Victory! 12-Year-Old With Epilepsy Can Bring Service Dog To School

Victory! After a grueling battle with his school district, 12-year-old Andrew Stevens can now bring his service dog Alaya to school with him, Andrew's dad told us today. This victory comes partly due to the involvement of Change.org members, who sent 371 emails to Andrew's school urging them to overturn the ban. It's time to celebrate a victory for disability rights, epilepsy awareness and a boy and his dog!

Andrew's Fairfax County, Virginia elementary school had repeatedly barred Andrew's trained service dog Alaya from school, despite the fact that Alaya can help detect and prevent Andrew's seizures. Andrew, who has epilepsy, used to have 10-20 seizures a day. Now it's gone down to 5-10 a day, his father, Angelo Stevens, told Change.org today.

But the school wouldn't budge, demanding additional certification and saying that teachers could do the job of the cuddly German Shepherd.

Andrew's parents didn't give up. Angelo and Nancy Stevens had spent two years and $20,000 to buy Alaya for Andrew, who has Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. They went to the media, garnering coverage in the Washington Post and this morning's TODAY show. Adding to that pressure, more than 371 Change.org members signed a petition to Andrew's school in Fairfax County, Virginia, near Washington D.C., urging them to allow Andrew's service dog at school.

Today, Ft. Belvoir Elementary officials told Andrew's parents that Andrew could bring Alaya to school with him as early as next week. In the beginning, Angelo and Nancy will accompany Andrew to school, riding the bus with him and staying with him and Alaya during the day. As teachers and students adapt and learn how to interact with Alaya, Andrew's parents will gradually transition away and Andrew and Alaya will go to school together -- as originally planned.

Not only that -- the school is now looking at updating their policy on disability access, Angelo Stevens told Change.org today. This all comes thanks to the grueling work done by Andrew's parents to advocate for their 12-year-old son and his service dog.

The Stevens family created a foundation in Andrew's name, first to raise money for Alaya, and now to raise money for service dogs for other needy children. That foundation, and the TODAY show coverage, has meant that he's been contacted by other parents around the country who are trying to get their childrens' service dogs admitted in schools. To them, he says, "Get people on your side. Go to doctors. Go to the epilepsy foundations. Go to the media. Go to Change.org. Go back, and present a stronger case."

And never, ever, ever give up, he says, thanking Change.org members for their involvement.

"Never stop fighting for your child and for what's right," he told us. "Quitting is the easiest thing to do, but you can never quit. When you feel the weakest, when you feel like giving up, call me, call the Andrew Gordon Stevens Foundation, call civil rights activists, call disability groups, call Change.org. Do something other than give up. Because when you're down and out and you want to give up, that's when your supporters give you that strength to carry on."

Keep on carrying on, Stevens family. You've just won a victory that means so much to children with disabilities everywhere.

Photo credit: The Andrew Gordon Stevens Foundation