Marcial

Starting school for the first time at the age of 17 after never receiving any formal education would be a challenge for anyone.  Imagine how much more difficult this would be for a 17 year old mentally retarded boy with intermittent explosive disorder, aphasia, autism, and absolutely no command of language.

Marcial spent the first 15 years of his life in the care of his relatives in the Dominican Republic while his mother worked to make enough money in the United States to have him join her here. Marcial experienced seizures for the first 4 years of his life, was placed in a school for the deaf for a few months at age 5, and was quickly removed and never given any further education, support or stimulation for the next 10 years.

By the time he arrived in America at age 15 ½, Marcial was exhibiting violence and aggression toward others, was self-mutilating, chewed on anything he could get his hands on, had an uncontrollable temper, and was not even toilet trained. When brought to the Committee on Special Education (CSE), Marcial was placed in a full-day regional therapeutic support program with many hands-on stimulating activities and speech services.  He even received his own individual aide who would take him on walks when he got upset.  Despite these supports, Marcial appeared to be making no progress. He was the most disabled of all the children in his class, and his condition showed no signs of improvement.

This is when Student Advocacy stepped in. Marcial’s mother felt that he should be placed in a residential program, and an Educational Advocate, Edith Rosenbaum, began to work to make that happen. She demonstrated to the CSE that the time Marcial spent at home reversed any progress he was making at school, and that the only more intensive program than the one in which he was currently placed was a residential program. Eventually, the Committee came to the consensus that a residential placement would be best for Marcial. After a long application process, an appropriate residential program accepted Marcial. He has been there for the past 6 months and has made significant progress, including gaining the ability to signal his need to use the bathroom.  His family is extremely pleased with this new placement, and best of all, Marcial seems to be happy there as well.