I am so sorry that your child has to go through this, thankfully he has a great mom helping/guiding him. In the meeting be sure to let themknow that school is a place for learning and as adults teachers need to try to encourage students to do better not send out negativity towards him .

please find out who your child's school's "Special Education Liasion" is and contact them for assistance as part of their role is to advocate for your child. I would request that this person be present at any and all meetings in person or via conference call, best wishes.

I have experience the same thing with my grandson 14, but not in that part of the country. Teachers and the principle just don't care enough to work with the kids.
Really, they don't want to be bothered by these types of children. So, now we home shool and he is doing good. His confidence and personality is for the good.

Good luck with the meeting. I agree to include your son in the meeting if possible. His input is important. I actually don't see a problem with switching schools due to the fact he has friends there and there is a program he wants there, the only concern would be if he would be getting support at the new school with his ADHD.
As for his self esteem have you ever shown him a list of famous people with adhd adhdtexas.com/famouspeople.htm
I think he will be amazed at how many famous and talented people struggled with adhd and made it.

no Maggie i am not upset with anything you said it;s all true and i do have a meeting tomorrow for his iep update and the one teacher is going to be there but there are like 4 of the teachers that don't like him because he gave them the wrong impression from day one is thinks everything is a joke i feel the reason he is like this is to hide how he feels.i did tell James if he wants to go the the other school we will try it but i have to find him a school that will offer the extra special help he need with his adhd.i went to school in P.A for a few year's and when they tested me and found out i had adhd i was in all special classes i don't great then but i don't think there is a school in Cleveland that offers that.but thanks for the advice and wish us luck.

i agree i will tell them i want James in the meeting and i do hope we can figure this out and thank so very very much for just having some advise and someone to talk to on this matter GOD BLESS YOU.

So you would want him to feel bad rather than let him try the other school. We all know that kids can be cruel to other kids maybe some of the kids heard teachers talking about him so he may have some mean kids making fun or teasing him. Have you asked him about this? Have you tried to talk to the teachers about what your son is telling you and how the teachers talk to him with negativity. remember at this age he is very impressionable. He is reaching out to you for help, not many kids do that especially at 14yr old they go and get themselves into all sorts of trouble. . please don't take offense to what I have written I am just sharing ideas. My son came home last year and told me he thought his teacher did't like him and at first I said don't be silly. then I began to notice that he wasn't has happy when he had to go to school, then I met her and well needles to say she wasn't the nicest person but I gave her the benefit of the doubt. After several times of hearing this I asked my husband to talk to her ( he is the nicer more calm one for this type of thing) and after talking to her he looked at me and said this lady is weird and we both could see how our child could not feel comfortable with her so my husband just came out and told the teacher that our son felt uncomfortable around her like she was picking on him or didn't like him and she looked as though she couldn't believe it but she said no he is a great kid. After that meeting my kid told me that she was different, nicer and she told him sorry for making him feel that way but she didn't know that she was portraying herself like that (go figure that one)

Since your son is older now, you should have him participate in his IEP meeting. He can directly express to the team what he feels he needs from his teachers and what resources will help him. You should also review his current IEP before your meeting.

Since this is his first year of high school, things can be pretty hard in the beginning, even for students who don't have special needs.

he has been this way all year i fell a small part is he is in his first year of high school a new school and there are like about 3 or 4 teachers that he i must say hates.he told me he does not see his special ed teachers like he use to .he says he has been trying but the teachers are telling him he has not improved so what do i do he does have friends at the other school and they have that rotc there and he wants to do that.but i went to cleveland public schools and i told myslf over my dead body will i send my kids.im just lost he is so down on himself he says he will grow up and end up living under a bridge.that kills me as a mother i dont know what to do who to turn too to i do and a metting tomorrow for his iep update so im hoopeing i can find a few things out but he is just so set in his mind he said he is not going to try no more and he will not go to this scholl next year .wow sorry i am going on and on thanks for send me back a message im just and the end not sure what to do for him anymore .

Welcome. I am sorry that you son is feeling so sad. I am a member of the "Learning and Attention Difficulties" group here at GS and many of our kids have had experience with similar emotions. It is very difficult for a parent to see their child hurting. As parents, we want to help our kids be happy and feel good about themselves. I think you might get more responses from persons familiar with ADHD here:

community.greatschools.net/groups/11554

In the interim, do you mind my asking a few more questions? Why does your son think he would like James Rhodes school over another school? Does he have friends who attend there? Does he know of someone who is getting the help he thinks he needs there? Does he know any of the teachers already at James Rhodes?

What specific problems is he encountering with teachers? Is it all the teachers or just one or two? What does he think would help him at school? Does he have any specific sugestions as to what would be helpful? Has he felt this way all year, or is this a recent development?

Explain to your son that he is not alone in his feelings. Other kids have felt the same way. When kids experience various challenges it can impact their self esteem. The good news is that we can all improve our outlook for the future, we just need the right tools in order to do so. Help him find his own set of tools, what works for him, and enable him to use his strengths to his best advantage.

For more support on the issues of ADHD please visit the Learning and Attention difficulties group here community.greatschools.net/groups/11554
Its a shame he feels hopless and he deserves better treatment from the school. Why does he prefer one school over the next? Is it just to escape the teachers at present school?