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We felt terrible for the school team. And we felt bad for the family, too; we heard that they had been banned from the school. One thing we knew for sure—we would never be the kind of parents who would go to due process. We were not lawsuit people and didn’t even know any lawyers. If we ever had differences, we would find a way to work them out. Due process for us? No way!

How can parents prevail at due process? You must learn how to use letters, documents, and independent witnesses to prove your case.

A parent had a question. She said she did not agree with the school's proposed IEP, the school refused to change the IEP, so she needed to file for due process. Her advocate advised that she could not file for due process until after the school provided Prior Written Notice (PWN).

She was right. She could have requested the due process hearing when the dispute arose, without waiting months for the school to respond.

1.  If your child is exhibiting new behavioral problems that are interfering with their ability to access the curriculum; your school may need to implement a Behavior Support Plan to extinguish the negative or off task behavior. 2.  If your child is struggling academically in the first semester, don’t wait until second semester to address the problem.  If you have to request new assessments; keep in mind the timeline from the day you authorized the assessments.  The school has 60 days* in which to conduct the assessments and hold an IEP, so if you wait until second semester, the school year might be coming to an end; basically, your child has lost the entire year.  * Some States have different timelines so please check the timelines in your State. 3.  If your child will be attending Kindergarten, Middle School or High School the following year; you need to know all the areas of strengths and weaknesses to help them transition into the next phase of their education. 4.  If your child has been bullied in school, you need to make sure there is a safety plan implemented to protect your child from harm.  In addition, your child should know the name of the school personnel they can approach if the situation arises again; providing a safe place in the school environment. 5.  If your child’s placement is no longer working, do not wait to address this problem; otherwise, your child may lose an entire year of academics. 6.  If your child has been suspended repeatedly for behavioral problems, do not wait until the school is about to expel your child from the district.  Call an IEP to discuss changes in the Behavior Support Plan or ask for additional assessments immediately such as a Functional Behavior Assessment. 7.  If your child has been assigned an Aide that is not experienced enough to prevent your child from eloping, you need to call an IEP as soon as possible to request a BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) or additionally training for the Aide.  Remember, every time your child leaves the classroom they are not being educated! 8.  If your child is experiencing depression, lack of self-worth, anxiety…etc.  You should call an IEP and request a Social/Emotional Assessment for in-school counseling.  If your child already has in-school counseling and that’s not working then you need to request an Educationally Related Mental Health Assessment to address these issues before they escalate into more serious behavior. 9.  If the services you agreed to at your child’s last IEP meeting are not working, you need to call an IEP to ask your school to increase the amount of services, or file for Due Process if you feel it’s necessary to take the matter directly to the school district. 10. If the School has not been following your child’s IEP; therefore, is out of compliance, call an IEP right away to allow the school to remedy the situation.  If they are not willing to rectify the situation then you need to either file for Due Process or file a complaint with the State Department of Education.

Please take part in the IDEA National Survey, a survey of whether the rights of students with disabilities and their parents are protected.  The IDEA National Survey Project is sponsored by the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS), Autism Society of America (ASA), Autism National Committee (AutCom), and The Advocacy Institute (AI). The survey is at http://www.ideasurvey.org The survey looks at whether parents are treated as equal partners in their children’s education. Topics include whether the rights of students with disabilities and their parents protected throughout the special education process, including IEP meetings and IEP issues, eligibility (Child Find), Due Process hearings (impartial hearings), and other education issues.  All members of the community are welcome: parents; attorneys, advocates, other professionals; and self-advocates (people with disabilities).  We also welcome all disabilities, not just those our organizations focus on.  You can take the survey and read more about it at http://www.ideasurvey.org The survey will run March-May 2011.  The results will be compiled into a report about experiences under the IDEA that will be published this summer.   For more information, contact Jessica Butler, Coordinator, IDEA National Survey Project, at jessica@jnba.net

One of the most devastating calls you can receive as a parent is the School calling to tell you they have initiated an expulsion proceeding against your child due to poor behavior. If your child has an Individualized Education Program (“IEP”) before the expulsion process can start they must hold a Manifestation Determination review. This review must be held within 10 days of the conduct. At which time the IEP team must review the complete file and consider all relevant information, including the IEP, any teacher observations, and any information supplied by the parents.

Assessment plays an important role in the Response to Intervention (RtI)/Multiple System of Supports (MTSS) process. While the different types of assessment seem clearly outlined and easily understood for those in the assessment field, comprehensive assessment systems used beyond special education are relatively new to many educators. Consequently, there are varied interpretations and implementations of assessment across districts and schools. Uncertainty still exists about the purpose of specific assessments, how often to use them, how to use the information effectively, and even the terminology used to describe different assessments. This confusion is largely due to multiple meanings of assessment terms, and a misunderstanding of the value and purpose of various assessments. It is such a widespread conundrum that my colleague, Nancy Eberhardt, and I devoted an entire chapter to it in our book, RtI: The Forgotten Tier.

"My daughter has made little or no progress after years of special education. Her IEPs contain vague subjective goals and objectives. If our case goes to due process, is the school liable for not providing an appropriate education? Or, is this the responsibility of the parent who signed the IEP?"

Founded in 1948 as Recording for the Blind, Learning Ally serves more than 300,000 K-12, college and graduate students, veterans and lifelong learners – all of whom cannot read standard print due to blindness, visual impairment, dyslexia, or other learning disabilities. Learning Ally’s collection of more than 70,000 digitally recorded textbooks and literature titles – downloadable and accessible on mainstream as well as specialized assistive technology devices – is the largest of its kind in the world. More than 6,000 volunteers across the U.S. help to record and process the educational materials, which students rely on to achieve academic and professional success. 

Wineman, of Cut Bank, was diagnosed with Pervasive Development Disorder, including borderline Aspergers Syndrome, when she was 11 years old. The diagnosis followed a two-year process that included counseling, an exhaustive battery of tests and at least one misdiagnosis.Wineman was often teased and bullied at school and said she usually avoided interaction with others when she was younger.“I felt so alone growing up, and I still do at times,” she said Thursday during a conference on autism at the Montana State University Billings downtown campus. “Nobody understood what I was going through. I separated myself from my classmates and spent most of my time alone. I stayed quiet to hide my speech problems. Due to these overwhelming and daily struggles, I looked at myself as a punching bag for others, and a burden to my family.”

Students with disabilities face several longstanding challenges accessing services that may assist them as they transition from high school into postsecondary education or the workforce—services such as tutoring, vocational training, and assistive technology. Eligible students with disabilities are entitled to transition planning services during high school, but after leaving high school, to receive services that facilitate their transition they must apply as adults and establish eligibility for programs administered by multiple federal agencies. Students with disabilities may face delays in service and end up on waitlists if these programs are full. In addition, while all five states GAO contacted have taken steps to coordinate their transition services and assist families with the transition process, officials said that it is still difficult for students and their parents to navigate and for providers to coordinate services across different programs. Officials and parents GAO spoke with also noted a lack of sufficient information or awareness of the full range of service options available after high school on the part of students with disabilities, parents, and service providers. In addition, state and local officials said students with disabilities may not be adequately prepared to successfully transition to life after high school. This may be due, in part, to limited opportunities to engage in vocational and life skills training or obtain work experience while in school.

Today, the Department of Education announced new steps to help close the achievement gap for students with disabilities by moving away from a one-size-fits-all, compliance-focused approach to a more balanced system that looks at how well students are being educated in addition to continued efforts to protect their rights. While the Department has effectively ensured access to educational resources for students with disabilities, not enough attention has been paid to educational outcomes, which have not sufficiently improved. This is partly due to the fact that federal policy has focused more on procedural requirements and not enough on critical indicators like increasing academic performance or graduation rates for students with disabilities.

Today, the Department of Education announced new steps to help close the achievement gap for students with disabilities by moving away from a one-size-fits-all, compliance-focused approach to a more balanced system that looks at how well students are being educated in addition to continued efforts to protect their rights.

Since the current process of conducting on-site state compliance reviews has not focused enough on improving student outcomes, the Department will not be carrying out the visits scheduled for the 2012-13 school year to allow it time to develop a new and more effective system. However, the Department will continue to review annual performance reports as well as monitor state supervision systems.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004 makes significant and controversial changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Two very significant changes in this law are provisions that (a) allow school districts to spend up to 15% of their IDEA Part B funds on early intervening services in general education settings and (b) prohibit states from requiring that school districts use discrepancy formulas to determine if students are eligible for special education services in the category of learning disabilities. Additionally, Congress recommended that school districts use a response to intervention procedure in both early intervening services and for the identification of students with learning disabilities. In this article we first describe two significant reports that recommended that Congress abandon the current eligibility system in special education for students with high-incidence disabilities. Second we explain how Congress and the U.S. Department of Education changed the special education eligibility system for learning disabilities in the IDEIA and the regulations that implemented the IDEIA. Third we review due process hearings and court cases that have addressed response to intervention. Fourth we offer recommendations to teachers, administrators, and teacher trainers to ensure that they meet the letter and spirit of these new requirements of the IDEIA.

Let's keep IDEA PTA alive with renewed parent input and involvement.    The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the home of Mary Hall of PLUK, which is located at 380 Keith, which is the NW corner of Keith and Hilda in the University area.   Several of our wonderful MT CAAN members have already brainstormed some exciting ideas as to how parents can unite with enlightened educators to utilize this group as an important vehicle by which:  Parents can gain the empowerment and voice they should have in the special education process and at school, generally; We can work together systematically to achieve the kind of meaningful changes, opportunities, and supports that we want and need to see in the school environment, so that all children, regardless of diversity, get the free and appropriate education they are due by law and that they deserve by human right.