The New York Times recently wrote about a young man age 12 named T.J., who was classified as having a disability.  Young T.J. was one of 200,000 students in New York City public schools classified as having a disability, which can be anything from mild dyslexia to a complex physical disorder.  The story refers to these students as a small city unto themselves, and the special education system that serves them is awash in delays, misinformation and confusion.

The individual in charge of the system is Richard A. Carranza, New York City’s new chancellor who hails from Houston where he ran their school system.  Houston had about the same number of students in total as those who receive special education services in New York.

The story written by Elizabeth Harris begins with T. J.’s mother recognizing when he was 2 years old that he was already behind.  His twin brother was speaking in full sentences, T.J. couldn’t say a word.

With a call to their pediatrician thus began T.J.’s troubled journey through the labyrinthine bureaucracy of New York City’s special education system.  A decade later, T.J. is a friendly 12-year-old boy with a generous smile.  Even though he has started sixth grade, T.J. still reads at a first-grade level.  As the years fall away. T.J. is being left further behind.  Why?  By the education departments own accounting, more than 25 percent of students with disabilities who are entitled to help – or nearly 50,000 – did not receive the kind of specialized instruction to which they were legally entitled in the 2016-2017 school year.  In many cases, the city doesn’t even know in real time if children are getting what they need because the $130 million computer system designed to track interventions is riddled with glitches since it was installed in 2011.

While the graduation rate for all students has risen in New York City, students with disabilities are nearly 30 percent points lower than the citywide rate. Many of those who do graduate receive what’s called a local diploma, with requirements that are less rigorous than the norm.

The Department of Education says it is hiring more personnel, but the reality is many students are misdiagnosed.

In T.J.’s case, services were recommended and never materialized.  Deadlines to re-evaluate T.J. came and went.  And even though he has been receiving special education services off and on since he was 2, it wasn’t until age 12 that his family secured and accurate diagnosis of his problem: mild intellectual disability, a classification that used to be called mental retardation.  In the interim, a decade’s worth of interventions and therapy went largely wasted.

T.J.’s mother says, “she has spent a lot of sleepless nights wondering what his future will be like.”

Much of the speech and physical therapy, as well as occupational therapy has not worked.

T.J. repeated the second grade, was moved into small classroom settings then back into a large classroom.  He was sent to charter school then to private school.  The New York City disability system is “very hard to navigate” even for lawyers hired by T.J.’s parents. About 9,300 vouchers were used for private therapists when public help was not available.  However, even with the aid up to 91 percent in one district went unused, often because parents cannot find therapists

The practice of moving children from one expert to another doesn’t work.  These children deserve more.  They need a primary therapist, that stays with them through the entire process much like most people have a primary physician or internist.  Children need to trust and bond and not find themselves meeting more new faces when one or two is enough.