504 vs. IEP?

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This is what's so frustrating to us - our son has Asperger's and ADHD, but can't qualify for an IEP under that dx. If he had profound/severe autism, he would qualify for the IEP. Now, it is generally recognized that Asperger's is a mild to moderate form of autism, and is part of the "autism spectrum" of conditions. Nonetheless, it doesn't qualify our son for an IEP, just the 504.

It's like they're saying he's autistic enough to have special challenges/difficulties, but not autistic enough to warrant spending money on resources like speech and socialization therapy.

At the moment, a teacher who works with autistic students sees our son for an hour or so twice a week because it's obvious he NEEDS the speech/socialization help, but she's doing so under the table" (without official sanction of the school or district, off the record) and on top of all her other duties, because our son's 504 doesn't qualify him for "official" therapy/resources. She's just doing this out of the goodness of her heart. We're very appreciative, but feel very uneasy about it because without official sanction, even this could be taken away at any moment. We shouldn't have to "sneak around" to get him help.

Wow, what state are you in? My son was given the diagnosis of Aspergers by the school BECAUSE that would get him an IEP. All spectrum disorders are on the state list, or so I was told.

Well, shoot, have someone alter your son's diagnosis to HFA so that he can get the services. I hear this sort of thing is done all the time: get whatever dx onto a piece of paper that is needed to get the child the services it is agreed the child needs.

My son is considered light aspergers, but he gets all sorts of services.

I really feel for you as I am in the same exact boat as you are except I can't even get a stupid 504 for EITHER of my boys. I have one that has been Dx-d with LD's and Autistic Disorder (thru the Regional Center) and another son who has a dx of ASD and Tourette Syndrome thru the boys Psyciatrist!! !

So the only thing I can do is to learn the law as best as I can and fight fight fight.

I have read about some WONDERFUL school districts who don't bat an eye to help their kids, and other's like ours who just don't care.

It's terrible.
Lainie

Arizona schools are made of FAIL. We've met some great, dedicated, creative, compassionate TEACHERS, and even a decent administrator or two, but the "higher ups" - the school board, the state education system, I don't know who all that make up the "Powers That Be"? MASSIVE SUCKAGE.

I can't WAIT to leave. Two more months, counting down.....

How weird, since DW-a-Mom (sorry if I mangled her name!) is also from CA and has had positive experiences. Perhaps you two should talk? Honestly, I can't believe Tourettes wouldn't qualify a child for an IEP! But has he been dx'ed through your district, too? Sometimes they don't like to take outside dx's, I've noticed. (In fact, I've been told this by the district.)

Arizona is much cheaper to live in than CA but my god do you pay anyway for the HORRIBLE educational system here.

Well, having an autism diagnosis in Arizona isn't foolproof either. My son came here from Northern CA with his IEP and official diagnosis and they placed him in a school that didn't even have a special ed teacher. It took a while for us to figure out that the Resource teacher wasn't SPecial ed. No one would talk straight to us and the district kept telling me that special ed teachers don't have to be trained in autism at all. So, they strung us along with Pop getting worse and worse and the Principal coming around and yelling at my son (she knew nothing about autism). Even the psychologist tried to snow job us.
Finally, in arguing over the phone with this district person (someone I had talked to quite a bit) it finally became clear that they had filed Pop as a resource student that didn't qualify for special ed. When I pointed out that he did qualify for special ed and always did (and I had pulled him out of school for a quarter) the tune changed.

However, despite the fact that he qualifies for an IEP and has a straight dx of autism, his present school is pressuring us really hard to reclassify him as a resource student (504, regular ed). This is because they can't get it through their thick heads how to serve and accomodate an autistic person who is at and above grade level academics. They want kids that they call severe to keep in self-contained classrooms and play nursery rhymes and point to PECS all day long. They want Aspies that are introverted and too shy to ever get angry or ask for help.


**California is a very big, diverse state. I had a wonderful experience there in Chico but there are many people in different regions that don't have good experiences. We had to forge a lot of that ourselves with pioneering teachers and principals. Asperger's is not necessarily recognized in California schools.

I TOTALLY understand where you're coming from here. If our son's grades weren't so good and he didn't test so high, they'd take more of an interest, we feel. Hell - we've basically been TOLD this.

What county are you in? A major metropolitan area, or no?

Tucson (TUSD)

Come to think of it, I have heard many complaints about education for Autistics and Apsies in both Arizona and New Mexico, I believe. As if both states just don't want to address it.

Maybe one reason my son has services is because for all practical purposes he can't write, and he would actually fail certain subjects without help? Once they wrap a child in, there is no halfway? His test scores are amazing, though. Which goes to prove how absolutely useless test scores are in a real world sense, lol.

But it does vary a lot in CA. While I believe the standards for qualifying are supposed to be similar across the state, they still have to be applied district by district, school by school. Even in our area, which has a cluster of AS diagnosis, some schools are basically getting away with avoiding the issue. Families are constantly transferring between schools or between districts to find the special education department that will get them what they want. I have no doubt how lucky we are. VERY lucky. Shoot, I NEVER considered my son could have Aspergers. I knew he needed services, because that writing problem hit hard during first grade, but I never considered a spectrum disorder. It was the school that put that piece into place, and I will always be grateful.

It will be a much better world when schools everywhere can serve all children's needs. When you learn to teach to the individual child, all children benefit. The best schools for special ed in our district are the ones that were forced to master the language barrier brought in by the influx of Hispanic students. It took a new way of teaching. Once they had acquired that elasticity, it seems, adapting to an Aspie child became much easier.

I recently found out that a boy who had joined our school last year had been to 4 schools and had been kicked out of each one. I do not know if he has any special education qualifiers; his father did not tell me. He told me until the child started at our school, it had been issue upon issue upon issue. He has nothing but praise for our principal, and for the teachers his son has had in the last two years. A complete turn around. That father is so grateful. Our principal once said that if a child cannot succeed at our school, that child is probably never going to succeed in public education. As boastful as it sounds, it seems to be true. We're taking these kids that have had nothing but bad experiences, and turning them into children who love school. Amazing. And the snobs won't go to our school because the test scores aren't high enough, or other ridiculous reasons. If they only knew.

Oh god. Us, too. They're closing our school.

The one with supposedly one of the best-run autism programs in the district. (The program we weren't even aware of, even though our son attended this school since pre-k and is now finishing up 3rd grade.)

I am SO sorry.

DW I never realized you were in Northern Cali. From what I have been told it's so much easier in the Bay Area (not sure if thats where your are) getting services than were I am at (Central Cali).

BTW we are originally from San Jose. I really miss it too!
Lainie

Yes, we are in the Bay Area. I think services are easier to come by possibly because we've had bigger clusters? My son's school has more than 1 per 150 on the spectrum. It's more like 1 per 50.

I have heard very mixed reports from the Bay. I was acquainted with a woman who had left because of the lack of services. She in turn, had friends that had a lot of problems with obtaining services and then trying to get approvals for transfers to other districts.
Then again, there is a very brilliant Speech Pathologist based in San Jose that I would just love to have my son go to. (Michelle Garcia Winner)

Kim I am so tempted to take my son to see her myself. She's got a great rep but I don't think takes private insurance (I think).
I'm sure she must cost a pretty penny.

Boy I tell ya, I would take the bay area over my area in a hot second. People are just dumbfounded when they hear my story. These school people in this area are stupid! And I have been told over and over again this is not a good district for Spec Ed.

Ya know I wonder if some get better services in the BAy Area because of the cluster too. I have read that the spectrum is much higher in the Silicon Valley, (btw both my boys were born there....). Don't know if there's something in the water (LOL) or computer jobs just attact more aspie parents lol.

Lainie

Wired magazine once wrote an article about the cluster. It was one of the first pieces I read when Aspergers was first suggested for my son. Yes, the theory is that the industries in the Bay Area attract a lot of Aspie talent.

We are actually North Bay, but definitely have a local cluster. We also have school choice, which I LOVE, because you can move your child around within the public school system to find one that suits you. A few of the spectrum children at our school are actually from outside the attendance area, but worked to get into this school because the parents really wanted the special education department we have.

That article does make sense. The reason my family ended up in Silcon Valley was my father (surprise surprise) who was extremely brilliant and a suspected, undx-d Aspie, got a job there with SRI.

My father died in the late 80's but he had sooo many quirks that it really explained my kids dx's.

Lainie