Special Education Law Blog

Extension of Human Senses

I have an expectation that there will come a time when technology will  obviate some [not all]  of the obstacles to learning and employment that  many people with  disabilities face.   There are are all kinds of  fascinating  prospects coming down the  pike.  One in  particular that  caught my attention is called the  Extension of Human Senses which is  a NASA-based project. The emphasis of this project is communication and control of computers and other technology through brain waves, nerve impulses, and other non-verbal means of communication. [I hope that they remember that wearing electrodes on the head is uncomfortable.]

There are so many people who project out the limitations of the present into the future. Projects like this are the antidote.  The future is filled with great possibilities, but we need to make sure that our children are getting an appropriate education so as these technologies come on line we will be ready.

Evacuation Plans Often Lacking

Evacuation plans are often a missing part of an IEP.  The normal fire drill simply does not work very well for students who are physically challenged, those who have extreme anxiety or sensory integration disorders or  other disabilities.   A school district in Janesville, Wisconsin is confronting these issues and contemplating moving special education students to the first floor. I am not sure how that can work when students should be integrated in regular class and therefore would distributed throughout the building.  The answer is not as simple as moving "those kids downstairs." It requires thoughtful planning, rehearsal, training, staffing and maybe even special equipement. I am not a fire expert but simply moving a whole population to the first floor even in the name of safety is another simple solution to a complex problem.

Where Do Your Candidates Stand On Special Education ?

With mid-term elections set for later this week, there is a lot of cliche verbiage about being "for education". Unfortunately, "education"  for most candidates has little if anything to do with special education.  There are a vast number of families in this country who have a child, grandchild, niece/nephew or other relation with special needs. The problem is unlike other voting blocs we do not consistently vote our interests in elections, nor we even query candidates as where they stand on issues which effect our interests.  I dream of a time when issues relating to special education will be on the political agenda on a regular basis, just as other recognized issues such as gun control, taxes, race, foreign policy and crime.  If we as a community commanded the political respect that the elderly have achieved, the state of special education would look a lot different. It starts with identifying openly and repeatedly what our political priorities should be and then pressing them at all levels of elections. The following are some of my thoughts on political priorities:

Winkelman: Supreme Court to Review Case Involving Parents Representing Their Children

The U.S. Supreme Court has now accepted for review the Winkleman case out of Ohio which has been pending on the Court's docket.  I wrote about this case some time ago. Since that time the Bush Administration's Solicitor General's office argued both for the Court to take the case and for the case to be decided in favor of  parents' right to represent their children in IDEA cases.

If this case is decided in favor of the parents' case that will have practical implications for many other parents, who represent their children because they either can not afford to hire an attorney or no attorney is available who is qualified to take the case.  In addition, in the course of deciding the case the Court could very well create "magic language" as to the centrality of parent's role in the process of advocating at IEP meetings and other contexts, that could be helpful to parents even when a case is not at hearing.  Stay tuned for what hopes to be positive legal developments after losses in the Shaffer [burden of proof on parents] and Arlington Central [no recovery of expert fees even when parents win] cases.

File and Win?

New York Magazine has just published an article called The Autism Clause. The article details the "cottage industry" of parents' lawyers suing to have children with autism placed in for-profit private schools at a cost of millions to the City of New York. While the article does get some facts right about special education correct (e.g. parents have the burden of proof at due process hearings), it proceeds from the simplistic assumpton that parents simply need to "file and win."  If it were only that simple for parents around the country.  I do not practice in New York, but this premise is just a gross oversimplification of the trials that parents go through to receive an appropriate education for their children.

Boo! Hoo! [Halloween for Kids With Special Needs] by Lori Miller Fox

Every year as Halloween approaches, I battle mixed feelings. For my “typically developing” daughter, it’s a day second only to her birthday. It’s a day when she can be a princess both inside and out, gather all the candy she and her dad can carry, and eat until she can’t fit one more Skittle or piece of Reese's into her tiny mouth.  For me, it’s a day when I too want to fit every piece of Reese's into my mouth but only to swallow the pain. 

Halloween, has always been a symbol of childhood. It’s a day when children can be children and live out their costume and candy fantasies. But for kids with special needs and their families, it can be a day of segregation, isolation and frustration.

Since many children with special needs can’t or have to limit their intake of candy, my son’s only enjoyment on Halloween was ringing the doorbells--a task, which in a wheelchair, was made very difficult by steps and stoops and shrubs and stares. So many unfamiliar “neighbors” tried to relieve their shock and saddness by dumping  handfuls of candy my son would never eat into a bag that he couldn’t hold. But then again, more for the grieving parents.

Now that my son is 14, I thankfully no longer have to worry about what kind of costume goes with a wheelchair, and I can avoid the painful “elementary school parade” for which upright posture was the only thing to be grateful.  And I can mindlessly answer the door and force a smile on my face as I pass out the Hershey bars.

Today as I look back on my Annual Autumn anxiety, I realize that as parents of children with special needs, we’re often the ones having to wear the costumes. And not only on Halloween, but every day.  From the smiles we paint on our faces to the stiff upper lips we rubber cement onto our chins.  As our children grow, we become the people they need us to be, to enable them to be who they are. 

IDEA 2004 Regulations Effective on 10/13/06

This Friday October 13, 2006 [Friday the 13th?], the IDEA 2004 regulations [Download idea.regs.sumry.chngs.pdf ] become effective.  In many ways the regulations are anti-climatic. I was hoping for greater guidance and clarity from the regulations but not surprisingly the regulations track very closely with the statute.  This close congruence was expected since IDEA 2004 purposefully left very little room for regulatory leeway.  A few notable changes:

• Tourette's syndrome is now enumerated under the category of Other Health Impaired;
• Statute of limitations for filing complaints with SEA is one year;
• Issues of financial reimbursement can be raised in a due process;
• Moving away from f ailure model for eligibility;
• Laying out procedures for applying a RTI model (responds to therapeutic intervention) for eligibility for learning disability

The U.S. Department of Education is still due to release various appendices which will give some additional textual analysis and model forms for filing due process and complaints, which will help unrepresented parents from getting their due process dismissed on technical grounds.

The true significance of this Friday may be that special education directors are already passing on misinformation under the rubric of "under the new regulations we do not have to...." One such example is that the regulations bar compensatory education as a remedy (FALSE) but it is being passed off as true.  As with any of these claims parents need to ask for reference to the regulations and not accept such poppy cock as being true.  After this week expect more of this misinformation to be passed on as true.

Four Star Accommodations by Lori Miller Fox

I believe parents and children should always reach for the stars. It just depends on how you access the solar system. I hate when a teacher or school administrator says, “do you want us to spoon feed the information?" Or “would you want me to give your child a grade he didn’t deserve?” No, I just want my child to have a fair shot. That’s why children are allowed accommodations and modifications. They are designed to make success accessible. Everyone could use accommodations now and then, not just children with special needs.  Here are just a few examples:

Schools Failing In Public Outreach

School districts need to reach out to parents and make sure that they know what special education services are available.  This is not a statement of opinion it is a statement reflecting the child find responsibilities of IDEIA to do public out reach.  Unfortunately, too many school district seem intent on keeping parents in the dark, and then complain that parents are not well informed in the IEP process or worse yet have "unrealistic expectations."