Floridamom wrote on Feb 12, 2008 6:35 AM:Good for you California family parents for standing up to this corrupt system where parents don't stand a chance of winning anything if they go up against the school districts!!!

Parents have been sitting back for too long allowing the school districts to deprive our children and bully us into giving up. It's time for changes in laws so that parents have some rights in the education system.

People don't realize how corrupt and broken the system is until you have a special needs child and start asking for help. A group of us in Florida are currently dealing with no appropriate school programs, restraint and seclusion, denied services, noncompliance of a signed mediation agreement, not being allowed to tape at IEP meetings, bullied and intimidated at IEP meetings, forged documents, forged report cards, filing state complaints that NEVER are in favor of the parents. HOW COME SCHOOL DISTRICTS ARE NOT HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR FOLLOWING IDEA LAW OR ANY LAW FOR THAT MATTER???

We need to start education our legislatures as to what is really going on in the public school system and what parents have to go through to get their children some kind of education. We need to change current laws and create new laws so parents have rights to be a part of their children's education team.
IDEA law states that we are part of the IEP team. This is a big joke on us because we are only part of the team as long as we agree with the school district and staff running the IEP meeting.

The DOE's and school districts have way too much POWER and they are ABUSING THAT POWER. If parents don't stand up and start addressing law changes, NOTHING will change.

My adopted wrote on Feb 12, 2008 7:12 AM:child comes from Russia and is trying to learn English but in the meantime is falling further behind in her studies. If they can spend the money to teach in spanish, how come my daughter can't have an Russian speaking teacher and classes held in Russian?

CA Mom & CA Advocate wrote on Feb 12, 2008 7:48 AM: Thank Goodness & it's about time! Thank YOU Ellen. I know how long you've been working on this injustice as well as the sacrafices you've made to get this lawsuit filed. Now let's see if the CDE does the responsible thing & puts this contract out to bid. If NOT, I hope they LOSE their Federal Funding. It's not like the CDE didn't KNOW the OAH couldn't handle hearings & mediations. When CASE challenged the McGeorge contract, even the OAH recognized that they did NOT have the STAFF nor the EXPERTISE to do this. OAH also knew they wouldn't have the time to adequately TRAIN their judges either. What's WORSE is that they still haven't been adequately trained. I hope this lawsuit forces them to produce written records to demonstrate how inadequate the trainings have been.
If one takes a look at some of their decisions & notes the absence of case law you'd have to wonder if the ALJs were making it up as they go.
I'm also hoping that the public gets to see ALL of the violations of the contract.
We KNEW this would be a disaster when OAH was awarded this contract (lack of staff & expertise on special education law). Unfortunately, what we did NOT expect was the bias in favor of the school districts when the evidence & testimoney clearly proved many violations of law (both procedural and substantive).
While I believe that this lawsuit will force the CDE to award the contract to another agency, I'm HOPING it will also serve as a WAKE-UP call to school district to STOP VIOLATING THE LAW. The party's OVER.

anayeli wrote on Feb 12, 2008 7:56 AM:Interesting to note we can all thank Hilary Clinton, in part, for this law that requires extensive and expensive interventions that often label essentially regular kids and cost schools (us) billions while producing few positive or even improved outcomes. We are supposed to be implementing Response to Intervention methods, according to ADA but I don't see it.

Limited resources wrote on Feb 12, 2008 9:56 AM:I feel for the parents of special needs kids and support all reasonable extra exoenditures to help them learn. But too often what parents demand is not reasonable. Things like full-time tutors or demands that the state pay for expensive private schooling that can cost $80,000 to $100,000 a year. For every child who gets special services like that, a dozen other kids do without equipment, books, or end up in overcrowded classrooms and suffer as a result. I don't profess to know the answer but there has to be a limit to how much the state (read: taxpayers) can be expected to do for a child.

Dave wrote on Feb 12, 2008 10:50 AM:Its a shame that disabled kids dont get everything possable, but most school districts spend nearly 50% of their budget on the disabled. I KNOW First hand that parents will do anything possable to help their children, As my own child was via AB2627 sent out of state for 18 months. Oceanside school paid the expense including my air and lodging to visit her. This was over a disapline issue that her mother could not deal with. You can cheat the system and that is what schools and the arbritration is trying to minamise.
P.S. thanks oceanside schools, otherwise as a non-guridian, i would have had to pay!

Ellen should be recognized for her devotion to these kids wrote on Feb 12, 2008 11:29 AM:Limited resources are you talking about cases like: OAH CASE NO. N 2007070255 rich parents with rich attorneys that ask for private tutors even when the child is at home? Private schools, �SPECIAL� beyond what is a required, private tutor while the student is at school and private tutors while the student is NOT at school but at HOME? Good thing these cases are very rare but DO destroy the reputation of most special education students who truly NEVER get any meaningful special education at all. Ellen Dowd is a true champion for students whose parents are poor, of students who fall through the cracks and were not TRULY served by any meaningful special education services. Ellen truly devotes her life to helping the kids unlike most lawyers who disregard students because they don�t have a lot of money or the parents money runs out.

Roxy wrote on Feb 12, 2008 11:32 AM:the McGeorge School of Law Special Education Hearing Office had 50/50 rulings which were pretty fair. This is due to the fact that the hearing officers were �trained� and had expertise with the laws pertaining to the IDEA. The former hearing officers strictly worked with IDEA cases, in comparison with the new administrative law judges we now have. The new officers are retired judges that are not familiar with IDEA. In fact most have never done any IDEA cases and have absolutely no experience plus they are juggling other cases like bankruptcy and so forth. Some judges are very nice but inexperienced however most are downright nasty and arrogant. Team of Advocates for Special Kids, �TASK� offers little or no help to parents just some pamphlets at the parents cost. Maybe they don�t hear back from the parents because they don�t offer much help to the parents. Ellen is right the judges don�t know the law but try going to federal court only to find that the federal judges don�t know the IDEA laws either. The San Diego Chief judge even wrote one of the nastiest decisions against parents last year in R.B. v. Napa Valley Unified Sch. Dist., No. 05-16404, what an embarrassment.

Laura wrote on Feb 12, 2008 11:53 AM:The problem is much more broad the federal courts are moving from procedural to strictly substitutive rulings. In other words unless you have TRUE DAMAGES if your kid does not learn or get the services agreed upon the IEP contract oh, well.. complete decision in one paragraph and one footnote.
Case in point today�s ruling from the Ninth Judicial Circuit in �1900 B.V. v. EDUCATION DEP�T OF THE STATE OF HAWAII.�
The court wrote:
�We affirm the judgment of the district court for the reasons
set forth in its Order Denying Plaintiff�s Motion to Reverse
Hearing Officer�s Decision and Order,1 and reported as B.V.
v. Department of Education, State of Hawaii, 451 F. Supp. 2d
1113 (D. Haw. 2005).�
Footenote� We do not reach the question of whether the Department of Education
committed any procedural violations because we agree with the district
court that, even if it did, such procedural violations did not prejudice any
of plaintiff�s rights. See 451 F. Supp. 2d at 1131-32.�

5kidsmom wrote on Feb 12, 2008 1:20 PM:Floridamom: I have been fortunate to be considered an integral part of my children's education teams. BUT it took a long time, a lot of reading and learning how the system works. I also realize that I am fortunate to be among people who are not so defensive - not every parent is in my position.
Limited resources: Public education is for EVERYONE. Ideally, no child is less deserving than another. That said, some children require greater resources to reach the point where they become independent, tax-paying citizens. If we don't pay now, we pay even more later - in taxes for jails and welfare........which outcome would you rather have?

NCtyMom wrote on Feb 12, 2008 2:08 PM:I am the mom of a special ed student and also a school board member. The State and Federal Government mandate that we educate all students but do not furnish enough money to do so. Special education takes $9 million additional dollars than is paid to us for Special Ed out of my district's General Fund, shorting many other programs. I'm not saying that we shouldn't educate our special kids. I'm just saying that it sometimes becomes a choice as to what programs you cut to accommodate special needs OR what programs are never put in place. When we need to send a child to an out of state placement to accommodate their special needs and then pay for the parent to visit several times a year, how do you fund that? What if you have many more placements like that? What do you cut to afford that? It's not a simple cut and dry answer with who is right or who is wrong. We all want to do the right thing for all kids but we rank 47th in funding for education. Now our Governor is telling us we'll be looking at a 10% cut for 2008-2009. This budget is being balanced on our children's backs. Let's put the fault where it lies. We need to make education a priority for all and not settle for 47th.

Concerned-1 wrote on Feb 12, 2008 3:13 PM:I'm sorry, but this whole special education program is blown out of control. It literally turns regular kids with issues into "special" kids. Back when we had a real education system in California, there was no such thing as special ed. Everybody turned out fine.

Fiona wrote on Feb 12, 2008 3:35 PM:I fail to see how the system makes regular kids into "special" kids, when my 3 "special" children (with IQ's in the high to genius range) are being denied services and have been for years! They just have learning differences. Somehow this makes them social outcasts, and me a bad mom for expecting the minimum education required by law. I guess it's ok for my kids to be beaten up and teased by other kids for being different. Nobody understands these kids. Thank goodness for people like Ellen Dowd.

sped mom wrote on Feb 12, 2008 3:43 PM:Concered-1,
No everyone in Ca did not turn out fine. Last year when I went up to Sacto to advocate special ed funding, Leland Yee stated that he was already in a crisis with the state jails and overcrowding. Hello..where did all those inmates come from? The lousy public education system that dropped systematic reading instruction in the 1970's in favor of whole language! Up to 70% of our Ca inmate population is illiterate and/or suffer from language based learning disorders.
When you DO pay for education and instructors who are qualified to teach reading such as in a special school, you produce a taxpayer. If you leave them to languish in a public school, you will get an inmate at the cost of $40K per year or a welfare recipiant.
Which costs more?

spedmom2-3 wrote on Feb 12, 2008 3:50 PM:>Everybody turned out fine<
What planet are you on?
Can you say "prison overcrowding"? Most of those inmates have learning disabilities and reading disorders and were never properly educated and it really isn't any better now.
Teachers get masters in Special education but they have not been taught how to teach reading to children with learning disabilities and there is no state requirement to do so. How asinine is that? Then we wonder why sped kids need private tutoring or special schools? Those are where the skilled teachers are, who can work with these kids so they can become taxpayers. Not welfare recipients or inmates at $40K per year EACH!

That's Right wrote on Feb 12, 2008 3:50 PM:Way back when, all of those "special" kids were shipped off to "special" schools on "special" little busses so everybody else turned out just fine but the "special" kids got NADA. Some of those "special" kids were simply NOT allowed in school. Regarding those with "issues;" if administrators would just address those issues early then many children wouldn't even end up eventually qualifying for special ed (think RTI). I've never met a child who qualifies under IDEA because they have "issues."
Most children (CA & USA) who qualify for services do so under speech or LD (learning disability). These are children with average or above average intelligence. Most of those students can be successful, if given the appropriate program. Please notice that I did NOT say best, I said appropriate (if what's being done is NOT working then it's NOT appropriate).
Many of the things I recommend in IEP meetings are not expensive and they usually benefit more that just the one student. What's discouraging though is when an IEP is NOT followed after it's been agreed to.
The simple truth is this: we can pay to educate these kids now or we can pay for them later. The parents of these "special" kids want what every other parent wants. They want their children to grow up to be happy & successful adults (whatever happy and successful is for that individual child).

mary wrote on Feb 12, 2008 4:46 PM:There's a quote that sticks in my head when I think of the school district my children attend. On their website it states: "every child learning, whatever it takes" is it an excerpt from IDEA's composite of laws? ? probably. Do they practice what they preach? NO. Does the district take the path of least resistance in educating the "special" children? NO! They fail miserably at even identifying them!!!!!The sad truth is that they tend to waste valuable time and money fighting parents, trying to say their children don't qualify for services. Who really pays? The district pays attorneys to fight the parents, and the parents usually lose, because the system is biased. When it would've been so much more efficient to properly train educators to deal with kids that aren't the "norm". The money goes to the schools, and not the lawyers.

It seems like the districts are merely chasing their tails, and the kids are losing out.

Poway Parent wrote on Feb 12, 2008 5:01 PM:Ellen, I want to thank you for having the courage to file the class action on behalf of our children. My 12 yr old is currently attending an NPS and is doing awesome. Why! Because he gets the supports that he needs to learn. He has just completed Algebra 1 with a A- and is looking forward to Algebra 2. My child also made a A in Literature(8) and has completed American sign language with an A. This is a child that could not do basic math and could only write 3 incomplete sentences for a paragraph in 4th grade. This is a child that was bullied by his peers and Teachers. Thanks to the due process my child is now learning! Some how we have lost the intent of Congress for IDEA 2004 which has two primary purposes. The first purpose is to provide and education that meets a child's unique needs and prepares the child for further education,employment and independent living. The second purpose is to PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF BOTH CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES AND THEIR PARENTS. I hope that Districts will one day choose to support a child instead of forcing parents into a costly hearing process!!Thanks again Ellen for protecting the rights of our children.

beverly wrote on Feb 12, 2008 5:33 PM:You are incorrect that these cases of high cost are rare. There are many, many parents who abuse the system to have tutors, private school, unproven methodologies and other ridiculous requests that do not assist their childen, but simply cost districts money that should go into regular education. Those kids are the taxpayers of the future.

Roxy wrote on Feb 12, 2008 6:43 PM: Fiona- don�t you think this genius IQ's are blown out of proportion? How factual are they really? If these so called geniuses are so smart why are the parents so average range? Wouldn�t this be the reversal of eugenics and when these so called geniuses turn out to be only functioning at a normal range than the parent blame the school system. That is basically what the Ninth Circuit Court recently said in

ANNA HOOD v. ENCINITAS UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT ENCINITAS UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT. No. 04-57007

Amanda wrote on Feb 12, 2008 7:28 PM:Beverly you are correct in that some parents are very demanding and unreasonable, some school districts with a more affluent community have their fair share of these parents. These parents are premadanas who want more and more even though their kids don�t need these so called services. On the other hand the school districts with a less affluent community has fewer of these parents. In my opinion the premadanas are only to blame for the bad rap special education kids and parents get. As to the services most of these so-called services provided by these public schools are meaningless and produce few if any positive results. What is interesting to mention is that someone is getting rich off of this. The SDCOE established a JPA, which, the NCT reported to strictly m�l�e special ed. parents. As of recently STUTZ the most popular SDCOE law firm is the same one who represents Mira Costa College. This firm moved to a bigger more centrally located office and hired more attorneys; I guess this special ed. M�l�e is a lucrative business. Lets add the audits by the United States Office of Inspector General whereby our San Diego School Districts were found to be spending the segregated federal funds and the Title I funds into the teachers perks and early teacher retirement rather than the classroom and student service as required by law. So please stop generalizing and blaming special ed. Kids and their parents, which actually receive few or no services at all. Blame the premadanas and the greedy hungry attorneys whose only focus is on more billable hours.

SoCal Parent wrote on Feb 12, 2008 8:28 PM:The DATA is clear...w/OAH,only 10% awarded in favor of the student vs. 50% prior...Hello?! Time for someone fair!

Laura wrote on Feb 13, 2008 7:27 AM:SoCal Parent- things are much worst than its known to parents, the JPA have been working very hard with politicians and the courts. To make it fair for everyone here is the real issue:
�We have some parents maybe less than 10% of the special ed. Student population who really rake the system and give the rest of the special ed. Parents a bad reputation.
� Somehow these same parents are the ones who happen to have money and hire these greedy special ed. Lawyers, they don�t care about the rest of the kids they have the, me, myself and my kid mentality.
� On the other hand you have the SDCOE greedy JPA lawyers who live high off the taxpayer dollars and drain the system out by multiple billable hours. Then turn around and also blame the special ed. kids and their parents.
� Here is the worst part based on federal AUDITS we know that the federal money is not used for special education or other mandated services but rather for teacher special perks and early retirement incentives. Lets not forget that teacher do their fare share of blaming the kids for districts budget wows.
� The California court system happens to be the JPA�s playground which courts rule on districts favor almost 100% of the time.
� The federal courts are a little better but have changed the pendulum to favor school districts through the burden of proof according to the Supreme Court decision in Schaffer. Plus they moved away from procedural violations and only consider sustentative violations. This court movement has special ed. attorneys crying fowl because they were used to the easy gravy money. Now that they have to work hard and concentrate on sustentative matters they are lost.

� So since neither most parents nor I ever got any real meaningful services I agree with the courts.

Stop pandering after these rich parents with their greedy attorneys!!

Stop the JPA�s from dragging cases to maximize their billable hours!!!

spedmom wrote on Feb 13, 2008 8:52 AM:Beverly,
Unproven methodologies? hello? isn't that what the whole language was about? It is the PUBLIC schools that have been experimenting with UNPROVEN methodologies at the cost of our childrens literacy skills for YEARS. That is why NCLB had to step in than say USE SCIENTIFICALLY REASEARCH BASED methodolgy for reading.
I see you missed the FACT that NO special ed teachers are mandated to learn, let alone teach PROVEN methodologies that work with children with reading disorders.
I have been in litigation for many years and your statement is toally false. It costs a LOT to hire legal help and it costs a LOT to hire speech therapists and REAL tutors. Even with with so-called FAPE and "settlements", I have spent enough of my OWN money to qualify for medical deductions for the last 5 years!

Steve wrote on Feb 13, 2008 9:17 AM:The whole premise of this law is cockeyed. Why should the public have to suffer extraordinary costs? There should be a limit, such as five times the average per-pupil amount spent on the special needs of any given student. Or cooperation between adjacent districts for a regional special-needs facility even if it means longer travel time, or requires parents to relocate, or students to spend the week boarding out. Just wait for a serious economic downturn and the politicians will scramble to cut costs on runaway expenses like this.

Lori wrote on Feb 13, 2008 12:27 PM:to Steve. WHAT? Are you saying I should put my special needs child in an institution? Sounds like it. Get real, we don't do that anymore. Our children have rights and I am glad that there are lawyers left that care for them!

5kidsmom wrote on Feb 13, 2008 12:35 PM:STEVE: There is a cooperative effort to share services and lower costs - the North County Consortium for Special Education (NCCCSE) includes many school districts, from Solana Beach to Fallbrook. It is clear that we either pay when they are children for appropriate services - much cheaper than incarcerating someone at approx. $100K/year. Which would you prefer for your own child? (Neither doesn't count as an answer)

fighting for services wrote on Feb 13, 2008 1:34 PM:This lawsuit is completely overdue and totally needed for reform. I support it totally. Anyone who does not understand these judges need to understand special education law and how the school system works before making decisions on these cases apparently has misunderstood this specific problem. What is not mentioned in the article is the tremendous amount of families who do not have the resources, time, knowledge, strength, language ability, etc to even get to the due process point. They and their children are barely scraping by with inadequate services and care from the school districts. So rest easy for those of you who don't want to pay for the special needs kids...plenty of the special educators make sure that happens as it is.

fiona wrote on Feb 13, 2008 4:18 PM:Roxy, you only assume "the parent" is in normal range.
In our case, we've all tested out as abnormally high IQ. Not that it really matters. We all have learning differences. My point was, it's tough for bright kids that think outside of the box, or have different learning styles than the norm, or are easily bored with teachers who only cater to mainstream typical kids. Everyone's different.

If you're different you're labeled a freak, and the parent gets hassled because the kids are "lazy" or "disobedient". When in fact, it's just the opposite. What ever happened to encouraging individuality?

P.S.
Laura, do you really even think the people here know who the JPA is? And how devastating their effect on the system is? They (the JPA) count on the general public's ignorance, because they jump right in to blame special ed parents for a broken system. We're the JPA's scapegoat. Meanwhile, they whoop it up and finance luxurious lifestyles on the billable hours of the unwitting parents sent to due process.

Hey Steve, look up the JPA! Look at the numbers for monthly billable hours for a simple due process hearing. You'll be shocked at where the taxpayers and district's money is really going.

Laura wrote on Feb 13, 2008 9:06 PM:Fiona-- you must be very familiar with Charles Darwin, Termin, Francis Galton, Rockefeller Foundation, Kellogg Foundation, Carnegie Institution of Washington and their movement very well no need to say anymore. CDE adopted a curreculem called, �Whole Language� and modeled it after Plato and Socrates. I guess it did not go very well as its evident today. I am an average parent and I too have chidren with special needs the difference is that I TUTOR my CHILDREN MYSELF. If I depended on the PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM to teach my kids they too would be lost. My kids are also different and have different learning styles so our family made financial sacrifices so that I can teach them after school. I do realize that the public school system is a complete failure but my children don�t have time to wait for a miracle.
I do agree that people need to educate themselves and find out about the JPA�s because the JPA�s know everything they need to know about every special ed. parent.

mary wrote on Feb 14, 2008 9:22 AM:Even though people tend to get heated when discussing topics such as this one, I would like to extend my warmest thanks to all of the parents and educators who give 150 percent of themselves every day. Having or teaching kids is a tough job even if they dont require special ed services.
Bottom line, the kids are our # 1 concern. All of them. Kudos to the people that make a difference for our children every day.

New to the game wrote on Feb 14, 2008 3:10 PM:I have special needs childern. I have trusted the school system to treat me fairly and to properly teach my sons since they were 4 years old. Only recently to find out that the school system will lie, alter documents and just about any other nasty thing you can think of. I take my hat off to people like Ellen who are willing to help the underdogs in the world who can not afford to take this corrupt system on their own. If you don't think that it is corrupt than take your blinders off and look at how powerful the school unions are.

Moureen wrote on Feb 14, 2008 5:00 PM:I have to agree that with �New To The Game- The best thing for parents to do is to document EVERY SINGLE THING IN WRITING, keep a log of every day events they come in handy in the end. Make every request and communication in writing and make sure that a school personnel signs it. Schools are pretty good about loosing documents and their memories of events become very fuzzy. ELLEN IS VERY UNIQUE and works tirelessly for the sake of the students well being. The education system IS a STACKED DECK against the parents and students; it is ironic that

WE as TAXPAYERS flip the bill for the school districts well trained lawyers ill advise and LUCRATIVE LIFE STYLES.

While many of our children do without the basic necessities because many special ed. parents like myself are too rich to qualify for state regional and pre-school services, that could have been tremendously helpful to the development and education of our children and early detection of autism and progressive disorders. We are found too rich to qualify as low income and too poor to pay for the services low-high income receive for FREE. Most of our middle-income children fall through the cracks, while the low-high income receive FREE SERVICES at the back of US the MIDDLE CLASS. The high income receive the services because they hire attorneys and the low income well, I truly hate to bring out the immigration issue but all we need to do is look at the children that are admitted into the pre school programs.

Wayne wrote on Feb 27, 2008 10:02 AM:It wouldn't be so bad if I could take the money allocated to the public school for my special needs child and use his portion of it to subsidize a private school that addresses his needs. What I am forced to do is pay for the public school monopoly and fund a private school that addresses his needs (pay twice for what is supposed to be the same thing), or allow him to be placed in a program where it is impossible for him to develop because it is based on price and not on his needs.

Bill wrote on Feb 28, 2008 6:49 PM:Didn't the law change such that parents now have the burden of proof; i.e., parents now have to establish that the school district denied a FAPE? Indeed, didn't the law change right when McGeorge lost the contract? Wouldn't you expect the change in burden of proof to lower the number of parent out-right victories because the former law required districts to prove they complied with the law (provided a FAPE, both procedurally and substantively) Also, didn't the IDEIA of 2004 add a mandatory cooling off period, during which the parties are required to meet in mediation? Shouldn't we expect that to change the stats as well? Also, if the "inexperienced" judges are writing decisions in favor of schools when they should have ruled for parents, I would think you would see a bunch of sucessful writs or appeals of the incorrect decisions? Where are those federal/state decisions?

Cindy wrote on Mar 25, 2008 12:02 PM:Good points, Bill. It may be 10% because that's how many cases are valid.

Sorry Cindy & Bill wrote on Mar 25, 2008 1:51 PM:The burden of proof (of going forward) is placed on the party who files. Doesn't matter if it's the district OR the student/parent. Oh WAIT, except in NY & NJ, because the laws in those states have changes because there they KNOW the school districts already have an unfair advantage over parents & their students (read on). Further, a recent Surpreme Court ruling took away expert fees for parents, making it MORE difficult for them (since the ALJs ASS/U/ME, in ERROR, that school district staff are the experts & parents know NOTHING). The cooling off period, you mention, ONLY applies when a parent files. The law says that the district should schedule a resolution session, within 30 days, (because they may not understand what the issues are). Give me a break, of course they understand, what do they suppose all those IEP meetings (& correspondence is) are for? As a parent & an advocate, I'm very careful to be clear regarding a disagreement. When I work with families, I usually advise them to either consent, not consent to an IEP or to consent with exceptions. I will also asvise them to attach specifics to the IEP document & request what's called "prior written notice" - PWN. The districts' response is usually to either IGNORE that or to say we need to have another meeting (without providing PWN.) You see, the strategy is to STALL and exhaust parents both financially and emotionally. Districts hope they'll just go away. As an advocate, I see my job as being part of IEP team to help the team reach consensus in the development of a PLAN (IEP) that will provide the child a FAPE. The problem NOW though is that school districts, because there's NO oversight (CDE, Feds) and since in CA we NO LONGER (even though Federal Law states gives us this RIGHT) have access to "FAIR" hearings given by an "IMPARTIAL" & "TRAINED" hearing officers. Thank goodness that the CA Senate Joint Legislative Audit committee has recently votes 11-0 to audit the Special Ed. Division of the OAH because of what's been happening (complaints substantiated by the DATA).
One last point: if the parents &/or attorneys can afford to appeal to a federal court they do but that takes even MORE money (both sides) and it takes YEARS (these students don't have). Fortunately, we're beginning to see these terrible decisions, that are NOT based on the LAW, reversed in Federal court.

Beth wrote on Mar 26, 2008 11:21 AM:Why is it the fault of the school district, the school teacher or the administration, or the department of public instruction, if a particular special needs student doesn't perform at the level the parent things the student should perform? I suspect that the most likely reason for the lack of reaching that parentally perceived level of success is due to the limitations that are within the student. Why is there an assumption that if you had just the right words in the IEP document, or just the right kind of instruction, or number of opportunities, or experiences, or environment or just the right this or that or anything, that a particular special needs student would have the perfect outcome? When did FAPE come to mean that you get to demand the perfect outcome? Why is it that parents of special needs students expect above and beyond what is given to regular education students to be given to their students, and above and beyond results are well?

The amount of money spent on one special needs student is staggering when compared to the amount spent on one regular education student. The special this and that and the other thing is far more than what others get in free public education. Yet most parents of a special needs student seem to feel entitled to the “Mercedes of care” for their student. You want the best service, the most service, all year round, for 21+ years. How fair is that when compared to non-special needs students?

The sense of entitlement, the demands and expectations of the parents of students with special needs are often outlandish and unrealistic. The costs to the public be damned, the school’s personnel cost be damned, the time taken away from other students who do or don’t have special needs be damned. You want an individualized education plan and program for your individual student, yet you send them to a public school where individual needs are next to impossible to meet. Isn’t it unrealistic to think that in a self-contained class of 10-20 students with individual needs that your specific student will get everything you think she should? Should you realistically expect the same special education in an inclusion class where your student may be one of 5 students with special needs amongst 25-30 other students? Why do you even expect specialized treatment, instruction, lessons, etc in an environment like that? How do you think it can really be given in that environment?

Or, you want the school district/government/feds – anybody with deep pockets – to pay for the private education you feel your child is entitled to.

Parents are frequently citing the law and the responsibilities of the school, the state government, the federal government, the courts and everybody else. Rarely cited are your own responsibilities for helping your own children to learn and succeed. What about your responsibility of spending time at the kitchen table on homework, repeating lessons over and over and over again, night after night, until you’re blue in the face or the lesson is mastered? What about your responsibility to take your student into the community to develop and practice necessary skills in the community like how to cross the street, to go shopping, to catch the bus, to make phone calls and appointments, how to behave and have decent manners, how to be responsible for ones belongings and self? What about teaching them to be contributing members at home, taking care of themselves to the extent possible, and helping out with chores, being responsible for completing tasks well? How about your responsibility to network with your own family and friends to find appropriate experiences and situations, spending your own money on additional tutoring and outside teaching/coaching, investigating agencies and services, teaching budgeting and self help skills? The list could go on and on, but I rarely read about these things that parents should be doing for their children.

I know I’ll be lambasted for these comments. I’m just one parent telling you how I think about these things. I’ve sent my kids to private school to get the education I thought they deserved, and it came out of my own pocket. Why don’t most parents of special needs students feel responsible for doing the same?

Vikki wrote on Apr 11, 2008 3:17 PM:HOW SAD! that so much narrow thinking there is out there.

First, parents are MANDATED to send their child to school or be fined by the courts (don't think district's don't abuse this process too).

Second we have a 50% drop out rate from high school.

Third approximately 70% of the special education population is learning disabilities which are primarily a invisible disability.

Fourth, special education is about identification and best practice in education. Who out there doesn't want the best for all our children.

Ask yourself this: What kind of workforce will be have if we can't educate our children (all our children regular and special education) Do you want children to go to school every day and leave feeling more stupid or more confident? Do you want know famous people who have learning disabilities or attention deficit? you can go online for a list (this site prohibits full names)

There is a reason that IDEA was passed in 1974, because children were being identified as mentally retarded and isolated in classes that taught little educational skills (ie: reading) You know, if we can teach all of our children to read they will be able to teach themselves anything they want.

If school district's don't want to do the job then let parents have the power to make the necessary choices for their student, maybe vouchers as a way of accountability. Isn't that what it comes down to? accountability? and a DUTY TO TEACH ALL CHILDREN. parents are a part of that process but also must be allowed to be a part of the process, how? tell them the truth about the legal obligations of the district to their child and then work together. If that could happen maybe there would be little use for OAH, as they are not there to uphold the intent of the law (IDEA) and ensure that all of our handicapped students are educated when they are not even educated in the law that they are presiding over.

there is so much more to say.............. JUST THINK ABOUT IT