‘We will fight’: Parents want to save autism class in Limestone County
LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — Parents Alicia Loughary and Heather Bridges say their sons, who are nonverbal and attend Johnson Elementary School in Limestone County, have benefitted a lot from the attention and care.
“He looks forward to going to school, he doesn’t cry when he gets out of the jeep, and he goes right to them. He loves their teachers,” Loughary said.
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“They have been so good at meeting all his needs. He’s just a bundle of happiness and energy,” Bridges explained.
However, the Limestone County School Board has decided to rezone the autism wing at Johnson Elementary, but parents of the students are not ready to give up and are pushing to keep the classes open.
Both Loughary and Bridges say that moving their children may disrupt the progress achieved with the staff at Johnson and are searching for answers from the district.
“Our children don’t make friends easily and they are used to each other,” Loughary said. “They are comfortable with each other, and this is their environment. It may not be their zone but that’s their home.”
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Bridges agreed.
“If it’s not broken then why are we trying to fix it? Just to have that safety and that small group of kids has been so incredible for us and we just don’t understand why we can’t keep it,” Bridges said.
The superintendent of Limestone County schools did confirm to News 19 that those services will no longer be available to parents outside of the Johnson elementary school zone, and he encouraged families to enroll their children at the school in their zone and will receive the same services.
“There may be some unknowns there, but the key is we’re going to serve the children according to their needs at any of our schools just like we are doing at Johnson,” Randy Shearouse explained.
The parents said that they reached out to the Alabama Disability Advocacy Program and are hopeful for continued progress.
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