Fighting schools for services

Post Reply New Topic

Why is it that we have the IDEA act so clearly written?

Why is it that educators can not seem to read and comply with it until you threaten a law suit?

I have been trying to get my son an evaluation at school, I requested it, my sons Neurologist also.
NOPE

So we had a very nice psychologist evaluate him at a cost of 5K to prove he needs some help at school.
He is highly Visual Spatial, and has social anxiety and needs help making sure he conducts himself properly with other children. He is always respectful and polite but just needs help interacting in school settings.
Now he is at risk of failing and we help him every night but it seems they don't want to bother at school.
Private is out of the question at 36K per year, That 5K was money we did not have to begin with but he's worth it.

How on earth are the getting away with violating the civil rights of children by not complying with IDEA/childfind?

I filed the complaints, and wrote 20 letters. Lets see what happens.

Very Upsetting

Wow, l thought costs can be expensive in Australia but its big bucks where you are!
Have you checked out the other schools in your area as my experience has been each school can have a different philosophy. My DD has been in 3 different schools and each have been unique in handling the needs of children with special needs.

It seems they have changed IDEA slightly so they have to be failing at something academic before they qualify for services. My little guy is in the first or second percentile for virtually all his motor skills, but we have to pay for OT since the school deemed it a medical and not an academic need (it affects his writing and his ability to sit still). He was diagnosed on the autism spectrum almost a year ago, and an eval is just now in process (on my third time requesting in writing)but hasn't been completed yet. I had to force it because his reading and math scores are high...and NCLB made it so that's all that matters. They made us do a SIT first when I requested an eval...and then did absolutely no interventions that they gathered any data on for that. Legally, when you request an IEP eval(it has to be in writing) they have 60 school days to complete an eval. If they did not do that, and you requested in writing, you can sue them for the $5000 you spent. I'd take copies of your original and all subsequent requests to a lawyer immediately, and begin legal proceedings to get your money back.

Paris, are you sure about that? It can be academic or functional, I think. My son is 7, not failing anything but has a lot of pragmatic/social issues and behavioral issues. We get ST, OT and stuff like preferential seating, visual reminders, and sometimes inclusion services.

Many public schools in the US are deplorably underfunded. That's the most likely reason I can think of that you have trouble getting the services your child needs. I know that in CA there have been years when teachers (that I knew personally) brought supplies they'd purchased themselves to supplement what was provided, just for the usual classwork. If you talk to the school with the mindset that they are underfunded and trying to do their best with that, and you make it clear you understand that, maybe they'll be more open to listening and working with you to create a program that works for your and other special needs children.

It's not enough for the federal government to pass regulations that require schools to do certain things when the schools don't also get the funding to do it.

It seems to me that threatening a law suit will just set up the situation with hostility and conflict that will impair the school's ability to give your child the support they really need.

Schools may try to tell you there has to be academic failure, but from what I've read this is not correct. You need an educational advocate (not necessarily a lawyer) to help you navigate the system and get the help that your child is entitled to. Sometimes just having someone who knows the law on your side gets you better treatment from the school. Sadly, sometimes you do have to be willing to take the school through mediation and due process to get the services your kid needs. There are lawyers who work on contingency, who are reimbursed by the school district if they win. They won't take your case unless they believe they have a good chance at succeeding.

Do you have an advocate working with you? It made all the difference in the world once I contacted an advocate and had her attend IEP meetings with me. She knows all the rules and regulations and helped me understand where the school was taking the easy way out. So far, knock on wood, I have been able to maintain a cordial relationship with the teachers and the administrators while at the same time getting the one-on-one services that my son needs to cope in the public school setting. The services that the principal basically told me at the beginning of last year that we would never get!

Have you read that or seen the change or did they tell you that?

IDEA section 300.101 clearly states that grades are not to be considered when determining eligibility for an educational evaluation.

Not yet but we are planning to get one.

I have read the idea act several times and requested the schools policies. They gave me nothing.

Money Money, true but what are teachers and staff there to do???
there seems to be enough for raises every year, new football stadium, additions to the school, new track?

Sounds like somebody has their priorities out of order. These buildings are built as child care facilities not as teacher placement facilities.

They way I see it is that children can't really speak up for themselves so they get trampled.
Teachers get a UNION, Students need one too it appears.

I agree that it is an exceptionally hard job to be the parent of a special needs child. Among all the other difficult tasks we must also be his or her advocate in the school system. Having a prof advocate was such a big help! She could explain the regulations to us in a way I could understand. Hang in there and keep up the pressure on the school.

While I don't disagree that schools are underfunded, schools are required by law to serve all the children in their community - and they DO have the resources to raise more money, it's just that nobody is willing to do it. Communities need to understand that schools cost money, and they can't have better schools and lower taxes at the same time.

So I have to disagree about the lawsuit - if parents don't demand the services we have all agreed as a nation that our taxes are supposed to pay for, schools will never go to their constituency and say they don't have the money to do the job properly. Instead, they will continue doing half-measures like they are now, which in my own son's case were incredibly harmful.

This is not to say that one shouldn't first try every possible alternative option - I think lawsuits are the last line of defense, and you are right in that they set up an adversarial relationship with a system you then have to entrust your child to. However, saying "there isn't enough money" is simply an excuse. I agree, a crazy amount of money is spent on sports, equipment and other extracurricular activities, and yet nobody cuts those. Sometimes, though, they do make you go the lawsuit route.

Secondly, your child CANNOT be denied an IEP based solely on his or her academics. A deficit in functional skills (like social skills) is enough to warrant special services.

Before hiring a lawyer, see if any of the service agencies you've worked with will come to the school for a meeting as your advocate (the neurologist, the psychologist, etc.) You can find professional advocates, too. Also, make sure that everything you've asked the school is in writing, and all your interactions with them are via emails that you have saved somewhere.

Good luck!