I have been asked to become a member of the Special Education Advisory Committee in our school district.
As a parent of a 16 year old with TS/ADD/LD I very eagar to be of any help that I can. The purpose of the committee is provide public participation in the planning and developement of special education programs in our school district.
I know what our family’s problems and frustrations are and have been when dealing with the school districts, but I would like input from other parents on what they would like see implemented with in their on special education progrms. I know some of the complaints I hear are things like inability to get teachers to address parents concerns of learning problems, delays in testing because of this, not understanding testing and scoring, IEP’s not being followed. The list goes on.
With my involvement with the board I would like to address the concerns of parents with students with special needs. I firmly believe if educators, parents, counslers, and doctors work as a team, along with continuing education about the needs of students with learning disablities, that we can make progress in making the journey through school a much more postive experince for our children.
Please respone through this message board or feel free to e-mail me.
Thanks Marsha
Re: Special Education Advisory Committee
Ellen - I would love to get a copy or your brochure you developed for parents about the laws and tips on getting ready for their IEP’s. This is something that I want to address this year as a Parent Advisor to my district and would love to capitalize on your efforts.
Thanks for sharing!
Marsha,
I am one of three co-chairs of a Special Education Strategic Planning Committee for my school district in New Jersey. I have a 12 year old classified son and a 14 soon-to-be 15 year old classified son. Our district has three schools K-3, 4-6 and 7-8. My older son has only attended two classes in our district and has really gotten most of his education in an out-of-district placement. My younger son has only been classified for two years and I am not sure about the benefits he has received by staying in the district schools. I would be happy to share our experiences with you. We have done the following:
1. Collected data from parents of sped kids in the district on their level of satisfaction with sped by school, age group and classification - we also analysed the data and presented the results to the BOE. We used the results of the questionnaire to define action items which needed action plans.
(2. Followed up on parent reports of speech and other related services not being provided per IEPs with another questionnaire which we are still analyzing.)
3. Created action plans for improvements to Child Study Teams, Assistive Technology, IEPs, Parent Support Group, etc. as a result of our data above
4. Assisted Technology inventory begun this summer using a form we found as part of a data base. District giving us a “warehouse” to collect all technology in one place.
5. Presented concerns about parental reports of lack of related services to BOE; mailed letters to State Sped Advisory Council, State DEpt. Sped, etc.
6. Sought legal advice to draft letter that parents could use to ask for complaint investigations
7. Assisted parents in bringing complaints to BOE, principals, superintendent, county and state
8. Met for thousands of interesting hours over the last two years to talk about ourselves, our children, other children, the general state of education in our town, etc.
9. Created a brochure for parents of sped students explaining the laws and offering a preparation checklist for IEPs and a list of contacts and web sites.
I am sure we would be happy for any info about what you are doing and would be pleased to hear from you.
Thanks - Ellen