164 School Board Meeting 2 (2/2)

The five men and women stayed silent so Mr. Pickens continued.

”Let's backtrack and talk about Jake. Jake Hollander is 14, a ward of the state and in the custody of the Atkins family. I've asked his caseworker from the state to be present and to share a few things about Jake and his circumstances.” Mr. Pickens turned and faced the crowd. ”Come up and share a few words, Doug.”

Mr. Duncan stood up and walked over. Mr Pickens sat down in his seat and let Mr. Duncan have the floor. He was as awkward as I felt. ”Uh, hello. My name is Doug Duncan. I'm a caseworker with the state of California, working with children in the foster care system.” He faced the five board members. ”I help children in the foster care system resolve behavioral, mental, and emotional issues. I try and find them a right fit with a reliable family, a good school, and a communicative psychologist in that order. Jake is a brilliant kid, but lacks social skills. He suffers from selective mutism.”

”And what's that supposed to mean exactly?” Harold asked from the board.

”To explain, we have brought Jake's psychologist, Dr. Elijah Moore.” Mr. Pickens stated from his seat. He looked over his shoulder and beckoned over the doctor.

Dr. Moore got up and walked over to Mr. Duncan, standing beside him. ”Selective mutism is a complex childhood anxiety disorder characterized by a child's inability to speak and communicate effectively in select social settings, such as a school. It doesn't mean that he can't speak at all, but more like social anxiety is crippling his ability to do so.”

”So imagine my surprise when I heard that a school counselor was not only accusing him of being a poor student for not participating in class, but she was also trying to force him to speak aloud to her.” Dr. Moore became stern as he stared down the five. ”Selective mutism is a disorder where the child has an actual fear of speaking. When confronted, it's normal for them to feel overwhelm, and will commit sporadic behavior. Like Jake. After being accosted and insulted, he listened to his instincts and ran.”

”Luckily, he was found by a police patrolman in the area.” Mr. Duncan continued where Dr. Moore stopped. ”This is where gross negligence comes into play. This is an open campus so I want to know why there weren't more adults supervising the area? Can the children just come and go as they please?”

”That's a topic for the school principal, sir.” Amanda Jimenez spoke up. ”As we are the school board, we look over the district as a whole. I would like to get back to Mrs. Golladay. Your group has stated, a few times now, that Jake was accosted and insulted. In what way? Can you be more specific?”

Mr. Pickens stood up, paper in hand. ”Key words from the meeting include: Unimpressive. Wasted excellence. Timid. Mute. Faint-hearted. Jake has been accused of not participating in class or communicating with class mates. And it's been insinuated that he's receiving 'undeserved special treatment.'” He looked back up and focused on Dr. Moore. ”As a psychologist, what are your opinions on the words being said to your patient, Jake.”

Dr. Moore faced the school board. ”Honestly, it makes me feel disgusted. This is borderline discrimination against those with disabilities. And I'm appalled that any so-called counselor would think it's okay to describe a child like that. This could have unforeseen psychological damages on Jake and could cause a serious setback in his treatment.”

Mr. Pickens nodded. ”Thank you Dr. Moore. Mr. Duncan, do you have anything else to add before I move on?”

Mr. Duncan nodded. ”I do. I'm concerned with the treatment that Jake has received. This counselor was supposed to greet him on the first day, but instead put him off for weeks. And then treated him like trash on the street. What I want to know, is how many other kids were made to feel this way?”

Mr. Pickens tilted his head at the board members. ”That'll bring up my next point. The counselors patients, aka the students of the school, aka the kids of our community. I will now ask a few to come down and share their own experience with Mrs. Golladay.”