Carolyn Rowlett

I agree with JDS that school districts don't have to (and often can't) be held to the requirements set forth on the Wilson website. I also agree that 90 minutes in one session is too much for a third grader (I have tutored 3rd graders 1:1 in OG-based instruction). What school districts do have to be held to is progress. And it doesn't matter what program is being used - if sufficient progress is not happening, something needs to change, whether that be the program, number of minutes, ratio of students, teacher training, etc. As JDS stated, progress monitoring is the same for whatever instruction the school is using. In very general terms: 1. For accuracy, you want to see progress toward her reading on grade level with 95% accuracy. 2. For fluency, you want to see progress toward her reading 112 words correct per minutes on a third grade passage (Hasbrouck & Tindal Compiled ORF Norms). 3. For comprehension, you want to see progress toward her answering 4 of our 5 comprehension questions after reading a third grade passage. A question for MBM. When you say you "prefer OG over Wilson," what do you mean? OG is not a program, per say, but a teaching approach. And Wilson is based in OG. As far as mastery of skills, I completely agree with you that 70/80% is too low (95% is the lowest I accept on a goal for reading skills, except for comprehension; if there are only 5 comprehension questions, I accept 90% as a goal). However, the goal should not be dictated by the program. The goal should be dictated by the IEP team, regardless of whatever program the school is using suggests.

I agree with Lisa regarding the use of a calculator. Many people need a calculator in their daily lives, and the vast majority use it whether they actually "need" it or not. With her being in high school, at this point you are readying her for life beyond high school, which for her may be life with a calculator. Having said that, it is important that she know the concepts behind math calculation problems (as opposed to just rote memory). For instance, that 24 is 4 groups of 6 or 2 groups of 12 or 3 groups of 8. I'm a little confused as to why no data is available because of distance learning. Believe me, I understand the difficulty with distance learning, but isn't there a way to work with her remotely and verbally ask her her multiplication facts (i.e., flash cards)? Or have her complete a worksheet that she holds up and shows you? I assume she is getting specialized instruction minutes in math pursuant to her IEP, so can't data be collected during those sessions?

1. If you don't think check-in's for breaks are occurring, I would suggest having them scheduled (every one or two hours, whatever you think is best). A teacher with 25 kids actually may not see his fatigue (I'm not excusing this; just looking at it from a practical standpoint.) I would say ask the teacher during the meeting, but my guess is you will not get an accurate response. 2. A self-advocacy goal would look something like "student will recognize when he is fatigued and request a break 3 out of 4 times..." One could also be written for asking for help, etc. 3. You may need to request an IEE in order to get services other than academic. Make sure that the school re-evaluation is covering social/emotional. If they refuse, you can still request an IEE based on the fact that the school had the opportunity but did not test in all areas of concern.

What are his categories of eligibility? For what areas are there goals? Has a re-evaluation been done for the three year re-evaluation meeting, or is this just for a review of existing data? This will help us better formulate a response to your question. But for now, I would offer the following suggestions: 1. If he has an accommodation for a break, make sure it doesn't read or can be interpreted that the student has to ask for the break. Most 8-year-olds don't have this self-advocacy skill and especially depending on what the disability is, shouldn't be expected to have this skill yet. So make sure the "break" accommodation is either scheduled breaks that the teacher has to abide by or that the teacher must prompt the break if s/he sees dysregulation (but this may not work if your son doesn't show signs of dysregulation at school). 2. In the meantime until he has the skill, self-advocacy should be a goal he is working towards (again, this could be dependent on the disability). 2. Unless already done, request a re-evaluation in the area of social/emotional. These usually have questionnaires that parents complete (and sometimes even students - not sure of the age for these). That way you can get "into the record" your concerns and his. 3. If the re-evaluation doesn't move the school toward additional goals and accommodations, ask for an Independent Educational Evaluation. 4. Depending on the severity of the "unkindness" toward your son, you should probably report these incidents to the principal. 5. If he's getting "a lot of answers wrong," this is something to point to show that there are issues at school even if he's not acting out.

The school, as his in loco parentis, has the obligation to change his diaper. They are not considered "strangers" in this situation. But I would contact your state department of education to see what type of certification and/or training is required for this and make sure the staff member(s) have that. Not changing the diaper of a child who needs his diaper changed would be considered neglect on the part of the school district. Parents cannot be and should not be responsible for this. Because you have expressed concerns over touching his private parts, I think the scenario JSD was perhaps referring to was one in which the changing of the diaper revealed soiled private parts which if not cared for could be considered neglect; i.e., in that case, they can probably touch his private parts without your permission, as the school is the acting parent in this scenario. This isn't meant to be rude - just telling you what the school protocol might in that situation. It isn't a black-and-white answer - it could depend on the circumstances. Again, I would suggest consulting with an attorney, as this site does not provide legal advice. If you have concerns about how this medical need is handled, you should absolutely request an IEP meeting and ask your questions of the team and staff in charge of this. If more specifics need to be written into the IEP or a health plan, ask for those. I think your questions have been addressed to the best of our ability and qualifications. Can the school change his diaper? Yes. Can they touch his private parts? Not unless medical necessity comes into play. If you have further questions, let us know.

I would call the Pennsylvania Department of Education and ask if this is ok. Many requirements for teachers have been modified to address the staffing shortage. But regardless if this is ok or not, the IEP MUST be followed. There is no excuse for not doing this. I would first go over all the accommodations with your son to see which ones are being followed (and if not being followed, does he still need them?). Then I would gather information as to how this failure to follow the IEP is affecting your son in the educational environment - is he getting low grades? is he struggling to turn in assignments, keep up with homework, etc.? is he frustrated or does he "hate" school? are his standardized test scores going down? Then request an IEP meeting (ask that every teacher attend, but you probably won't get that) and ask how accommodations are being implemented and outline the struggles he is having based on not following the IEP. For teachers who are not at the meeting, ask them in an email or phone call or informal meeting (during the latter two taking meticulous notes and following up with an email as to what was said). If you continue to have issues with implementation of the IEP, contact the director of special education. Next step would be filing a state complaint.

Boy, this is beyond my wheelhouse, so hopefully others will chime in. But her are my thoughts as to the question in your first sentence - thoughts only. Please know that this is not legal advice and that you should probably contact an attorney. I can't imagine a scenario in which a child's right to special education would override safety protocol, which is in place for all students. A school has to take threats seriously even IF they are a manifestation of a disability. Also, some actions taken may be out of their control, such as what happens to him from a criminal standpoint. Knowing what your son's rights are in terms of his disability in a criminal setting is something that should be discussed with an attorney. HOWEVER, the school is still responsible for correct implementation of the BIP. The fact that they missed warning signs should be immediately be addressed. When you say the school "still wants him punished," I'm assuming you mean in the school setting. I believe they would have that right up until he was suspended/removed from the educational environment for 10 cumulative days. If the MDR then found that his disabilities were the cause of his behavior, he could not be suspended beyond those 10 days and a new functional behavior assessment and BIP might be in order. Again, not my wheelhouse and hopefully others will chime in. Also, I highly suggest speaking with an attorney regarding the criminal proceedings and your son's rights in that area.

First, always keep in mind that budget cuts, financial constraints, etc., should never be a factor in deciding whether or not a child needs specific services. The team determines needs based on data and then figures out how to meet those needs (sometimes has to think outside the box). From a practical standpoint, yes, you may need to give the school district some grace in figuring out how to provide services if finances are an issue. But bottom line, as Lisa would say, "That's not your problem." Does she have an IEP? If not, that's your first step. I would suggest that before this school year ends you reach out to the kindergarten principal and request a special education evaluation. This will be conducted at the beginning of the next school year. If she does have an IEP, request a transition meeting with the pre-school and new grade school teams towards the end of this school year to talk about her transitioning to a new school - specifically going from a 7:3 ration to 20 (or more):1 and what her needs will be. Also ask about the expectations of Kindergarten. If there are some she cannot meet, discuss what services need to be in place for her to access FAPE. If it will have been a year since her last evaluation, I would also request a re-evaluation once school starts next fall. You might also request a Functional Behavior Analysis (FBA) to determine the why's and when's to her elopement so that can be addressed in a Behavioral Intervention Plan (BIP).

I would first reach out to the West Virginia Department of Education and ask what the requirements are in this situation in terms of certification and student/teacher ratio. I would also request an IEP meeting to discuss what is occurring and things that might need to be tweaked in the IEP document. You could request an FBA to pinpoint what the school is doing or not doing to trigger the behavior. Of course, the school FBA probably won't find anything wrong with what the school is doing, so then you can request an IEE. An independent evaluator could suggest things the school should be doing (or not doing). Finally, you might want to loop in the director of special education so that he/she knows what's happening.

The first thing that jumps out at me throughout your post is that so many of your conversations were over the phone. Keep in mind the following: If it's not written down, it didn't happen. Try to avoid having phone conversations. And if you do have a phone conversation, keep good notes, then send a email with those notes to the person you spoke with stating "this is what we discussed in our conversation on such-and such a date." Especially include anything the school district (by way of the person you spoke with) agreed to do or refused to do. Second, no, your daughter does NOT need to change classes in order to receive an IEP evaluation. That's just plain ridiculous and wrong. If their reasoning behind this is that she has to have an intervention first (as you state above), that is also completely wrong. My advice going forward: 1. Email (EVERY request should be in writing from this point forward) the director of special education requesting a special education evaluation and explaining the roadblock you encountered at the building (school) level of the need for intervention and changing classes (which you have researched and discovered is incorrect). 2. Include in the above request anything that would support the need for an evaluation (anxiety diagnosis; standardized testing, screenings, assessments showing low academic, reading skills/level; comments/emails from teachers that she is struggling (even going back to grade school); the email from the counselor stating that she may have a specific learning disability; etc. 3. Request an evaluation in the following areas: Intellectual/Cognitive (this may be denied if they already have an IQ test on file, as those results do not change much); Social/Emotional/Behavior (to address the anxiety); Academic Achievement (to address the possibility of a specific learning disability). 4. Request from the principal the following documents: all standardized test and screening results; all progress monitoring results from any interventions (even going back to grade school); all 504 evaluations (even if they were "lost," you need something in writing to that effect); a Prior Written Notice that the special education evaluation is being denied because of no intervention (if they are refusing to do an evaluation because you won't switch classes, you are entitled to a Prior Written Notice stating this). 5. If you ever hit a "wall" with anyone, please remember that everyone you deal with has someone in the district they report to. If you can't get anywhere with the principal, find out who the principal's supervisor is and email him/her. Keep going up the chain of command.

Is the other teacher also providing special education services? I think the quickest way to get your question answered is to call your state department of education. States vary on what is accepted in terms of "certification" and in what environments.

The IDEA requires the following: The public agency must ensure that each child with a disability has the supplementary aids and services determined by the child’s IEP team to be appropriate and necessary for the child to participate in nonacademic settings. This can include transportation. The issue in your scenario is that the IEP team removed the service. You need to request a meeting to discuss this decision. The reason for removing a service cannot be because "the bus doesn't run that late." It can only be removed if the service is not necessary for the child to participate in the extra-curricular activity. That it what you need to stress - that curb-to-curb transportation is necessary for your child to participate. It is for the academic setting, so why wouldn't it be for the non-academic setting? There are other ways to provide curb-to-curb transportation such as Ubers and cabs.

I am not in PA and others on this site are, so I didn't do a thorough dive into what's required in your state, but I did find "A Parent's Guide to Response to Intervention in Pennsylvania," which appears to answer some of your questions. In that guide, it refers to parental involvement as a "key feature" in the response to intervention process. It also requires that progress monitoring be provided to the parents. Neither of these things seem to have happened in your case. It is good that you have asked for a re-evaluation in writing and to add reading (I assume this was done via email/in writing). Have they approved this yet? Have you signed for consent? You need to push for this so that the 60 days can begin. What is the school district basing their accommodations on for writing and reading? These have to be tied back to the present levels. If he needs accommodations, there could be some data in the present levels that he needs specialized instruction, as well. You state you were "permitted to view evaluations and special ed records at the district office." Is there an evaluation report? Was an IEP meeting help to go over the results? With respect to the destruction of evaluation protocols, you need to request a copy (or find on the school district's website) of their records retention policy. There is no reason why the school can't give you copies of his writing only (without the protocols). But if you continue to get pushback on this, ask for writing samples from his general education teachers or have him do something at home with a prompt from you. Additional documents I would request are results of all dyslexia screeners from Kindergarten on and all standardized testing results from K on (these may not start until 3rd grade). As far as this affecting your relationship, you now know you need to be very diligent in requesting what, if any, interventions are occurring with you son, as well as progress monitoring resulting from such interventions. You also should not rely on school staff telling you "he is fine." Ask for evaluations.

I haven't had to go through either of those processes. But a client of mine did file a state complaint and was successful in getting compensatory services through that route. If you have good facts, that might be an easier route to try first.

This doesn't sound like a due process hearing in the realm of special education. Who was the letter from?