Service Dog Barred From Son's Manalapan High School Class

MANALAPAN, NJ — Alisa Forman has at least one major goal for her 17-year-old son, Justin: For him to return to his Regional Learning Academy class at Manalapan High School and complete his junior year successfully.

But a major stumbling block to his attendance are his diagnosed emotional challenges, including severe anxiety he experiences from traumatic events that began at age 4 when he was exposed to issues surrounding his parents' divorce, she said.

Alisa Forman was able, with the help of a donation from her temple Shaari Emeth, to add Dreyfus to her family. Dreyfus is a certified service dog, she said.

Her son now blooms in his presence, says Forman, herself a school psychologist, and is able to go out to a restaurant and interact with people with the help of his comforting companion.

But one place he can't take Dreyfus is his school.

The Freehold Regional High School District has not permitted the service dog in his Manalapan High School classroom, Forman said. As a result, Justin's anxiety often overcomes him and he just can't face school - even his nine-person class - without Dreyfus.

Justin has missed 76 days of school last year and 14 so far this year, despite his mom's urging him to go, she said.

Allowing Dreyfus to attend with Justin would make all the difference, she said, and she now has a due process hearing pending to try to accomplish that.

In the meantime, she is meeting with the head of the Special Services for the district this Tuesday to discuss Justin's attendance and she said she hopes he will be allowed home instruction, if Dreyfus still cannot accompany her son to school.

In April of next year she is scheduled to have a hearing before a judge of the Office of Administrative Law to consider the matter. She had been in mediation with the district, too, she said.

The Board of Education's hands are tied in responding to the issue because it is in litigation and it involves a minor, said Board Attorney Mark Toscano.

He said the district has a policy and a process in place to review such requests. He said the issue of a service animal in the district is "not new to the district."

But so far the matter is at a stalemate for Forman's son until the April hearing.

She said she would like her son to complete his grade and continue to move through the high school onto a trade school or community college.

She said he has emotional challenges but does not have learning disabilities.

As a trained school psychologist (she is presently taking time off from her work, she said), Forman said she "is well-versed in school policy."

But she says she is also just advocating for her son.

Her advocacy started in February in 2021 when the idea of acquiring a service animal first came up. Dreyfus joined the family in July of 2021. It's been a year and a half of various meetings on the issue since.

"If the district has a policy, how can it take so long?" she asked.

Forman, who has since remarried, has two older sons in college so her youngest child is her focus right now.

Dreyfus has been invaluable to Justin, she says.

For example, her son has a habit of repetitively biting his nails and hands almost raw. Dreyfus will use his paw to interrupt that.

Dreyfus also will "block" Justin by standing in front of or behind him to keep his personal space clear.

Dreyfus, who is 65 pounds, also provides a comforting weight on her son. He will rest on Justin's feet, for example, while he is seated at a restaurant to give him the comfort of the pressure.

She said the district offered to give Justin a weighted blanket but it is not the same thing.

"Can you imagine a 17-year-old boy who wants a blanket?" she said.

She said Dreyfus came from a company called Unleashed Academy in Spokane, Wash., and is well-trained and certified as a service dog. He is trained to be inconspicuous and safe around humans.

Regarding this stalemate, Forman says it's "not about having a pet at school."

She said that barring Dreyfus violates her son's rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

She says her bringing the situation to the public is a way to shed light on her predicament.