Two Hamilton County Schools employees testifying in a federal court trial Thursday defended the system's decision to put a former student in intensive-needs classes.
Jill Levine, the principal of Normal Park Museum Magnet, said Luka Hyde received "the Cadillac of reading instruction" as a second-grader at her school during the 2012-13 school year. Hyde was the first student with Down syndrome at the school, and in April 2013 his teachers and administrators said he would need to spend third grade at the Red Bank Elementary Comprehensive Development Classroom, where he would spend half his days separated from general education students.
Luka's parents, Deborah and Greg Hyde, then enrolled him in the Montessori School and filed a civil lawsuit against the Hamilton County Department of Education. The Hydes say school leaders subjected their son to "illegal segregation," a decision that would leave him unprepared for life as an adult.
But on Thursday, Levine argued that teachers and administrators made their decision in Luka's best interest. She said he would learn better at the Red Bank Elementary CDC than in general education classes.
She said Luka's development was stunted in second grade, even though he received 30 minutes of one-on-one reading instruction and an hour of special "pull out" education tailored to him. She also said an assistant stayed with him throughout his school days.
"He really was getting so much more than typically any child would get," she testified.
In preparation for this trial, Levine also observed Luka at the Montessori School in September. She said his reading comprehension skills have actually gotten worse in the three years since he left her school. She argued that his current teachers give him assignments that are too advanced for him, forcing him to act out and ignore the lessons.
"It was an extremely inappropriate setting," she said. "Quite frankly, it was heartbreaking."
Jamelie Johns, the school system's math coach, also testified Thursday. She said she evaluated Luka in October and found his math skills to be those of a first grader, despite the fact that the Montessori School's teachers say he is operating at a fourth-grade level.
Johns said Luka struggles to handle problems with numbers greater than 10, answer math questions that are written in paragraphs and perform "life skills" such as reading a clock, a thermometer or a ruler. Johns did not finish her testimony and will return to the stand when the trial resumes in U.S. District Court on Monday at 9 a.m.
The Hydes' attorney, Justin Gilbert, argued Thursday that Levine's evaluation of Luka is biased. He said Levine failed to mention that the class sizes at the Montessori School are small. She also did not mention how often teachers meet with parents to review a child's progress or what kind of Individualized Educational Plan the school has given Luka, he said.
Without understanding that plan, Gilbert said, Levine cannot accurately evaluate Luka's performance. Levine, meanwhile, argued that she didn't know about the plan because she was not allowed to ask questions during her observation of Luka.
Gilbert also introduced evidence from a due process hearing in 2013. Despite Levine's argument that Luka was no longer improving as a student at Normal Park Magnet Museum, Gilbert showed that his teacher at the time believed Luka's "word work," behavior and stamina in the classroom had gotten stronger during the year.
"He was not able to meet those second grade standards," his teacher testified at the time. "But he made progress."
Contact staff writer Tyler Jett at tjett@times freepress.com or at 423-757-6476.