My name is Emanuela Palmares, I am a 34-year-old Danbury resident, and I want to take this opportunity to set the record straight on my recent appointment to the Danbury Board of Education.
My son, Caio, was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder a few months before his third birthday. He was nearly non-verbal, developmentally delayed in every aspect and suffered from sensory sensitivities that made daily living challenging for him. The following year his father and I divorced, and have co-parented Caio with his best interests at heart ever since.
Caio attended daycare at Hudson Country Montessori and received Birth to Three services, for which I will be forever grateful. In 2015, at 3, he aged out of the program and we turned to the Danbury Public School System for his special education needs. Although the staff could not have been more caring, Caio went from receiving 20 hours of individual therapy and intervention for his autism a week, to only 7.47 hours a week. He started to plateau and eventually regressed in some areas.
His father and I decided that the best course of action for Caio was to be in a private school, where his autism interventionists could come in for the 40 hours needed in order for the insurance to pay for his care. That school is Saint Joseph’s in Danbury, where Caio thrives academically and behaviorally.
It’s important for me to share this with the public because it’s the very reason why I became involved in running for the Board of Education in 2015. I wanted to be part of the process, not just a bystander. I wanted to actively work to improve our schools.
To run for office is to step out in the public arena, to be open to scrutiny. I welcome criticism and dialogue, since both are certain pathways to personal growth.
While some people may disagree with my appointment to the Board of Education, even though the legal precedent is clear, the right to voice their opposition is the beauty of our country.
I will not apologize for doing what’s best for my child, nor let it be in any way taken as a statement on what I think about public school education. Literally, the skills to write this letter would not have been possible without a long list of Danbury public school teachers who believed in a little girl from Brazil, who didn’t speak a word of English when she arrived in this country nearly 25 years ago.
My life is about my family, most importantly my child. All of my decisions focus on him, what’s best for him, what’s best for his future, and what kind of world I will leave for him.
As to questions raised on whether I live in Danbury: I love our community and it is what is best for our family. Living with my parents, having their support and being able to help them with their medical needs, working in our family’s businesses, and volunteering in our community are the things that make me who I am.
I’ve been fortunate to find love and be able to start my life over with a wonderful partner who is equally committed to his community. This past November we got married, and made the difficult choice as two adults, who have learned with the experience of previous marriages, that living in the same household does not guarantee success. But not giving up all the work we have done to become rooted in our respective communities, could. Our love for each other transcends logistics.
Danbury is my home. My ultimate goal is my son will become a public school student, proud of everything about himself and that he can do anything he puts his mind to.
That is also my goal for every child in our district. I hope to serve as a voice on the Board of Education for all parents and students, and share my passion for the high needs population in our schools, whether they are English Language Learners like I once was, or Special Needs children like my son.
Now the real work begins, focusing on what’s best for our students, families, educators and staff investing in the future of our community.
Emanuela Palmares is the editor-in-chief of Tribuna newspaper and a resident of Danbury.