her manage her bipolar disorder, so we're still in crisis management mode. Some things, unfortunately, never change.