As we come to the end of Autism Awareness month, I’m excited to introduce this Diversation, where I chat with Johnny Patterson and his mom, Heather. I have known these two amazing people for many years, as Heather and I are both mothers of kids on the autism spectrum. We have laughed and cried together over the challenges and triumphs of our kids. As you’ll realize from our interview, it hasn’t always been easy—but Heather’s love and support for Johnny shines through the years of challenge, and Johnny is flourishing.
Heather realized her son Johnny was different when he was very young. “He had more energy than the Energizer Bunny.” The family doctor tended to downplay Johnny’s behaviour—including meltdowns, tics, and being disruptive in class—as typical of “red-blooded Canadian boys,” but Heather knew something was up.
“We always knew he was super-smart from six months old. He was reading at three and a half. He knew all his colours, his ABCs. He could have full-on adult conversations.” But at the public school where Johnny was enrolled in kindergarten, teachers reported he was disruptive, barking in class and getting frustrated by social interactions. When Johnny’s behaviour became explosive, the family was referred to BC Children’s Hospital, where he spent seven weeks as an in-patient and was initially diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. It was months before specialists finally landed on an autism diagnosis.
For three years, Johnny continued to struggle with public school. “They only allowed him there two hours a day,” says Heather. “Even then, I was getting a phone call after 30 minutes.” The school’s idea of managing Johnny’s behaviour was to lock him in the nurse’s room, vacant because there was no nurse. Despite being called a “quiet room,” the space echoed, which was triggering to Johnny, and during these confinements he had no opportunity to learn.
Heather and her partner Dave reached a boiling point. “We gave the public school system the opportunity to grade 2,” she says. After too many signs that the school didn’t have the expertise to engage a child with autism, they made the decision to home-school.
At the time, Heather had capacity to teach Johnny at home. But within a few years she realized that Johnny’s intellect and intelligence had overtaken her ability to challenge him academically. She chatted with other parents and learned about a private school that provides individualized education for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, other complex developmental disabilities, or different learning needs.
While this school was a night-and-day difference from public school, Heather wouldn’t describe his first year there as smooth sailing. “He had to learn self-control. He never had any because all they did [at public school] was send him home.” In contrast, they never once called Heather to come and get Johnny. “They handled it. They’d talked to me about it after… They treated him like a person.”
Just as Johnny had outpaced Heather’s ability to challenge him, he soon started giving his teachers a run for their money. Soon he was working with a tutor on higher mathematics and advanced calculus. “They never gave up on him,” Heather says. “When he was in the public school system, they said he would never be educated… And he proved them wrong.”
Many years have passed since Johnny entered the specialized school. The family is preparing for his graduation in June (“we’ll need extra tissues!”) and helping Johnny prepare for what will be a significant leap—Carleton University, on a scholarship for academic excellence, with a scholastic ranking that puts him in the top 4% of the province. For Heather and Dave, tears of joy are warranted. They look back to the early years when they didn’t know what to do, when they received no encouragement from educators—and how they were too stubborn to give up.
Although modest by nature, Johnny can be persuaded to open up about what makes him feel proud. “Getting a scholarship. Getting accepted [to Carleton]. My grades.” And he says he’s never going to stop letting his parents know it. His smile is big as he says, “If anyone else wants to be me, they can if they try.”
As for Johnny, he’s excited about entering the undergraduate program in computer systems engineering. “It’s going to be a totally different experience from anything I’ve ever experienced in my life,” he says. “I’m excited and worried at the same time.”
The family has connected with Carleton’s Paul Menton Centre (PMC) for Students with Disabilities. Once the PMC receives the necessary paperwork, Johnny will go through intake at the Centre and be able to request accommodations such as quiet spaces and assistance to navigate the university environment. Johnny has family in the area and is looking forward to the change of scene—and all its opportunities for growth and challenge.
Johnny, on behalf of the Parris Consulting team, we wish you the best of luck in university and beyond. There is no doubt in our minds that you will continue to achieve greatness. Congrats to you! Keep making us proud!
