Name: Maurice Age: 17 (11th Grade) Sex: Male Home: Washington D.C. School: Thurgood Marshall Academy Family: Maurice is an only child living with both parents. Prior to his diagnosis his parents, especially his father, were prone to chastise him for his behavioral problems and blame his academic deficiencies on laziness. After he was diagnosed with Asperger’s his parents became incredibly supportive and frequently contact the school and attend meetings aimed at improving his situation. Medical Diagnosis: Asperger’s Syndrome (receiving an unspecified medication that is used to calm him down.) Maurice was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a high functioning autism spectrum disorder, at the end of his 10th grade year, which is comparatively late as most children are diagnosed at 7 or 8 years old. The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) refused to accept that he was autistic and it was only after transferring to a charter school that the root of his lack of success was properly addressed. Unfortunately this left Maurice with years of self esteem damaging experience as he tried to navigate both the social and academic aspects of elementary, middle, and early high school. While he is now considered by most of the faculty and staff as very capable and intelligent, prior to his diagnosis Maurice was failing all of his classes across the board and was prone to regular verbal altercations with other students. His diagnosis profoundly changed his approach to education; it gave him a sense of what it was that had been affecting him all of his life. He began to cope with his disability and his grades went up to C’s. Before diagnosis his dad didn’t understand his behavior and it strained their relationship, afterwards there was a 180° change in his position. His parents are highly supportive and have tried…
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