At the start of the academic year, a federal judge issued an order requiring a southwest suburban school district to reinstate a 10-year-old girl diagnosed with autism at her local neighborhood school. However, months after that ruling, her parents have stated that the underlying issues remain unresolved. Meanwhile, additional families of students with disabilities within the Manhattan area have come forward, alleging a broader pattern of discrimination within the district.
Three additional Manhattan families have since joined a federal lawsuit filed in Chicago, asserting that Manhattan School District 114 has engaged in a systemic pattern of discrimination against students with disabilities.
Julia Bartczak shared that her 16-year-old son, Bryce, who has Down syndrome, has developed meaningful friendships for the very first time.
“He asked for a birthday party this year, which is something he’s never done before, partly because he didn’t have friends, and he didn’t have the communication,” she said.
She was quick to note, however, that this positive development only came about after transferring Bryce out of Manhattan School District 114 and enrolling him in a different district.
When Bryce was in fifth grade within the Manhattan district, his mother began encountering a series of significant problems related to his learning accommodations. Among the most pressing concerns was the inconsistent access he was granted to his NovaChat 8 speech-generating device, a tool essential to his ability to communicate effectively.
“Depriving him of an effective means of communication, and I was repeatedly told that his lack of communication had nothing to do with his behaviors,” Bartczak said.
Bartczak further explained that she was ultimately left with no viable alternative but to homeschool Bryce for a period of approximately one and a half years, as no mutually acceptable arrangement could be reached with the district.
This experience closely mirrors that of the Femrite family, who pursued legal action to prevent Manhattan School District from transferring their 10-year-old daughter, referred to as E, who has been diagnosed with autism, to a therapeutic school without obtaining parental consent.
“We tried explaining over and over, it’s just like how you would handle another autistic child or a child with a disability. You just work with their providers and their parents, and you figure out a plan that works with them,” Kelli Femrite said.
A judge intervened and directed the school to permit E to return to her classroom and to implement the appropriate accommodations for her needs. Nevertheless, the family has reported that her individualized learning plan has still not been formally finalized, and they have once again been compelled to remove her from school, despite her strong desire to return.
According to those involved, approximately 20 families within the district have come forward since August with comparable accounts, including the Bartczak family.
“I just hope that they will work with families, not fight them. We have enough challenges already, so work with us,” Bartczak said.
Three of those families have formally joined a class-action federal lawsuit seeking meaningful and lasting change within the district.
“If it takes a lawsuit in order for you to realize that these changes are deserved for our kids, then that’s what I’m going to be a part of,” Bartczak said.
District 114 did not respond to requests for comment regarding the amended lawsuit. In a statement released in August, the district maintained that its staff “works closely with each family to facilitate the process of determining the best educational outcome for each child.”
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