Virginia Regulatory Town Hall View Comments

Department of Education

State Board of Education

Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children With Disabilities in Virginia [8 VAC 20 ‑ 80]

Action	Revisions to comply with the “Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004” and its federal implementing regulations.
Stage	Proposed
Comment Period	Ended on 6/30/2008

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6/26/08 9:41 am

Commenter: Erin Thompson

Change MR to ID in the Education Regs

Type o

Has anyone ever called you a “retard” or have you ever said “That’s so retarded!”

How did it make you feel? Did you think it was just a joke and harmless? Well, to me it hurts when I hear people say the “R” word. I was born with Down syndrome and labeled with the word mentally retarded. I don’t like the way that makes me feel and I especially don’t like how the word retarded is used to put people down. In the dictionary under the word retard one of the definitions says “a person who is stupid, obtuse or ineffective.” I am none of those things and neither are any of my friends who have intellectual disabilities!

That’s why I decided to do something about it. My friends at The Arc of Northern Virginia and I decided to change the laws in the State of Virginia by getting rid of the words mentally retarded and change them to intellectually disabled.

I don’t mind as much the words intellectually disabled because I know that some things are more difficult for me, but I also know that I work harder than most people to learn, and I keep trying. I am absolutely not retarded, I am disabled and I deserve the right to tell people how I feel. It is about my dignity and the dignity of people with intellectual disabilities.

How do you change the laws and hearts in Virginia? Start with getting motivated and knowledgeable people to support the mission to get rid of the “R” word.

Those people were at The Arc of Northern Virginia. I had worked there for a year and knew that they could help accomplish great things. The Arc was created in 1962 to advocate for people with intellectual disabilities to have "A Life Like Yours" — a home, a job, a life — in the community.

One person with the support of many can make great changes!I am one person of many who feel this is a very important issue and I feel honored to help. As Jill and I said in our speech to the General Assembly “In 2008 it is NOT okay to use the “R word” when you are talking about ANY PERSON. We want to be known as a person first. A person with a name– not called a diagnosis, an I.Q. Score, a mental age, or somebody’s child. If the State and state organizations must describe our disability– we request that the term Intellectual Intellectual disability be usedrather than the current term Mental Retardation. We would like to leave today and be able to proudly state that .. Virginia is not retarded anymore and neither are our schools!”

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CommentID: 1628