Twelve Tips To Winning School and College Disputes

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

Most parents see schools as places where their kids go daily, while they are at work or taking care of other household needs, and forget about them.  College students may view their universities as a large mass of buildings and detached college staff and instructors.  Students and parents may be shocked and confused when a problem arises at a school or college  and may not know what to do. 

THE BASICS OF APPROACHING A SCHOOL OR COLLEGE PROBLEM

There are some fundamental recommendations I have when it comes to dealing with schools and getting desired outcomes for students.   These should generally apply to many issues that come up, from school discipline, expulsion, and suspensions, to special education, IEP (Individualized Education Program) or 504 matters, college hearings, sports eligibility, student targeting by teachers or professors, grade appeals, and many other matters being encountered by students in day to day life.

1)  Know the rules:  When you run into a problem in a school or college, find the rules which apply to the situation.  These may be found in the school handbook, on the website, in program handbooks (e.g. a "Handbook for the Nursing Program"), and in many other places.  Boards of education also issue policies which are online, usually under the "Board" section of a school district website.  For the UC Regents, there are rules that apply to all UCs found usually on the relevant Regents page, or on the specific college website.  Find any and all policies and rules related to the student issue.  Read them, clear up any misunderstood words or concepts in the policies/rules and truly understand them.

2)  Gather Information Specific To The Student:  One of the first things I do in matters is to request student records.  For students pre-college, parents can submit a request for the student's files and all evidence that may relate to any pending matter.  For college students, a similar request may be filed.  Timelines are usually 5 business days for public schools (before college), and maximum 45 days under FERPA (Family Education Rights And Privacy Act).  Some colleges bind themselves to shorter time periods for production which can be discovered when researching relevant school policies.  For private entities, if they take federal funds, they usually are bound to federal laws on production.

3)  Write A Timeline:  Another important component to really understanding a matter and later communicating with a school or college about it is a timeline.  Does the student really know what happened when, and who was involved?  Get it on paper so it is clear.

4)  Gather Support:  Does the student have documents that relate to the matter at hand, or texts, or pictures, etc.?  All documents should be gathered together and connected to the timeline.  If evidence may be online, printing it out and downloading a copy can be very worthwhile as I have seen schools change websites and remove documents after they found out they were at issue.  If a screenshot or copy of critical evidence was not downloaded or printed, the proof can vanish.  

If you have witnesses, depending on the situation, they can potentially be contacted.

CAUTION:  There are times, particularly in discipline matters, when an accused student should not contact potential witnesses as this could be misinterpreted as witness intimidation, so be cautious in contacting potential witnesses.  Minor witnesses should only be contacted through their parents, if at all.

5)  Put Appropriate Things In Writing:  It is easy to cold call a school official and blab about a matter, and that may be necessary, but it is also important to put a competent communication together in writing which outlines the situation and the student's  position.  This is an important component to ensuring that points are

not just forgotten, such as on a phone call where no one takes notes.  What is the truth about the situation, what do the school or college's own rules say about it, and what data  supports the thing being sought?  It can be a double-edged sword, however, as putting things in writing can be negative if letters are full of threats or wild allegations and can cause problems.  As such, it is key to write the letter objectively and factually, and to remove as much emotion as possible.  If the author cannot write it in an effective way, they may need to get help from someone they trust to ghost write it. 

CAUTION:  If an accused student puts things in writing, whatever is written could be seen as a form of "admission," so accused students need to be hyper-cautious lest any documents be pulled out and used against them as testimony

6)  Make Personal Contact With School Officials:  This can be necessary if a student wants to achieve their goal and it cannot be achieved via written communication alone.  Again, an accused student, such as in a suspension or expulsion matter, will want to carefully consider how this is approached so it does not harm their matter.  It will depend on the situation.  Many times meeting with one school official, then maybe another, will be necessary to try to achieve a goal.

7)  Filings:  Is there an official process if personal contact does not work?  If so, it should be considered.  There may also be an outside agency which could be contacted to file something (sometimes students have only one option- the outside agency or the school).  Students need to determine the internal and external processes available and their likelihood of success in either one.

8)  Rally Support:  Some students or parents think getting a bunch of protestors outside a school can help, or getting on the news will somehow intimidate the school or college.  I do not turn to the media for leverage, as I find that they usually have their story already written before they talk to me- and who knows if that will go against my client's position or not?  Once media is allowed in, sometimes the lines can get blurry on what can be printed/not printed online or otherwise.  

As far as a group of supporters: groups can be effective if they are a cohesive group of students or parents with strong positions individually (for example, they or their child were also wronged).

9)  Be Smart:  With any school issue, be it appealing a grade, or opposing an expulsion, it is important to be professional and act intelligently.  School administrators judge us on how we act, so students and parents should be thorough, well versed and professional in all communications, and keep emotion to a minimum.  Help school administrators focus on the facts by keeping it clear, concise, by presenting documented support and communicating in a way they can accept.  

10)  Know Your Audience:  Realize who you are talking to, bureaucrats and people generally unmotivated personally by any threatened loss.  It is not usually the school administrator's house at risk if a student is wronged.  School and college officials are 

not like other retail establishments who care about their clientele returning.  There is a high demand for their services and with public schools, students are often stuck in their school of residence.  As such, although administrators may not want issues, they have less motivation to resolve them than the average grocery store, as they have so much power over students.  This sometimes results in administrators talking down to students or parents.  Triumph over this by  thoroughly knowing your position and any leverage you may have.

11)  Be Persuasive:  Persuasion is key, and this may be seen in communications that outline the situation in a way that leads the reader (e.g. school administrator) to the student's side.  Persuasive writing is somewhat of an art, but essentially if an administrator can imagine themselves as the student and get into that viewpoint, they may move toward helping that student if possible.  Effective communication and persuasion are critical.

12)  Present Solutions That Meet Both Sides Needs:  To reach a resolution, it is important that whatever outcome a student or parent requests, it is made "easy" for the school to provide that outcome.  For example, you are not asking for them to buy a $200,000 schoolbus to get your kid home, but are only asking for a daily taxi ride, due to issues with the special education bus.  What could you and they both accept which solves the problem?  Be creative and communicate ideas which both sides could be happy with in the end, and which are possible.  Many parents don't even have an idea of what they want or don't tell the school what will satisfy them, so it is a step-up for a parent or student to tell the school or college staff their goals so they can try to reach them collaboratively.

Almost any school matter can be approached with these steps which can effectively educate the student, parent, and school, and help students win their disputes by reaching resolutions that work in the school or college setting.

Best,

 

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website, Blog, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook

 

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting.  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship. This blog may not reflect the current state of the law.

 

READ MORE - Twelve Tips To Winning School and College Disputes

Medical Marijuana Administration And School Discipline

 By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

In 2020, students were granted the right to have medical marijuana administered to them in school by their parent or guardian IF formally authorized by their school district.  The circumstances surrounding this potential opportunity can be confusing and if the law is not followed properly, could lead to discipline.

Per Education Code §49414.1 (aka JoJo's Law), it is up to each school board

if they will implement a policy to allow a parent to administer medical marijuana/cannabis at their schools.  If there is no policy in place allowing this, there is no right to administer medical marijuana at school.

If there is a board policy, per §49414.1: 

(c) The policy shall include, at a minimum, all of the following elements:

(1) The parent or guardian shall not administer the medicinal cannabis in a manner that disrupts the educational environment or exposes other pupils.

(2) After the parent or guardian administers the medicinal cannabis, the parent or guardian shall remove any remaining medicinal cannabis from the schoolsite.

(3) The parent or guardian shall sign in at the schoolsite before administering the medicinal cannabis.

(4) Before administering the medicinal cannabis, the parent or guardian shall provide to an employee of the school a valid written medical recommendation for medicinal cannabis for the pupil to be kept on file at the school.

If your child receives medical marijuana and you would like to administer it to them during their school day, check your district's board of education page to see if there may be a board policy in place.  If there is, it is critical that it is read and understood as far as what exactly IS allowed.  

If a parent does not follow the rules of their district exactly, the student could be disciplined.  For example, if a parent just can't get to school that day, and rather than forego giving the medication, they hand the medical marijuana to the student to stick in their backpack.  This is not allowed and discipline could result.

There remain laws on school discipline allowing suspension or expulsion for possession or being under the influence of marijuana, and this legal conflict has not been addressed.  As such, parents may want to formally confirm that if their child is "under the influence" due to allowed medical marijuana, they will not be punished as this "influence" is medically authorized and allowed by board policy. 

Parents may also want to explore a 504 Plan or Individualized Education Program (IEP) to see if the medication use or administration options (and other supports) may be addressed in one of these plans. 

There is still a lot of confusion surrounding medical marijuana at school, and students get punished for matters relating to cannabis very frequently.  Be sure your child won't.

Best,

 

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website, Blog, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook

 

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.!  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship. This blog may not reflect the current state of the law.

READ MORE - Medical Marijuana Administration And School Discipline

How To Get Speech, Occupational Therapy and Other Related Services Delivered To Our Kids During Coronavirus

 By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

The end of the 2019-2020 school year was a nightmare for kids, and hardest hit were special needs students.  Now that fall 2020 is starting mainly at home, students are not likely to receive adequate special education services, including their "related services."  

Related services are things such as speech and language, occupational therapy, adaptive physical education, and other similar supportive services necessary to help a special needs student to be educated.  These can be very difficult to deliver via online options and schools recently have cut down the provision of these services due to distance learning.

One possible solution for the delivery of these services is to have a school district pay for outside service providers to deliver in person services to the student.  These could be delivered either at the provider's business or in the student's home (if the provider and family are willing).  

Recently I have reached out to a local private speech and language provider and found they are open for business and can deliver right now to students at their office.  This means that while  school employees are not available for students to meet with, other equally qualified professionals are.  The argument is that these outside services must be provided or students will regress.

Parents may want to research what services are available in their area for in person delivery and contact their school to attempt to get their child's services delivered by these outside providers.  If the school argues they are already delivering, that argument can be countered by asking if they are willing to deliver their services in person or not and pointing out the obvious difficulties and deficiencies present with online provision.  

There is a huge difference between in person and video services when it comes to speech and language, occupational therapy, and adaptive physical education.  I have had some clients give up doing video delivery altogether as they cannot get the student to attend and they also don't have the equipment or training to deliver the services to their kids.

Additionally, parents can ask to be reimbursed for their mileage to and from these services.  The mileage reimbursement must be listed in the IEP.

Other supports such as from an aide/paraprofessional, where a student may be accompanied by a trained assistant throughout their schoolday, may have vanished recently as well.

With aide services, if a student is entitled to specialized support, they should be

provided that support to the fullest extent possible.  The aide should attend their classes with them, at the very least, and perhaps assist them online for their whole school day (as they would have been at school had it been in session) and beyond, helping them with whatever they need.  If minutes of service are noted in the IEP, those minutes should be delivered.  There are other arguments that aides should help children directly, but those may be a bit more complex at this point.

We have to do something, and not just wait until this is all over to try to pick up the pieces.  If outside providers are available to deliver, this may be an option for families to receive some of their services during this difficult time.  

Research and an IEP meeting may be the first steps to take to move our kids forward, as the government does not seem they will solve this problem for us.

Best,

 

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website, Blog, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook

 

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.!  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship. This blog may not reflect the current state of the law.

 

READ MORE - How To Get Speech, Occupational Therapy and Other Related Services Delivered To Our Kids During Coronavirus

Special Education After Coronavirus- Steps To Take To Try To Recoup Services And Regain Lost Skills

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

As the months of Coronavirus destruction of life as we know it roll on, it is clear that not only have lives  been destroyed, but also that the educational lives of our children have been crushed.  This is especially true for special needs kids, who have been shoved home and largely forgotten about as far as the level of support they may need to access and advance in their education.  With the fall approaching, and some schools reopening for physical classes, or a hybrid model of in-class instruction and online school, it is time to think about how to recover from the near-destruction of special education services this past time period.

Although no one has the answers on Coronavirus, what will happen, what may happen, and what parents may be entitled to in the future after a denial of their legally-mandated special education services, there are a few things that parents may want to do:

1)  Review their child's IEP (Individualized Education Program) and/or 504 Plan document and list out all the services the child should have been receiving and the dates those services stopped.

For example, if a student was to be receiving 30 minutes per week of speech and language services, this should be noted down.  Did they also lose out on a specialized classroom, or behavior instruction?  Put it all down.  Note when the service should have continued through (e.g. May 31, 2020) and when it actually stopped (e.g. March 15, 2020).

2)  List out all the services that were missed.  

On the speech and language example, if a student had no speech and language from March 15 through May 31, 2020, the student should have received approximately 11 sessions of speech and language, for a total of 5.5 hours of service. 

3) Figure out what services were actually provided, albeit via distance learning.

4) List out all the goals that the student was working on for all areas and see if there are any updates on their progress on the goals from service providers or the school.  Some schools provide zero quarterly updates, and some provide periodic updates listing the status of the goals.  Parents need to know what the goals in place are and where the student is on accomplishing their goals, if possible.  It may be tough to really determine where a student is on a goal, however, if they have not been in school.  Parents can only do their best.

5)  Gather all the work the student did, as well as all email or other communication between the family and school or providers about the child during the Coronavirus exclusion, and get them into date order so it can be clearly seen what was represented would be provided, or not provided, and what was actually provided.

6)  Pull up the child's report card and lists of assignments for each class, showing points awarded and points possible during the last semester and see what the student was assigned, what they actually turned in and the points they received.  Do the points they received evidence the student was at the level they are supposed to be?  Often lists of points tell a story about the student, their weak and strong areas, and their trouble spots.

These actions should give parents a good understanding of what was supposed to be provided, what was actually provided, and where the student may be as far as learning and goals.  

There is a question on special education and what parents and students will be entitled to when they return to school or if schools will just get out of their obligations due to Coronavirus.  It is uncertain, but needs to be approached by parents if they want to have a chance to recoup.  Things will go faster for parents if schools will physically reopen versus remaining on virtual learning, simply due to the mechanics of services being delivered.  

Parents should attempt to determine what may be needed to bring the student up to where they would have been had school been in session.  Services to accomplish this goal should then be sought.  This is hard to quantify, but parents may want to bring the literal hours missed to the school first (e.g. they missed 5.5 hours of speech) as a starting point.  However, school districts don't necessarily have to provide hour for hour make-up time.  

Ultimately, what may be required if the schools don't get out of this obligation due to a health emergency, are services to bring the student up to where they would have been had this debacle not occured.  This is hard to evaluate and it is possible outside experts may have to be brought in to determine this (e.g. a licensed speech and language therapist).  Services provided to make up loss may be in a smaller or larger amount than what should have been provided had schools remained open.  Services are really based on what the student needs to be brought whole again.  These services are sometimes called "compensatory" services, as they compensate a family for lost education.

In its "Fact Sheet:Addressing the Risk of COVID-19 in SchoolsWhile Protecting the Civil Rights of Students" released March 16, 2020, the United States Department of Education wrote in discussing the special ed issues from Coronavirus: 

The Department understands that there may be exceptional circumstances that could affect how a particular service is provided. If a student does not receive services after an extended period of time, the student’s IEP Team, or appropriate personnel under Section 504, must make an individualized determination whether and to what extent compensatory services are needed consistent with the respective applicable requirements, including to make up for any skills that may have been lost.  

[emphasis added]

This appears to confirm an affirmative obligation of schools to act to provide compensatory services to students who lost skills during this time.  Offering compensatory services has started happening outside California, for example in Louisiana where the state is taking a proactive approach.  I am not sure that California schools will take on this issue or offer compensatory services without being asked by parents first. 

How hard the districts fight or if they are able to wiggle out of compensatory services is yet to be seen.

Regardless, parents need to start looking at this and take action if they want to help their children regain any skills lost during the Coronavirus school shutdown.  

Best,

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website, Blog, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.!  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship.

READ MORE - Special Education After Coronavirus- Steps To Take To Try To Recoup Services And Regain Lost Skills

Special Education During COVID-19/Coronavirus- 5 Actions Special Ed Parents Need To Take Now To Help Their Children

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

The last two weeks have been a real NEW thing for all of us: being forced home with fear, and with our kids being excluded from school, with no or limited schooling being provided or being provided by us to the best of our abilities.  Meanwhile the Governor of California has stated that school may not be back in until the 2020-21 school year.  There are serious issues in this moment for kids, parents and education.  If your child is a special education student, the issues are probably ten times worse, as now they are not getting their services and supports.  

The first question to ask is IF your school or school district is actually providing distance learning right now?  If so, your child should have access to it.  If not, parents need to get in gear and demand this occurs.  

Special education kids need instruction even more than others due to the potential for regression when away from their education and related services (for example, speech, occupational therapy, adaptive physical education, behavior therapy, other therapies).  

If you are a special education parent and your child has an Individualized Education Program (IEP), you are likely well aware of what Extended School Year (ESY) services are.  These are the summer programs and support services which your child may receive so they don't lose gains they made during the traditional academic year.  The normal summer break is only about 2-3 months depending on when your school gets out, and many special education students are entitled to ESY services for this short period to prevent regression.

With the Governor's statement, if true, our kids will be out of school from March to August, which is almost SIX MONTHS.  If a student would regress during the short summer break, what happens with a break that is double the normal time period?  Even special education

kids who may typically not need ESY services to prevent regression can regress during such a long school absence.  Years of support may go down the drain if a student who has made great behavioral or other strides in school is home for this extended period with no substitute.  It is a real problem and is unacceptable.  

Additionally, special education students often require more intensive individualized services.  Even if a school provides some video instruction, how will this help the student who needs more unique instruction and intervention?  And what if they need a classroom aide to assist them and their parents are not trained to provide this type of support?  Who will train their parents to help them?  

Recently, the United States Department of Education (USDOE) released a statement on special education services during this crisis.  In this document it is explained that special education students must be provided with an equal opportunity to access their education to general education students.  If they don't have a computer to access those programs, presumably one should be provided by the school or school district.  The student also must be provided with equipment, gear and programs to make the computer accessible for them.  Per the document "federal law requires distance instruction to be accessible to students with disabilities."

What if they are not trained how to use such a device in their home?  Presumably some instruction must be provided by the school district.  School districts must rapidly address these needs.

Students with IEPs also must be provided with their related services

while in the home if at all possible.  For example, the USDOE document references provision of speech via video conference.  It is conceivable many other services could also be provided to students, including therapy and behavioral counseling, even socialization groups.  If not, it is also referenced that perhaps students will have claims to receive compensatory services once "regular" school resumes.

Ultimately, special education parents should start with the following steps:

1)  Find out, if not known already, if your school/district is providing educational services for its students.

2)  If so, ensure your child has all the gear to access this service and is receiving education in all classes being offered.  If some classes are missing, figure out how they can access these classes.

3)  If the services are via computer and your child cannot use a computer or needs adaptive gear or programs to do so, or if you don't have a computer, meaning the child cannot access the curriculum, get in touch with your school/district/special education coordinator and get them to provide the necessary technology, programs and training.

4)  Coordinate with your special education team about how your child will be provided their related services during this time.  Where is their speech to be delivered and how?  What about other online options? What about parent training for home support?

5)  See if you can convene an IEP via phone or teleconference to address these issues for the short term (only while this crisis continues).  If the full IEP team is not available, a reduced group can still discuss and solve these issues.  If no teleconferencing is available, parents can still develop a temporary plan with the staff for their child via email.

There are a lot of questions about what to do, but as with all things, action is required to move things along.

Parents should act fast and not wait at home for the school or district to act, while their child sits not getting services and losing their gains.  We work hard for their success and we should not be forced to lose advancement in one fell swoop.

Take action and be well.

Best,

 

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website, Blog, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook

 

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.!  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship. This blog may not reflect the current state of the law.

READ MORE - Special Education During COVID-19/Coronavirus- 5 Actions Special Ed Parents Need To Take Now To Help Their Children

Preventing Problems In Special Education Service Delivery When Changing School Districts

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

Moving your home is never easy, but some stuff should be smooth: calling to set up utilities, finding a local grocery store, enrollment in school.  These things should not be big deals, right?  Sure.  But, what if your child is in special education?  How will their move go?  Things can get sticky or services may stop altogether.  Parents need to take action prior to relocating with a special needs student to try to avert disaster.

Technically and legally, nothing should change for your child at their new school.  If a student had a full time aide while being mainstreamed, they should get a full time aide and be mainstreamed at their new school.  If they had Resource English class, they should have it again, at least for a little while.  Sounds simple.

The California Education Code section which addresses moves, 56043(m)(1) states:

 If an individual with exceptional needs transfers from district to district within the state, the following are applicable...

(1) If the child has an individualized education program and transfers into a district from a district not operating programs under the same local plan in which he or she was last enrolled in a special education program within the same academic year, the local educational agency shall provide the pupil with a free appropriate public education, including services comparable to those described in the previously approved individualized education program, in consultation with the parents or guardians, for a period not to exceed 30 days, by which time the local educational agency shall adopt the previously approved individualized education program or shall develop, adopt, and implement a new individualized education program that is consistent with federal and state law. [emphasis added]

This applies to students changing districts in-state, leaving their old "SELPA" (Special Education Local Plan Area).  SELPAs may cover an entire county, one district, or a region.  Students moving in California and out of their prior SELPA should receive equivalent IEP services upon entrance to a new school district. Within 30 days of entrance into the new district, an IEP meeting should be held and the old IEP adopted or a new IEP developed.  As usual, if parents do not agree to suggested changes to the prior IEP, they may reject some or all of them.

Per state law, if a student moves within the state and within the same SELPA, the new District must adopt the old IEP and provide services unless the parent and new IEP team agree to develop a new IEP (CA Ed Code section 56043(m)(2)).  In other words, the IEP continues and no meeting must be set.

Federal law basically states that a student changing districts during the same school year within the same state shall receive comparable services at the new location (20 US Code 1414(d)(2)(C)(i)(I)).

If a student comes from outside of California, comparable services must be provided, but a new IEP cannot be developed until an assessment is completed (CA Ed Code section 56043(m)(3)) unless the new district determines a new assessment is not "necessary." (20 US Code 1414(d)(2)(C)(i)(II); CA Ed Code section 56325(a)(3)).

The only wrinkle in all of this is that the codes mention moves within the same academic year.  No mention is made of a move during the summer, but arguably, the same things will apply whether a change is mid-year or during the summer. IEPs don't just evaporate depending on what month one moves.

An interested parent might now think: "This sounds great, as all schools will know and apply the law to all students and ensure my child gets services from day one, won't they?!"  (crickets chirping)  Unfortunately, its not always that simple.  

Far too many distraught parents find that entering a new school for a special education student is a negative experience.  For example, Mom gets a call from the school office verifying the secretary saw that her daughter (incoming student) is special education and Mom now believes all is well.  However, when Jenny goes to school, there is no aide, she is not receiving her support services, and no speech and language sessions (supposed to be 3 times a week) are set up.  Instead, Jenny is placed in a mainstream class with nothing more than a "hello."  If she is lucky, a school counselor will show up to greet her.  

To try to avoid this scenario, parents must prepare far in advance of a move.  Here are some potential actions one may take:

1)  Determine what the district of residence is for the new home.
2)  Contact the district and verify the school your child will attend (sometimes schools are impacted and there may be no space).  The school site may change also depending on special education services needed.
3)  Speak to the person in charge of special education services at the new school/district.
4)  Ask them to immediately request copies of the child's records.  
5)  Send your own copies of the current IEP and any relevant assessments.  Often when a student is moving, files will trail them, not arriving until sometime after the student enters.  
6)  Call back to ensure receipt and review of the documents, to verify the services and supports being arranged, what site the student will attend, and all details.  
7)  Reconfirm services are in place prior to entering school.   
8)  Try to get in touch with your child's future teacher(s) and service providers to alert them to your child's entrance, needs, etc. and provide documents to them as needed.
9)  Go with your child on day one and ensure everything is in place (you may need to take the day off of work or be prepared to).  If not, contact the special education coordinator and/or special education director to get things moving.
10)  Work until equivalent services (to the ones on your current IEP from the old district) are in place.
11)  Ensure that another IEP meeting is set up within 30 days and prepare for that.
12)  Remain diligent to ensure services are continuing, checking with your child daily and providers (as needed).

There is probably a lot more which could be done, and this list is just an idea. However, jumping on the situation and helping things along will ensure that the move DOES go smoothly, at least as far as school goes.  Unfortunately, I can't help you with the cable guy.

Best,

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 

717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/

Blog: http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/michelleaball

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/EdLaw4Students

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Law-Office-of-Michelle-Ball/191273330901857

[please like my office on Facebook, subscribe via twitter and email, and check out my videos on Youtube!]

Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.!  This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship.

READ MORE - Preventing Problems In Special Education Service Delivery When Changing School Districts

Special Education Basics: "We Don't Have Those Here" Is Not A Legal Reason To Deny Special Education Services

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

So many times I have met with parents who are beside themselves, unable to obtain services for their child based on a school "not having" services available at their site or in their school district.  Parents are often unaware that denial of special education services based on unavailability or lack of providers is not legal.

Special education is based on the "unique needs" of each special education child and meeting those needs with educational services tailored to that specific student. Parents, being unaware of their rights and/or believing that a school IEP (Individualized Education Program) team is acting in the best interests of their child, mistakenly believe statements such as "We don't have any speech services in the school district;" or "There are no occupational therapists available here;" or "Those services are not provided in this school/district," to support a lack of service provision.  Agreeing with these misstatements means the child does not get the services he or she needs.

If a special education student is qualified (e.g. services in the child's IEP) for educational or related services, such as speech and language therapy, behavioral therapy, occupational therapy, one-on-one instruction, vision therapy, aide services, transportation and a myriad of other services, provision of such services CANNOT BE DENIED based on unavailability of service providers.  If a school or district does not have a qualified provider available and/or in that district, they are obligated to pay for services outside the district and to pay for transportation costs to and from those services.  For example, if there is no occupational therapist (OT) available to provide the 2 hours a week a student is entitled to, the district must pay a private OT provider to deliver services.

Why do parents believe IEP teams when they say they don't have to deliver services as they don't have the personnel?  My theory is that parents are often too busy to know their rights and rely on the school to do their job.  IEP team meetings are often very friendly, almost like social events, and parents tend to trust the school representatives as "authorities" and "having more experience" than the parents.  However, trusting the team to act on the student's behalf and do what is needed to help the student advance adequately year-to-year can be a mistake. Parents' first lesson is that they need to educate themselves and not blindly listen to denials.  

Another related wrinkle here is that schools try use the lack of personnel to avoid assessment (and thus potential qualification) altogether.  However, if a school or district lacks personnel to assess, they must hire qualified outside help to assess for all areas of potential need.  

Don't be fooled.  If your child is entitled to services, they need to be delivered.

Best,

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney 

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL 
717 K Street, Suite 228 

Sacramento, CA 95814 

Phone: 916-444-9064 

Email:help@edlaw4students.com 

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/

Blog: http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/michelleaball

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/EdLaw4Students

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Law-Office-of-Michelle-Ball/191273330901857

[please like my office on Facebook, subscribe via twitter and email, and check out my videos on Youtube!]

READ MORE - Special Education Basics: "We Don't Have Those Here" Is Not A Legal Reason To Deny Special Education Services