My nephew has a learning disabilty, siezure disorder, reading disability (comprehension) dysgraphia, poor organizational skills and processes information very slowly. He is 14, he failed school last year and had to go to summer school in order to pass and he is well on his way to failing this year. His self esteem has hit an all time low. His mother found a wonderful school called Norman Howard which is located in Rochester and my nephew spent three days there to see if he liked the program and to also have the school check him out to see if they had an appropriate program for him. My nephew loved it!! and he has NEVER liked school and the school did make the decision that they did have a place for him. They called a CSE meeting and the powers to be decided that he must try the contained classroom in another school district. They did aknowlege that they did not have an appropriate program for him at their school and they said that until he followed the continum they would not place him at Norman Howard. This was a big blow to them as they were excited about sending him to Norman Howard.
My question is “if my nephew fails another year which I can see happening, do you think the commitee on special ed would make the decision to send him to Norman Howard or are they going to keep making him try failed program after failed program? Is it all a question of money? His parents have no legal council and I was wondering if they would ever give you placement at a private school without a laywer. My gut feeling is that you need one. My nephew is 14 and in just two short years he will be able to quit on his own and that is what I fear he will do :( I guess my bottom line question is “In order to get placement in a private LD school, do you need a lawyer? and are there any parents out there that have succeeded on their own without a lawyer in getting their kid placed in a private school? I would appreciate any advice you have to give. Thank You :)
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
Kind of have to agree with Susan. Even with lawyers, it’s tough to “get it done”. Tough, but not impossible. I would start doing extensive research with local advocacy agencies and advocates. I would be seriously spending hours reading through the web sites of Peter Wright (www.wrightslaw.com) and other lawyers who have proven successfull in the special ed field. You may get some ideas, case law to back up your nephew’s situation and leads towards where you should go from here. I would have a huge problem sacrificing another year of this boys life just to “prove” the program and placement the district is offering is wrong.
The district is dragging feet and using up time probably with full knowledge that in short time he can drop out by himself. I would do what ever I had to to get this boy in a school environment where he can succeed. Find out from the school about financial aid etc… Find out through any means available if the district has previously placed other children in this or similar environments. If other districts nearby have placed children, yet your district does not.
Most importantly, trust your instincts and do not settle for what you do not feel is appropriate. The terminology and definitions of words used by the district will twist you up. Do the research with wrightslaw.com, go to www.edlaw.com and many other sites where you can glean information and knowledge that you can use to help this boy.
Good luck.
Andy
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
Andy & Susan are right.
Think outside the box about ways to get that kiddo where he should be. Payment in kind, financial aid…
Occasionally when a school can see plainly that they’ll lose due process they’ll place. Okay, I even knew one kiddo that (hope you’re sitting down) simply acknowledged that “he’d be eaten alive in our schools” and paid for private placement for a kiddo who clearly needed it, no lawyers, no nuthin’. But if that wer egoing to happen they’d have done it already. (I’m sure one factor is ‘if we do this for you, we’ll have to…’ so the more unique you can make things look, the better.)
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
I thnk it’s late in the game to accomplish this. It’s also late (but not too late)to begin remediation. If the family cannot afford the private school, then perhaps they need to look into Lindamood-Bell or somewhere that can give him a boost with the reading. I’ve been in education for over 20 years, and I’ve never seen a child win private placement. I have known of several parents who placed the child themselves and paid for it. Some pull the kids, homeschool, and get private remediation, others get the training and teach the child themselves. This situation with your nephew is not unusual, I’d say it’s common. Many severe LD kids eventually drop out if the parents do not seek outside remediation. Never depend on the public schools to remediate severe LD’s. Most of them do not even know how. Spend your money on remediation, lawyers are rich enough already.
Janis
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
You didn’t mention what other things you have tried,but I am wondering if you tried a state complaint? You could file a complaint with your department of education before you went DP.With not seeing the educational file it is hard to say,but this advocate would be willing to bet there are mucho violations,that the State,and then ultimately the district,might be much more willing to consider a private placement as a resolution to the complaint. Isn’t Rochester in NY? If so,have you looked into Carter funding? I believe it is supposed to be a way for students to seek a private placement,in NY.I also believe it might be only for specific schools,but it might be worth a look. Believe it or not there is many grants and funding possibilities.
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
Liz,
I am a resident of NY and slightly familar with Rochester. Could you try to contact one of the many private colleges and see if someone there may be able to assist you? We used Strong-Memorial for our daughter’s Neuropsych eval and they were very helpful… they may have some resources that may point you in the correct direction. Or how about a LD Association in the Rochester area? Legal Aid for legal advice? Local advocacy groups? Open the phone book and start making phone calls and talk to anyone that will listen. When all else gails, try going to the media and pleading you case to a sympatheic journalist (the districts dislike publicity!).
NY has passed that the only diploma allowed is a NYS Regents Diploma (must pass all state required regents)…… that will surely send the drop out rate through the roof!
Anyway, good luck!
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
It is sad in American Justice that to get anything through our court system depends on the lawyer you have. Ex: The Simpson Trial in 1994/Wynona Ryder case. The best lawyers money can buy gets a person off the hook. Yes, get a lawyer for your battle with the school system otherwise, you get screwed ! They have a saying: American Justice works for the rich and the really poor guy. It only screws the man in the middle (middle class).
private school
Liz,
I have a son placed in private school thorough a school district, and we did not have a lawyer.
We did have an LDA advocate (I think a very good one) and I think she was of tremendous help. Not really to understand our son problems, but to help us understand how to approach the school (we are foreign and although I felt down in my guts we did have a shot for private school placement, I did not know how our case compared to others in the arena of LD students in our state).
Without having somebody who knows your state special ed politics, you will have a hard time understanding what really can be done. With the academic deficiencies alone I do not think we would have been successful. Our son was getting quite depressed because of his school failure and I think his therapist words had more weight into getting the placement than our son academic performance. Nevertheless, both his emotional therapist and an independent educational therapist who evaluated his reading were extremely surprised that we got the placement we were seeking without going through a legal war. We were however ready to take our son out of his former school and send him where he is currently going and take a home equity loan to pay the tuition.
All this said, I think we are very, very lucky to have a particular director for special education in our district. So it is possible, but I think it is an exemption rather and one needs A LOT of luck.
Re: Do we have a shot without a lawyer?
In answer to your original question, COPAA (Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates) is composed of people who don’t pay attorneys to win Special Education services for their children. It is a members only club and requires a fee. But they provide timely help. I especially find the listserv (bulletin board) useful. www.copaa.net
I would file a request for mediation with the Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities office
http://unix32.nysed.gov:9280/specialed/mediation.htm
Next, file a complaint with the NY State Education Department, the school stated they didn’t have an appropriate curriculum.
Good luck.
Don't know much about NY, but
But here in Central Ohio we have an excellent education rights attorney, Ellen Wristen, who has pledged her career to “thinking outside of the box” to get school districts to do what they should do in the first place. I can tell you she’s certainly not getting rich from it.
She had a website - www.specialeducationohio.com. Her contact numbers are on the site. She knows folks all over the country and has kids placed in alternative education sites all over the country. Although the states all have their own interpretation of things and different “due process” ladders, I.D.E.A. is for all American children.
Good luck!
Re: Don't know much about NY, but
I live in NY, and am looking into private special schools. I haven’t done it yet, but was advised that it is very possible to get the state to fund it if you hire a lawyer. Even schools that are not fully fundable by NYS can qualify for some reimbursement. Don’t know the details, but know many people that have done this.
I got an interim placement at an inexpensive private school once when the district messed up the IEP so badly that they had no choice. They were careful to word so that stay-put wouldn’t allow me to tie them up in the legal system with my kid in the private school. I tried.
Folks in national LD organizations told me it is rare for any lay person to gain private school in this day & age.
I’ve seen people with good lawyers fail to get it done, too, while the family went through their life savings on legal fees.
So, in answer to your question: Even most lawyers don’t get it done. Due process in many states is fixed so that current- and ex-school district folks are making the decisions on due process hearings. Missouri is definitely run by the Good Ol’ School Boys & Girls Club. Can’t say about New York. Research it.
Due process is a horrendous experience.