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Parent leader urges action on ableism; District 75 principal describes services for students with significant disabilities
Summary
Quentin Mezzetine, CEC president and parent of children on the autism spectrum, urged the council and families to confront ableism and support neurodiverse voices. Principal Nicole Avila outlined District 75’s specialized instructional, communication and vocational supports for students with significant disabilities.
Quentin Mezzetine, president of the Community Education Council for District 28 and a parent of children on the autism spectrum, used his presentation time to define ableism and to urge parents, school staff and elected officials to address it in schools and communities.
"Ableism is the barrier, not autism," Mezzetine told the CEC, describing his family’s experience with diagnosis and services and calling for compassion, inclusive IEP meetings and amplified representation of neurodiverse adults in district planning. He encouraged school officials to invest in training "not just for compliance, but for compassion," and urged parents to "think about the whole child and not just the label."
The council then heard a citywide District 75 overview from Nicole Avila, principal of 811Q, who described District 75 as a multisite, citywide program providing highly specialized instruction for students with significant needs, including autism, cognitive delays, emotional challenges and multiple disabilities. Avila summarized program features that include a range of class ratios (for example, 12:1:1; 8:1:1; 6:1:1; 12:1:4, and inclusion classes), paraprofessional support, communication systems (devices, visuals, eye‑gaze), classroom‑based related services rather than a pull‑out model, vocational/work‑based learning for older students and family supports such as town halls and sibling workshops.
Avila said District 75 programs aim to make students as independent as possible and that District 75 classes use standardized curricula and transition planning. She said her 811Q program supports roughly 540 students across multiple sites and highlighted regular family engagement and connections with outside agencies including OPWDD for home‑based support.
Both speakers placed emphasis on family engagement: Mezzetine urged parents to advocate for their children, and Avila described monthly family invitations into classrooms and frequent town halls to share practice and planning.
The presentations were given during the meeting’s program segment and drew questions and supportive comments from other council members and parents.
