Hamilton County parent says her special needs student not given equal opportunities

Chattanooga (WTVC) — A Hamilton county mom says the school system doesn't give special needs students equal opportunities at school.

Monday night, Chattanooga 2.0 held a public forum on how to improve education.

One group, says focusing on special needs students could be the key to the school system's success.

Some parents, like Trish Cox, think there need to be big changes in Hamilton County. Her son, Caelan, is autistic.

While he is in a regular classroom every day, sometimes, Cox says, he falls behind.

"These kids are important too. They have a lot to give society," Cox said.

The Executive Director of the Chattanooga Autism Center, Dave Buck, says schools that focus on special needs education, often times do better.

"If one out of five students have some type of exceptional education need, whether it be a learning disability, physical disability, those kids need to be addressed so that's what I'm trying to focus on," Buck said.

Both Dave and Trish shared their thoughts with several volunteers at the event.

There was a big turnout there, Monday night.

"This is a prime example of how many people care and want to participate in bringing our school system to where it needs to be," School Board member Donna Horn said.

Chattanooga 2.0 coordinator Jared Bigham says the event was about engaging the community in the education conversation.

All guests were able to write their thoughts on how to improve education on sticky notes.

"Even give us some insight into what's working because sometimes I think we don't focus enough on the positive things happening in Hamilton County and ways we can expand those opportunities," Bigham explained.

Each table represented a different level of education: from pre-K to college.

Interim Superintendent Dr. Kirk Kelly says education is the foundation of a better workforce and stronger city.

"Education is bigger than just a school system," he said. "Education is required of the entire community."

Chattanooga 2.0 conducted a study last fall on where Hamilton County falls behind in education.

You can see those numbers here.