Rep.Lipke proves good man and politician are not an oxymoron

Some of you may have read a couple local stories in the Missourian and the Cash Book Journal about HB 236, or "Kaitlyn's Law". I like to refer to it as "Kaitlyn's Law" since I happen to be Kaitlyn's mom. I approached State Rep. Scott Lipke when Kaitlyn and I were told by our local school district that if she chose to exercise her right to a "free appropriate public education" through age 21, she would not be allowed to participate in any senior class activities with her senior class- those students she began school with years ago. Her peers would attend the "Senior Breakfast." She would not. Her peers would attend the "Senior all night party". She would not. Her peers would be excused from school the day after the senior all night party. She would not. Her peers would walk across the stage graduation night. She would not. There is a federal law (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) that gives students with disabilities the right to continue their public education until age 21 when necessary. Students who need it can receive transitional or job training services. Our district agreed Kaitlyn would benefit from those services, but said we would have to make a choice between receiving those continued services and participating in graduation with her non-disabled same age peers. If she chose to continue services, then when she was completely done receiving services she could participate in graduation. To us this made no sense. Kaitlyn would have the very same number of credits as her non-disabled peers. She would have attended school the same number of years. Why, just because she has a disability and chose to exercise her right to further services, pursuant to federal law should she be excluded from the graduation ceremony and other senior activities with her peers? We did some research and found that it was up to our local school district on this. There was no law that said they could not let Kaitlyn participate, but it was their call. Some districts in Missouri allow it. Some do not. This issue had actually come up across the country and in some states laws had been introduced and passed requiring districts to allow this. That's when Kaitlyn and I went to Rep. Lipke. He could have told us he'd look into it and then just dropped the whole thing, never to be heard from again. He could have just told us it was just up to our local school district. He could have never returned our call. But that is most definitely NOT what he did. He saw the value in our cause. He saw the value in my daughter. He saw the value in every person with a disability and saw that pursuing this cause was the right thing to do and that is what he did. He understood when I told him that to exclude my daughter or any other person's child who had spent the same number of years in school as their non-disabled peers from graduation activities was unacceptable and inexcusable.

Some parents send their children to school daily from age 5 (Kindergarten) to age 18 (when they graduate) and they attend parent teacher conferences yearly and get the "good" report on their child, but other than that communication with the school is minimal because things go fairly smoothly and their child's well being at school is maybe something they take for granted. Certainly they take their child's participation in the graduation ceremony and activities for granted once they have received the required number of credits and have completed their senior year. It turns out that even participation in the graduation ceremony and activities is not something parents of students with disabilities in Missouri could afford to take for granted- until Representative Scott Lipke. So often we hear the negative stories about politicians. We hear that they only want to work hard when there's something in it for them- some payoff- not just to help the "average American." We hear that Republicans and Democrats cannot work together- even for worthy causes. We believe that the words "politician" and "good man" are oxymorons. I am here to tell you that is not the case. I have always loved Hebrews 11:1. "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." My interpretation throught his situation was that I hoped my daughter would be allowed to participate in this time honored tradition with her peers after her senior year, but it didn't look like that would happen. I hoped good people would step forward and make that happen. I held tight to that verse through this whole issue. And it held true. SOMETIMES, politicians work for the "little people." Sometimes they work hard just because it is the right thing to do. They work hard and represent the "average American." Sometimes, when good men lead the battle, Republicans and Democrats meet in the middle and do the right thing. In my mind, when it comes to Rep. Scott Lipke, the words "good man" and "politican" are not oxymorons, They are forever synonymous. Thank you Representative Lipke. We are forever grateful.