'It's like he's invisible:' Family fights for inclusivity for son with autism
WASHINGTON - A family is fighting for their son with autism to be included on his cross-country team among other kids after his school was unable to provide him with a consistent para-professional.
Middle school is never easy for anyone and trying to find your place can be hard for any student. But for Gabe Gottesmann who is autistic and can’t speak it’s even more difficult.
That’s why his parents had him join the cross-country team last year which he loved, until now.
Nicole Gottesmann and Caroline Kiernan say trying to find a sense of normalcy for their 14-year-old autistic and non-speaking son Gabe isn’t easy.
"When I opened up my email from the school, it said, oh, you know, anybody can try out for cross-country, it's for everyone. And I thought, well, why shouldn't he be able to do that?" said Nicole Gottesmann.
They were eager for him to join a sport and immediately Gabe was drawn to running.
"I think that just opened up like a whole new world for him," Gottesmann said. "He got to be on a team with, you know, a lot of other kids with his peers. He got to wear a uniform. He always seemed really excited and happy during the meet."
Last year’s season went so well that Gabe’s mom finally had hope her son would be just like any other kid on the team.
"I’ve been looking at videos and pictures of last year and I want to cry because he was so happy," she said.
But that quickly changed this year when his teammates were no longer there to support him along the way.
"This year he looks like a lost soul," Gottesmann said.
"I feel as though to the students it's like he's invisible," said Caroline Kiernan, Gabe’s second mother.
Last year Gabe’s para-professional ran alongside him at every meet but this year she was unable to be by his side due to an injury.
Gabe’s parents asked the school to help find another solution, but the answer was either someone new each meet that Gabe’s not familiar with, or his mom.
"It is difficult to communicate when you don't know someone. When they don't know you, they don't know how you communicate," said Gottesmann. "They’re going to expect me to be that person for everything in the future and it's not fair to him."
"He deserves to go to school and have the same experience that everyone else is having without their parents there."
Gabe even communicated to his parents how he feels.
"Gabe spells and he let us know that he felt there were no plans for him at school," said Gottesmann. "He said he wants more support at school, and he wants to learn new things."
"We are seeing that his mental health and social-emotional well-being has taken a toll," added Kiernan.
Desperate to find a way for him to fit in, Gabe’s parents say they just want the same opportunities for him as other kids.
"Inclusion is not just letting somebody be on a team, give them a jersey and let them tag along," said Gottesmann. "What I would like to see is Gabe on a team like cross-country where the kids really know him and they actually interact with him and it's not because they're being forced, it's because they maybe they need to learn over time, you know, maybe they have zero experience with this, but they need to learn. And the school is supposed to teach them that, right?"
FOX 5 reached out to Montgomery County Schools to ask them about this situation and their inclusivity practices.
They cited the R.A.I.S.E. core values of the athletics program that teach and reinforce respect and sportsmanship, academic excellence, integrity and character, spirited and safe competition and equity and access.