LET ALICIA VITIELLO WALK
East Hanover family feels wronged over a high school rite Parents fight to allow disabled teen to walk with graduates
BY LAURA BRUNO
DAILY RECORD
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060620/COMMUNITIES14/606200322/1203/NEWS01
EAST HANOVER -- A tiara in her hair, a corsage on her wrist, a limousine in the driveway and a date at her side, 17-year-old Alicia Vitiello was ready for Hanover Park High School's junior prom.
Family and friends gathered at her home last month, cameras clicking away, and Alicia, who has Down syndrome, said she felt "like a movie star."
Next year, Alicia and her family hope to share another teenage ritual -- this time, with Alicia wearing a cap and gown, standing next to friends and classmates she has known since kindergarten.
Getting to graduation won't be as easy as buying a dress and hiring a limo. First, Alicia and her parents must convince the school district to let her.
It's a conflict that arises each year in schools across New Jersey and the United States. Students with disabilities, like Alicia, are entitled by law to receive educational services until the age of 21. By then, however, Alicia would be surrounded by strangers. The Vitiellos want their daughter to share in the excitement of a graduation with her friends in the Class of '07. They are asking that she simply be allowed to walk across the stage, without receiving a diploma.
That clashes with district policy, however. Hanover Park Regional does not allow any student who has not completed their education to take part in graduation ceremonies.
"Something that's a no-brainer gets bogged down in policy," said Alicia's father, Thomas Vitiello. "Everyone always talks about what's best for the kids. But then you get caught up in black-and-white policy. She's a wonderful girl. Like any child, we just want her to be included and accepted."
In special education advocacy circles, policies like Hanover Park's are considered outdated and insensitive, given the current climate of including students with disabilities in all aspects of school life. The state Department of Education agrees and has recommended that districts allow students like Alicia to "walk" with their classmates.
But, in New Jersey, graduation issues remain a local decision to be determined by individual school boards.
"I can't see any downside. I'm always amazed that districts have a concern," said Paula Lieb, executive director of the New Jersey Coalition for Inclusive Education. "It's just very sad and seems mean-spirited."
Two states, Pennsylvania and Illinois, recently took the decision out of local hands and passed laws that side with students. Both states have laws granting students with disabilities the right to attend graduation following completion of their fourth year in high school, regardless of whether their high school careers are finished.
Hanover Park Regional Superintendent John Adamus said the district's policy predates his 20-year tenure there. Generally, Adamus would make the recommendation to the school board about how to handle the Vitiellos' request. Only the school board can decide to waive or change its policy.
Adamus believes such requests need to be considered case-by-case. He said each student's maturity must be evaluated by educators. They want to make sure students understand that, although they attend graduation, their school work is not done, Adamus said.
"We would have to have a full picture of the student and the family," Adamus said. "As an educator, there are different things I would want to look at -- how far along is the student, what is the emotional impact -- there's a whole multitude of issues ... Just because the family wants it, that's not necessarily what the board should do."
Adamus has spoken with Thomas Vitiello about the family's request, but said he is not prepared to make a recommendation. Adamus wants to see how Alicia progresses during the summer.
"One of the things we worry about is whether the child is mentally and emotionally able to come back in September and work," Adamus said. "Some can handle it and some cannot."
Alicia's parents have heard this from the district before.
More obstacles
In 2003, when Alicia was ready to enter ninth grade, district officials said they first had to evaluate her abilities before deciding which of the district's two high schools she would attend. The family wanted her to attend Hanover Park High School, which all East Hanover students attend. They did not want her to go to Whippany Park -- where the district ran its program for students with Down syndrome -- because she would be separated from longtime friends and classmates.
At the time, district officials said they had to evaluate her special needs before deciding on a placement. The district later recommended Alicia attend Hanover Park.
Adamus and Thomas Vitiello, an East Hanover councilman, have agreed to revisit the graduation issue in September.
Vitiello is optimistic. He believes they again will work out a compromise.
Last year, the state Department of Education weighed in on the question by issuing a letter asking districts to adopt such inclusive policies. The department had received calls over the years regarding disputes and decided to write an official opinion, said Barbara Gantwerk, director of the Office of Special Education Programs.
"There's no reason why they can't do it," Gantwerk said. "We wanted to tell districts how they can look at this in a positive way and explain the benefits."
Walking at graduation with the teens they have known for years allows students with disabilities to experience a sense of accomplishment and reduces the stigma that they are not completing their education, Gantwerk said.
By forcing students to wait two years, the ceremony has less meaning because they are surrounded by strangers, Gantwerk said.
In addition, she said, some students have been so focused on marching at graduation with their "class" that some will decide to take the diploma that year, regardless of their need to continue receiving services.
In the state's letter to districts, Gantwerk wrote that accommodating such requests "create no more than minor logistical difficulties for districts when organizing their graduation ceremonies and activities,"
Meanwhile, the Vitiellos have faced questions that families of typical students never have to consider.
Class member
Janice Vitiello, Alicia's mother, said the family has participated in Class of 2007 events and fundraisers since Alicia's freshman year. Like every other Hanover Park High School student, Alicia has brought home notices about class rings and yearbook photos.
"I'm thinking to myself all this time, do I know if my daughter is going to be a part of what I'm contributing to?" said Janice Vitiello, a special education teacher. "It's important to know what class you belong to. If you think about class reunions, what class do you get invited to?"
Alicia considers herself to be a part of the Class of 2007. Since freshman year, she has bought school clothing with the 2007 logo and has voted in Key Club elections according to her grade. She also recently asked her family for a class ring.
She is pictured with the Class of 2007 in this year's yearbook and Alicia said she wants to attend graduation next spring.
"I want to celebrate with my friends, hug them and say good job," Alicia said. "I want to congratulate them and tell them I'll miss them."
Alicia is poised to complete all her graduation requirements next year, making it a good time to mark the end of Alicia's traditional high school experience, her mother said. The last two years are regarded as transitional years, during which students should prepare for life after high school. Many students like Alicia will not attend college. Instead, students typically spend a lot of their time in community-based programs getting job-related practice.
There are school districts -- West Morris Regional, Montclair in Essex County and Haddonfield in Camden County, for example -- that allow students to walk at commencement after completing their fourth year and meeting personalized objectives in high school, even if they will continue to receive services afterward.
Haddonfield High School gives students with disabilities a certificate of completion at graduation, which looks similar to a diploma. With 750 students, Haddonfield is similar to Hanover Park, which has 850 students.
"For kids who have been included all these years -- how do you not do it?" said Bonni Rubin-Sugarman, Haddonfield's director of special services. "How much meaning will graduation have when the kids walking next to you don't know who you are? I can't imagine asking anyone to do that."
Helps students
Martha Clavadetscher of Chester and Joan Smith of Montclair both have daughters with Down syndrome. Both girls were allowed to walk with their respective classes; West Morris Mendham High School in 2003 for Clavadetscher and Montclair High School in 1997 for Smith. Both students continued to receive services from the district in subsequent years.
"It was important to her, she had been going to school with these children since preschool," Joan Smith said. "How would a child feel if, all of a sudden, because they have a disability, they can't attend a ceremony with everyone else? Why can't they give you something recognizing that they completed that part of their education?"
"It was wonderful," Clavadetscher said of the ceremony. "So many of the students had been with her since kindergarten."
The Vitiellos want the same for Alicia. They saw how thrilled she was to attend the junior prom. When the limo pulled into their driveway, Alicia said in amazement, "Oh my God," covering her mouth with her hand. The next instant, a broad smile spread across her face.
It was a moment Thomas Vitiello will cherish.
When she was picked up from the prom several hours later, she was tired, but it was a good tired -- she had danced nonstop.
Alicia was escorted by her friend, Michael Bender. The two met in a freshman biology class, when both needed a lab partner.
They've been friends ever since.
"We talk about anything, school, teachers -- the same things I talk about with anyone," said Bender, 17, of Florham Park. "She has a lot to say, but not many want to listen."
Bender said he would like to see Alicia walk at graduation next year.
"Just because she's handicapped, doesn't mean she doesn't know what's happening."
Laura Bruno can be reached at (973) 428-6626 or lbruno2@gannett.com.
White House supports Hanover Park student
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060628/COMMUNITIES14/606280322/1150/NEWS01
06/28/06 - Posted from the Daily Record newsroom
Bush aide: Allow teen with Down syndrome to walk at graduation
BY LAURA BRUNO
DAILY RECORD
EAST HANOVER -- The White House has jumped into the debate over whether Alicia Vitiello, a Hanover Park High School student with Down syndrome, should be allowed to walk with the Class of 2007 when it graduates next spring.
Olegario "Ollie" Cantos VII, the Bush administration's associate director for domestic policy and former general counsel for the American Association of People with Disabilities, has sent the case to the U.S. Department of Education for review and has pledged to personally follow Alicia's story.
"I believe that Alicia should be allowed to participate (in graduation), enjoying one of the rites of passage to adulthood as others her age do," Cantos wrote in a June 26 letter to Alicia's parents, Janice and Tom Vitiello. "I take great personal interest in seeing this situation resolved."
Cantos first contacted the Vitiellos on Thursday, two days after a Daily Record story detailed the family's clash with the school district. Hanover Park Regional School District policy does not allow students who have notcompleted their education to take part in a graduation ceremony Alicia, a 17-year-old from East Hanover, is entitled by law to receive a public education until she is 21. However, she would like to walk at graduation next year, following her fourth and senior year at Hanover Park, with classmates she's known since kindergarten.
The Daily Record story was circulated on the Internet by advocacy groups across the country. It was forwarded to Cantos by Mary Troupe, director of the Mississippi Coalition for Citizens with Disabilities.
"The fact that this person at the White House picked up on the article is a miracle," Janice Vitiello said Tuesday.
'No-brainer'
"I think it proves that this is an issue people feel strongly about and one that touched the hearts of many who don't understand why my daughter can't walk at graduation," Tom Vitiello said. "It reinforces that this thing is a no-brainer."
One school board member for the Hanover Park Regional School District, which operates both Hanover Park and Whippany Park high schools for students in East Hanover, Hanover and Florham Park, continued to defend the graduation policy Tuesday.
"I don't see any purpose in her walking," said Marguerite Lemongello, a representative from East Hanover. "Right now, I support our policy. That's not what I call inclusion -- satisfying the whims of parents or whomever. That's not part of an inclusive education. Inclusion means getting a full education. A graduation ceremony is not part of that."
Nevertheless, the state Department of Education last year asked districts to adopt inclusive graduation policies that would allow students like Alicia to walk at commencement. Graduation issues are controlled by local school boards, but the state Education Department weighed in last spring on behalf of students. A strongly worded memo made clear that no state law or regulation prohibits districts from accommodating such students.
Many school districts across the state allow students to walk even if they will continue to receive services until age 21.
State laws
In addition, Pennsylvania and Illinois recently passed laws allowing high school students with disabilities to walk at graduation following their fourth year, for the same reason Alicia wants to walk. If students wait until they are 21, they are likely to be surrounded by strangers and the ceremony has less meaning, advocates said.
In his letter to the Vitiellos, Cantos said Hanover Park's policy surprised him.
"I must admit a good deal of surprise to the extent that your local district is presently choosing not to allow your daughter with a developmental disability to participate in the commencement exercises ... it does not in my view seem unreasonable to allow her to be included."
Cantos said he is sending the matter to John Hager, assistant U.S. secretary of education, and expects the case to be reviewed by the Office for Civil Rights. Cantos wrote he believes there is a "potential violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by any entity receiving federal funds, including the school district whose graduation policy is presently in question."
Cantos, blind since birth, was appointed to the Bush administration in 2004, initially serving in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. His duties today at the White House are dedicated solely to serving the disability community at the national level.
No comment
Hanover Park Superintendent John Adamus said he could not comment because he was not aware of Cantos'involvement in the matter.
"An official from the White House has not contacted me,"Adamus said. "Until that person contacts me directly, I can't comment."
When Adamus spoke with Tom Vitiello earlier this month about the family's request, he said he was not prepared to make a recommendation in Alicia's case. Adamus said such matters must be decided individually and that a variety of issues, including the student's progress and family issues, must be weighed before he can recommend whether the board should waive its policy. He agreed to revisit the issue in September.
The final decision on whether to waive or amend the graduation policy rests with the Hanover Park Regional Board of Education. Several board members did not return calls seeking comment Tuesday, including board President John Crane and the board's two other East Hanover representatives, Corinne DeStefano and Stephanie Politi.
"Sometimes, families with children with disabilities are so overwhelmed with the struggles they face with school districts that they give up," said Janice Vitiello, a special education teacher who holds a master's degree in education with a concentration in special education. "Hopefully, this situation can be resolved for Alicia and all those students who follow her not only in Hanover Park, but in New Jersey."
Janice Vitiello said Hanover Park's graduation policy is a symptom of the district's outdated philosophy toward transition in special education. Allowing Alicia to walk at next year's graduation would be a good time to mark the transition from a traditional high school experience to preparing for life and work after school, she said. Typically, the final two years of special education services are focused on giving students job training in their community. Alicia is scheduled to finish all her graduation requirements by next spring, but her parents want her to continue to receive transition services.
"It's unfortunate this had to go all the way to D.C. and we can't take care of it in our community," Tom Vitiello said. "We'll reach out to anyone who has compassion and understanding for this young lady."
Legislators' views
Tom Vitiello, the Republican township council president in East Hanover, said he was disappointed that no Hanover Park school board members contacted him after the news story appeared, considering several know Alicia. The family has heard from local legislators, however, including Assemblymen Joseph Pennacchio, R- Montville; Alex DeCroce, R-Parsippany; and Sen. Robert Martin, R- Morris Plains.
"I offered anything I could do to help," Pennacchio said Tuesday. "It didn't seem like the right thing to do," he said of the district's policy.
"We'll put all our efforts into seeing this straightened out by next year," said Pennacchio, who has met Alicia several times through her father.
Pennacchio said he is willing to pursue legislation similar to laws passed in Pennsylvania and Illinois.
"This is something that has to be addressed," Pennacchio said. "With the move to mainstream disabled students, we need to be sensitive to these issues and we can start by being more flexible in such policies."
************************************************************************
'A lot of eyes' on Hanover Park High School
Support for disabled teen, already backed by White House, spreads across U.S.
BY LAURA BRUNO
DAILY RECORD
EAST HANOVER -- Across the nation, disability rights advocates, parents and educators are watching to see whether Alicia Vitiello, a 17-year-old East Hanover teen with Down syndrome, will be allowed to walk at Hanover Park High School's graduation next spring.
From Connecticut to California, they are voicing support for Alicia, whose story has been circulated on the Internet. Since the White House jumped into the debate on Alicia's behalf two weeks ago, advocates are hoping Alicia will be the last student to face this fight.
Olegario "Ollie" Cantos, the Bush administration's associate director for domestic policy, has asked the U.S. Department of Education to investigate whether Alicia's rights are being violated by the Hanover Park Regional School District.
"There are a lot of eyes on Hanover Park High School," said David Tolleson, executive director of the National Down Syndrome Congress. "We're all waiting to see what happens."
In two weeks, the national congress will hold its annual convention and, Tolleson said, Alicia's case surely will be a talking point in the two-day conference schedule.
At issue is whether Alicia can take part in graduation ceremonies in her senior year, even if she continues to receive a public education until she is 21, as allowed by law. Hanover Park policy bars any student who has not completed their education from graduation exercises.
Alicia's parents, Janice and Tom Vitiello, have asked that their daughter be allowed to attend commencement next year with the friends she has known since kindergarten. They believe it will be a good time to mark her transition from a traditional high school schedule to preparing for work and life after school.
Hanover Park Superintendent John Adamus has said such cases must be decided individually and he needs until September to make a recommendation to the school board in Alicia's case. Only the school board can decide to waive or change the policy. Adamus did not return a phone call seeking comment for this story.
John Crane, president of the Hanover Park Regional school board, has not responded to several calls seeking a response in this case.
Meanwhile, parent message boards on the Internet have been filled with responses, voicing support for Alicia and her family.
The Daily Record's articles detailing the family's clash with the district and the subsequent involvement of the White House have been e-mailed among parents and advocates and posted on advocacy Web sites. The Daily Record received expressions of support for Alicia from individuals and groups in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Georgia, Florida, California and Mississippi.
"This story is being discussed on message boards and people are expressing outrage at this local board," said Walter Glomb Jr., president of the Connecticut Down Syndrome Congress. "What people like myself are watching for is to see if, between now and next May, this school board decides to let her participate in graduation like my son did and others are doing these days."
Glomb said the current trend is to let students with disabilities attend graduation -- even if they are not technically receiving a diploma. Glomb's son attended graduation after his fourth year in high school and received a certificate of achievement. He continues to receive services from his public school district and is spending his final two years with a tutor at his local community college, Glomb said.
"I was absolutely stunned to read your article regarding Alicia Vitiello's plight with her high school system's graduation policy," said Leo Juarez, director of special education for the Delano Joint Union High School District in California. "In California, we have allowed Down syndrome students to participate in graduation ceremonies for the past 10 years."
California's legislature amended the state's education code in 1999 to give students with disabilities the right to attend graduation ceremonies with nondisabled peers even if they have not completed their education and will continue to pursue their diploma.
Two other states, Pennsylvania and Illinois, recently passed laws granting students with disabilities the right to attend graduation after completing the fourth year of high school.
In New Jersey, the matter of who can attend graduation still rests in local school boards' hands. The New Jersey Department of Education weighed in on the matter last year, asking school districts to adopt more inclusive policies.
Janice Vitiello, Alicia's mother and a special education teacher, said she hopes this nationwide groundswell of support will benefit all children with disabilities.
"I'm hoping this is another step toward eliminating standards that ask students with disabilities to earn access to things that typical children automatically get," Vitiello said.
Mary Troupe, executive director for the Mississippi Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities, said the 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, has been around long enough that children with disabilities should not have to fight for such small accommodations any more.
"To have to fight something like this, which is a no-brainer, really set me off," said Troupe, who spurred the White House response when she sent the Daily Record article to Cantos. "I think this may happen more often than we are aware of. It's scary and depressing that we still have this attitude out there."
Mary Beth Pringle said she had flashbacks, after reading Alicia's story, to a case several years ago when a Florida boy with Down syndrome was denied an invitation to graduation under similar circumstances. Pringle is president of the Southwest Florida Parents of Down syndrome Angels, a family support group.
"People don't understand -- it's the little things," Pringle said. "I wish everyone in the education field would come to understand that a little rule change like this could be a huge milestone for children with disabilities."
Laura Bruno can be reached at (973) 428-6626 or lbruno2@gannett.com.
******************************************************************************
Hanover Park to revisit graduation policy
Schools chief says he's developing plan that may let student walk
BY LAURA BRUNO
DAILY RECORD
EAST HANOVER --Come September, the Hanover Park Regional Board of Education will have an updated graduation policy to consider --one that specifically addresses students with disabilities, such as East Hanover student Alicia Vitiello, Superintendent John Adamus said.
For the first time this week, Adamus said it was his plan all along to recommend a revised policy to the board dealing with the issue of walking at graduation for students with disabilities who receive district services through the age of 21.
Adamus agreed the policy was "outdated"and said it was time to give staff direction on how to handle all senior-year activities, including when such students can attend proms and be included in the yearbook.
"This policy has to be changed," Adamus said.
Those were words Tom Vitiello, Alicia's father, said he wished he heard long ago. Vitiello said he was stunned to hear this week that Adamus planned since at least June to promote an updated policy. He said Adamus never told him that in previous conversations.
"I wish this could have been done in the beginning," Tom Vitiello said. "It's a shame it had to come to this level to have an 18-year-old participate in a graduation with her classmates."
The district's current policy was questioned by the Vitiello family because it barred their daughter, who has Down syndrome, from attending graduation next spring with classmates she's known since kindergarten.
The existing policy, which is more than 20 years old, does not allow any student to attend graduation until they have completed their education.
Alicia, 17, planned to receive a public education in the district until she is 21, as permitted by federal law. Alicia wants to walk at Hanover Park High School's commencement with the Class of 2007 and celebrate the day with her friends, even though she won't technically graduate.
Alicia's case did not specifically prompt the policy review, Adamus said. The district was facing, for the first time, several students who wanted to continue in the district past the age of 18, he said. That also raised another issue, which demands the board's attention -- transition into the workplace, he said. Adamus said staff has worked for several months on drafting a new policy that outlines how students will receive job training and coaching through the district.
The workplace transition policy was prompted by the 2004 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, he said.
Adamus could not say how many students, in addition to Alicia, would be affected this school year by such a new graduation policy or transition plan.
Alicia's parents said they started asking district officials during her freshman year about allowing their daughter to attend the Class of 2007 graduation. They alternately received negative or noncommittal answers, said Janice Vitiello, Alicia's mother.
"I think it's nice they're doing this after all the publicity," said Janice Vitiello, a special education teacher. "This should have been in her transition plan since freshman year, which is what I had asked for. This was a waste of time and hurtful."
Last-ditch request
This June, Tom Vitiello, Alicia's father, took their last-ditch request to Adamus.
Another noncommittal answer followed. Adamus said such requests needed to be reviewed individually before he could offer the board a recommendation. Adamus said he needed to see how Alicia fared during the summer.
"We would have to have a full picture of the student and the family," Adamus said previously. "As an educator, there are different things I would want to look at --how far along is the student, what is the emotional impact -- there's a whole multitude of issues. ... Just because the family wants it, that's not necessarily what the board should do."
The final decision to accept Adamus' policy recommendation rests with the board. One board member, who represents East Hanover, said previously she did not see a need for a policy change.
Adamus would not outline what his recommended policies will say. He said the board must get first crack at seeing them. Adamus said he expects to have the policies ready for board review early in the school year.
Meanwhile, the Hanover Township mayor and committee last week petitioned Hanover Park to permit Alicia to walk at graduation.
The town sends its high school students to the district, along with East Hanover and Florham Park.
'Mean-spirited'
That followed on the heels of the White House and disability activists across the country expressing their dismay at the district's "outdated" and "mean-spirited" policy. A White House official forwarded Alicia's case to the U.S. Department of Education, asking for an investigation into whether her civil rights were violated.
The East Hanover mayor and council are expected to pass a resolution similar to Hanover's at a public meeting Monday night, said Tom Vitiello, who is an East Hanover councilman. Florham Park Mayor Frank Tinari said he will present the resolution for consideration to his council Tuesday night.
The East Hanover Board of Education sent a resolution this week to the Hanover Park Regional board also requesting its graduation policy be changed and to accommodate Alicia's request. A majority of the East Hanover board approved the resolution in advance of its next meeting Aug. 15, school officials said.
"It's the right thing to do," said Michael Pichowicz, East Hanover board of education president.
Laura Bruno can be reached at (973) 428-6626 or lbruno2@gannett.com.