Boulder Valley School District begins implementing a neurodiversity-affirming approach after parental protests highlight shortcomings of traditional autism interventions like ABA, sparking a broader debate on inclusive practices in schools.
Boulder Valley School District’s shift towards a neurodiversity-affirming approach began, unusually, with parents speaking bluntly about harm. After a hurriedly arranged listening session in 2023, families of autistic children described shortened school days, repeated calls to collect children early, suspensions and restraint, and a system they felt was more interested in managing behaviour than understanding distress. Superintendent Rob Anderson, whose own child had received special education services, responded by promising an autism advisory team that would include parents, community members and staff. The result was a policy adopted in 2024 that asks schools to affirm students’ identities rather than try to “fix” or “cure” them.
The district’s rethink comes amid wider criticism of applied behaviour analysis, or ABA, long treated as the standard autism intervention. According to the reporting, the method traces back to UCLA psychologist Ole Ivar Lovaas, who used rewards, punishment and intensive drills to shape children’s behaviour. Modern providers say ABA has changed and no longer involves physical punishment, but critics argue that the approach still rewards compliance, encourages masking and can leave children traumatised. A 2026 Axios report said Medicaid spending on autism therapy had risen sharply in recent years, while a University of Colorado Law Review article in 2023 examined how Colorado schools have increasingly absorbed ABA into education, raising questions about medical treatment being used to fill gaps in school services.
For parents such as Sarah Pirilä, the issue is not abstract. She described a moment in 2019 when her son, referred to by his first initial to protect his privacy, screamed for help while private ABA technicians kept him confined during a meltdown. That experience led her to conclude that what adults had treated as defiance was in fact a stress response. Over the following years, she tracked thousands of data points from school records and found that her son did far better when adults used what she called neuro-informed supports rather than ABA-style strategies. Her charts showed stronger attendance, better behaviour and improved reading and writing when he was given more flexibility and fewer punitive responses.
Boulder Valley says it has begun changing course. District leaders introduced compulsory neurodiversity training for staff, with autistic presenters helping explain fight-or-flight responses, masking and the importance of safety. They have also created an internal dashboard to monitor restraint, repeated restraints and whether schools are identifying root causes of behaviour. Even so, families say the change remains uneven. The district’s own special education materials still say Board Certified Behaviour Analysts support autism classrooms and implement ABA-aligned strategies, which some parents see as evidence that the old model still shapes practice.
That tension reflects a broader national problem. The US Department of Education warned in 2022 that restraint and isolation should be used only when a child poses imminent danger of serious harm, and said there is no evidence they improve disability-related behaviour. Yet the practice remains hard to dislodge, especially where schools lack staff or alternatives. Boulder Valley reported no restraint or seclusion cases for the 2024-25 school year, but it also reported high levels of detrimental behaviour among students with disabilities, who make up 15% of the district but one-third of those disciplined. Anderson says the district is still learning, but insists the work matters beyond autism alone: if schools can understand neurodivergent students better, he argues, they can serve all children more effectively.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
