What Makes Me a Special Education Advocate?
When you are sitting in a meeting where complex terminology is being discussed and the future of your child’s education is at stake, you want someone sitting next to you who has participated in over 300 IEP meetings. I sat on the other side of the table as a Special Education teacher as well as a Gen Ed Teacher. I know what is expected, the process and the pitfalls because I have written hundreds of IEPs and conducted and led IEP meetings for over 30 years as a Special Education teacher and Special Education team leader.
To round out my experience, I have also taught students in grades 7 through 12, in a wide variety of settings, from general education to a self contained classroom.
A special education advocate takes on many responsibilities. The most important one is to empower families and give a voice to students.
A quality special education advocate will also perform the following duties:
Advising parents about services, programs, and accommodations that meet their children’s individual needs
Helping parents interpret reports and evaluations, as well as explaining their implications
Drafting requests, responses, and complaints to schools
Assisting parents with submitting written requests
Preparing parents for IEP and 504 meetings (meetings that outline the services and accommodations students will receive and how schools will remove barriers to learning, such as providing a talking calculator to students with dyscalculia), which may include suggesting support materials or prioritizing goals and objectives
Checking special education documents for accuracy and completion both before and after IEP and 504 meetings
Accompanying parents to IEP and 504 meetings to offer advice and assistance
Advising parents about the strength of their cases before review and offering referrals to special education attorneys when appropriate
Special Education Services I provide:
Full Case Study Review
I will provide a full case study review. This includes an analysis of the current IEP and prior evaluative information to ensure your child’s IEP contains the essential information needed for educators to work most effectively with your child. After reviewing all of your applicable documentation, I will provide a professional opinion and formal report with suggestions for a well-developed and comprehensive IEP.
Evaluation Request
I will provide you with information to make an official request of a full initial evaluation. I will also help you navigate each step of the evaluation process as it happens. Additionally I will assist with requesting an evaluation for related services, or re-evaluations, should they fall outside the standard re-evaluation window.
Change of Placement
Are all of your childs’ needs being met in the Least Restrictive Environment? This is the standard used in Special Education. Often children have a variety of educational needs, and a program or service that was once appropriate for your child may not always remain the best. There are times when an alternate model of instruction needs to be visited, or revisited, in order to ensure a student’s placement is appropriate.
I specialize in the more difficult cases where a More Restrictive setting may need to be explored. This would be due to an extreme and significant disability. It is not common, but there are students who require services beyond the special education services provided in your most local attendance centers, and students who are most appropriately educated with support in a therapeutic school environment or require more restrictive residential services.
iep meetings
It can be difficult, and often intimidating to participate in a school meeting with numerous school professionals around the table. However, you know your child best, and in these meetings sometimes there can be a disconnect in the way messages are communicated at IEP meetings. In many cases, they benefit when you feel ill prepared or intimidated. Thats where I come in.
I will make myself available to meet with you prior to your scheduled meeting to help you collect and organize your thoughts, and coach you to best advocate for your child. I will also be able to attend meetings with you to help bridge some of the gaps and advocate with you on behalf of your child.
At times, this may be necessary, and the most efficient way to make sure your message is clearly articulated and received by your child’s service professionals, so you don’t end up needing follow up meeting after meeting with no results.
Templates
I can provide the templates for formal letters requesting things such as:
A parent requested meeting
Any IEP meeting of follow up meetings
A request to evaluate a student for related services (e.g. speech and language therapy or occupational therapy)
A review of service minutes provided
A review of placement (least restrictive, vs more restrictive)
Support through a disciplinary or expulsion event.
Data showing if goals are being met or not.
College Application
Review
Transitioning your child from HS to College and applying for college can be exciting, as well as intimidating. I have helped hundreds of students and I am here to assist with the application process and a smooth transition by coaching students, crafting a well-rounded admissions essay, and just filling out the annually required FAFSA forms. I will also discuss various schools and the special services they may or may not provide adequately.
Independent educational evaluation (IEE)
An IEE is a private evaluation. The term comes from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Families usually pay for an IEE or private testing. But sometimes the school may agree to pay in cases where an outside evaluation is clearly needed. I use the WIAT test in most cases. *The WIAT is a measure of academic achievement. It is comprised of 4 different domains that contribute to academic success: Oral Language, Reading, Writing, and Math. It can be used to identify areas of academic strength and need in clients and to determine what interventions might be helpful for your child.