On this episode, redefinED senior writer Lisa Buie speaks with La Toya Bell, an independent living specialist for the Children’s Home Society of Florida and mom to Camrin, who attends a private school in Tallahassee on the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship.
Mrs. Bell, who recently shared her story before a Florida House panel considering expanded school choice legislation, discusses how Camrin’s diagnosis of ADHD made it challenging for her to remain in her district school. She also talks about how it felt for Camrin to be awarded the scholarship and about the positive impact the new school had on her.
“When she was in the public school I noticed when they were addressing her behaviors in a negative way, it was messing with her self-esteem and would make her cry, and … it almost made me feel like her teacher was picking on her, whereas once she did transfer into private school, the teacher had more patience … you could see a little more glow in her eyes.”
EPISODE DETAILS:
· How Camrin’s ADHD diagnosis and symptoms affected how she was treated in her district school
· How the family learned about the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship
· How Camrin’s new school positively affected her self-esteem
· Mrs. Bell’s opinion of HB 7045, which expands school choice to 61,000 more students
