This is from the US Deaprtment of Education pertaining to the IEP:

Within the law, there are specific procedural safeguards to protect your child’s rights. If you and the school disagree on the placement, educational program or other areas surrounding your child’s education, you may want to utilize one or more of the following approaches:

*Discussion or conference with school staff. Staff may include the teachers, counselors or principal.

*An IEP review. You may request an IEP review at any time.

*Negotiation or mediation. Mediation is a voluntary process as described in IDEA in which a neutral third person (mediator) assists parties (parents and the school) to work together to resolve their dispute. All states must have a mediation process established that meets the requirements of IDEA, including maintaining a list of qualified mediators and bearing the cost of the mediation process. Neither party is required to use mediation. The mediator cannot force either party to accept a resolution to the dispute. If a mutually satisfactory agreement is reached on some or all of the issues, a written agreement is set forth. Discussions that occur in mediation are confidential and may not be used as evidence in subsequent proceedings. Mediation must be available as a dispute resolution option, but may not be used to deny or delay the parental right to a due process hearing.

*Due Process Hearing. You may request a due process hearing if you do not agree with your child’s identification, evaluation, or educational placement. This is a legal proceeding, and you should obtain legal advice.

*Complaint resolution procedures. Any individual or organization may file a complaint alleging that the local educational agency has violated a requirement of IDEA. The complaint must be written and signed; it must cite the specific IDEA requirement that was violated and the facts upon which the allegation is made. The state educational agency must resolve the issues of the complaint within 60 calendar days after it is filed.

First of all anything you do has to be in writting. You keep a copy and they need a copy. It’s okay to let them know that you have a copy if you want to.

It is important that your daughter have an IEP meeting once a year. If you feel that the school isn’t helping her or following her IEP I would go to the teacher first. Make sure that there is a set of goals that your daughter is meeting. Request a copy of last years IEP and where she was at the beginning of the IEP and where she is when she was tested app. a year later. Evaluate this for yourself. If you still feel that the school is not doing their job, write to the teacher and let her know in a nice way that you feel that your daughter needs more help or whatever. Why I keep saying to write is that at least in IL the schools are requried to respond within I think it’s thirty days to a written request. And they do respond. If the teacher doesn’t help like you think that she should then contact the counselor, principal, school board or whoever else you can think of that can help you. Keep going to the top. Your daughter deserves the best!! Good for you being a good Mother!!

What things are not being followed in the IEP? Mainstreaming? There is no excuse for not mainstreaming a child if it’s in the IEP. If the person who wrote the IEP felt your daughter was able to be mainstreamed, then she probably can for some subject or another. Meeting goals and objectives? As devil’s advocate, many districts are being pressured to teach to grade level/state standards so much that IEP goals are overlooked. While this is VERY wrong in my opinion, sometimes teacher’s have a hard time defying their supervisors.

Many laws have changed when it comes to Due Process. In many states, the financial responsibility for lawyer fees belongs to the school if the case ends up in your favor. As an alternate route, you can get an advocate to attend all your IEP meetings. They know the law very well and are sometimes enough of a threat to the CST team to make them adhere to the IEP better.

On another note, do you have a good rapport with her teacher? Maybe you can voice some concerns to him/her before taking further measures.

In general though, you need to familiarize yourself with school law. Throw some terms out there so that the team knows you know what SHOULD happen with your daughter’s education. As a rule, school districts want to avoid going to court at all costs. If they think this could end up that way, they are more likely to change.

I’m sorry to hear about your daughter. As for special ed, I don’t know. have you noticed an improvement in her work? Has there been a major change or anything of the sort since she started in special ed? What kinds of problems do you find that the other children have? I would go to her doctor and discuss this situation, and consider more testing. I would also put her in disability therapy, because you may get some information there. When you think you can pinpoint a problem, do as much research on the situation as possible. In some areas, there are special classes that your daughter can take at special schools (sometimes after school, sometimes half day, and sometimes the whole day) that will help her be able to learn in a way that she will comprehend. Also, instead of special ed, I have seen children with these kinds of problems who have specific “helpers” who sit with them outside the class so that they can learn certain things in a different ways if they don’t really get it. They spend the rest of the time in the class. Finally, try to determine if she is a savant. Maybe there’s one thing that she’s just fabulous at, and get her involved in that. Good luck!! I hope I helped in some way. //\\//\\//\\//\\//

Call your child’s school principal and request a new IEP. You do not have to answer why. But you may say something like “I feel we have some confusion with my daughter’s IEP goals and plan.” Follow up this call with a written request for a new IEP and send to all therapists, teachers, whomever attends her usual IEP.

At the IEP voice your concerns that your daughter’s needs are not being met. BE SPECIFIC, have them written down and copies for every member of the IEP meeting. If you feel progress has not been made and you are not being heard (as it seems since you say this occurs every year), ask for a mediator. The school systems HATE the “M word.” Legally, the school system MUST provide a nonbiased (cannot be employed by them) mediator to represent you at THEIR expense.

Best wishes! Don’t give up. You are your child’s best advocate!

Helpnout gave excellent advice. Every time you have an IEP meeting you are to be given a copy of the Procedural Safeguards by federal law. If you did not get one you can call the school and request one.

In the PS you are given advocacy numbers to call to help you mediate any grievances you have against the school. Another option is to file a complaint with the state board of education. They will follow up on your complaint and see what the school is doing. Please document everything that is and isn’t being done with the IEP.

i have heard similar story’s before, what i suggest doing is setting up a meeting with the principal as soon as possible. be asserting and lay down the law. tell him that you are very up set and that things need to change. because the IEP is not an outline of how things will be done it is a Legal document that HAS to be fallowed. and if while in this meeting the principal refuses to do anything or wont help you then tell him you will make an appointment with the superintendent if this matter isn’t dealt with. that should scare them into doing what they have to. only threaten to take legal action as a last resort. i plan on being an Special needs teacher, and i have an IEP so if you have anymore questions feel free to ask.

check to see if there is an ‘special ed’ advocacy group around (ask teachers, aides), and bring one of the advocates to the next IEP meeting. They (the school administration) are ‘playing’ you.. with excuses… and you need to have the ‘law’ on your side (you might want to remind them that the IEP IS a legally binding document)…

tell them your frustration and ‘expect’ that this year will be different. Make some waves… the IEP is there so that the teachers can have the help, your daughter can get taught in a way most beneficial to her… Fight now, because in High school it gets tougher still..

best of luck to you –

check out

ldonline.com

and do some searches on autistic support groups in your area.

The Supreme Court of the US has just ruled that you don’t’ need a lawyer to appeal something with your child’s IEP. Now here’s what you have to do. Put in writing what it is that isn’t being done and make copies to the Principal of the school, the head of special educations services in your district, send one to the head of the board of education and to the mayor or who ever is in charge of where you live. At the same time make sure that you also write to who ever represents you on the city council or what ever it is in your town or city and to your federal Representatives as this is a federal law that isn’t being followed meaning that it’s a federal case. Make sure that everyone knows who you’re writing to and believe me you will not have much trouble anymore. The school won’t want to have to face a federal case and neither will the school board. Just put the icing on the cake by telling them that you’ll go to either the paper or the news depending on where you live. When I threatened to go to NBC news here in NYC my daughter had what she needed in three days.

One option in addition to all the wonderful ideas here is to contact your local state dept. of education and request to talk to someone in the special education dept. I am a sped teacher and had a parent that had an autistic child. We both wanted ABA training to assist with his needs, but the district promised it and then declined it. She contacted the state dept. of Ed and the next day we had someone visit and within a couple of weeks, we had training set up and scheduled for us. They also, kept in contact with the parent to ensure everything was going well and stayed with the administrators the remaining of the year to make sure they followed the IEP. IT IS THE LAW!!! Don’t feel guilty, bc they get paid to do their job and their job is to offer your child every opportunity that she deserves. If you keep fighting and nothing happens, then you have to go above their head. You are being a GREAT mom that wants the very best for your child. Your child and her education is your only priority. Don’t worry about their response or their feelings, you have to do what’s right for your child. It shouldn’t take home-schooling or lawyers if they would do their job. I am not saying I am the perfect Special Education Teacher as it is very challenging, but everyone of my students deserved individualized education and that’s what I strive to give them. Your daughter deserves the same. GOOD LUCK! Be Strong and Aggressive. Take all of these good suggestions and run with it. Let us know!~