What's Going On?

 

I'M NOW PROVIDING LEGAL SERVICES FOR HARASSMENT AND BULLYING CASES

For too long I have been turning away harassment and bullying cases explaining that my practice does not include those types of cases.  Having heard far too many awful stories of what some students endure in school, I have decided to expand my practice to include these cases.  Soon, I will have a new website and will include more information about this area of law and what you should do as parents when you suspect your child is being bullied or harassed at school.

 

WILL BUDGET CUTS AFFECT YOUR CHILD?

The news is bad.  Deep cuts are being made by school districts throughout the state.   http://www.oregonlive.com/gresham/index.ssf/2011/05/budget_woes_force_tough_decisi.html

http://www.oregonlive.com/education/index.ssf/2011/05/oregon_school_district_budget.html

What does all this mean for your child? It means that you need to be vigilant that the cuts do not interfere with your child’s right to a free and appropriate public education. It means that when the issue of cost and budgets come up at IEP meeting you need to respectfully acknowledge the difficult times but note that nothing about the federal law has changed and, thus, all of your child’s needs must be addressed. It means that you need to ensure that everything agreed to at the meeting actually makes it into the IEP. You may need to specifically request a copy of the IEP as not all school district automatically give parents a copy these days..

Be aware that the first cuts are typically made to classified staff, those important people that work in many regular education classrooms. I’ve already heard from parents that the children are spending less time in regular education classrooms than their IEP’s call for because there are no instructional assistants to accompany them to class. I wonder how many parents do not know that their children are being denied access to the regular education classroom or have physical access but do not have the instructional support they need once they are in the class.  Instructional assistants, or paraprofessionals as some districts call them, also work in special education classrooms.   Reducing staffing in a classroom may have a negative effect on your child's ability to learn. 

The best way to protect your child is to make sure that the IEP is clear about the amount of time an instructional aide will be working with your child. "Adult assistance as needed" doesn’t cut it. The team needs to define when adult assistance is needed. Parents need to check in with their child on a regular basis to make sure the assistant continues to work with the child. If you hear things are different than the agreed upon services, ask for an IEP meeting. If your child begins to struggle at school, ask for an IEP meeting.

The Rumor Is Wrong! I’m Still Practicing Law!

The rumor on the street is that I am no longer practicing law. This rumor started when I began talking to people about my coaching services. While I have made it clear to everyone that I have talked with that I seek a balanced practice of ½ law and ½ coaching, I have been hearing from people that they were told I am no longer doing special education law. As my success has depended on word of mouth “advertising” for 20 years, the rumor has had a great financial impact on my law practice. Please, if you speak with anyone about my coaching services, make sure you tell them I am still practicing special education law and ask that they do the same as they, in turn, talk with others. Now, more than ever, I appreciate your referrals.

New Service Offered, IEP Checkups:
In the attempt to make my services available to those who can not afford to have me attend IEP meetings, I am starting a new service. I have reviewed many IEP’s in the 20 years that I have practiced special education law. On a regular basis, I see instances where IEP’s do not meet the requirements of the law. Students with good IEP’s typically make better progress, as their needs ate more adequately met. For a flat fee of $500, I will review your child’s IEP, the last IEP, progress reports, eligibility reports, and evaluations. I’ll inform you of any deficits, and, if you desire, I’ll write a cordial letter to your School District requesting that the inadequacies be corrected.

A Visit to the United States Supreme Court:
In April of 2009 I had the opportunity to visit the Supreme Court in a case I have had since 2003. While I did not argue the case as I had in the earlier proceedings, I assisted David Salmons prepare for his argument. David Salmons had previously argued before the Supreme Court in 13 cases. He did a stellar job. Arguably, I had the best seat in the house as I sat at counsel table without the pressure of having to perform. But, best of all, my clients prevailed!

This case began with a request for hearing asserting that the District failed to find a student with ADHD eligible for special education services. Prior to requesting hearing, the family had made repeated requests for assistance. In 2001 the District found the student was not a student with a disability, however, it did not evaluate in all areas of disability. After numerous unsuccessful requests for assistance from the District, the family sought payment for a residential program until the District offered a free and appropriate public education.

After the hearing request, the District evaluated the student for the second time and again found him not eligible. The Administrative Law Judge ruled in favor of the family and found that the District was unfamiliar with the legal eligibility standards; were given inaccurate information about those standards; had stereotypical ideas of hyperactivity and were unaware of the recent reclassification of various forms of attention deficit as subtypes of ADHD; and did not consider relevant the effort required outside of school to enable the student to pass enough classes to move from grade to grade on schedule. The ALJ awarded reimbursement for the private placement until the District offered a free and appropriate public education.

The District appealed, arguing that the IDEA barred reimbursement because the student had never received special education. The district court agreed with the District and reversed the ALJ’s ruling. The family appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which reversed the district court’s ruling. The District then appealed to the United States Supreme Court which held that the district’s interpretation of the IDEA would “produce a rule bordering on the irrational” by providing a remedy when a school offers a child inadequate special-education services but leaving parents without a remedy when a school district unreasonably denies access to such services altogether.

The case was sent back to the district court to decide how much, if any, reimbursement should be granted based on the specific equitable factors in the case. In December of 2009 the court ruled that the placement was not made for educational reasons and denied all reimbursement. This case is being appealed again to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Good Results in the Albany residential case:
The latest of my residential cases, in this case I represented a student with autism who had been placed in a residential program years ago due to highly aggressive behaviors. The District proposed bringing the student back but was unwilling to provide a group home. Due to the need for a consistent behavioral plan across both the school and home setting, the ALJ held that the District was not offering a free and appropriate public education with its proposed program. The District appealed. The federal district court judge affirmed the ALJ’s order. Pressure from this case resulted in DD Services planning a group home for the student.

Exciting New Endeavors:
Feeling the need to do something new, but, still loving what it is I currently do, I began looking at services I could provide which would allow me to continue my law practice yet allow me to work directly with students and young adults. In December of 2008, I completed life coach training at The Centre [http://www.thecentreusa.com]. It was an exciting process which introduced me to the coaching process and the underlying skills and strategies coaches need to make a positive difference in people’s lives.

Following that, in 2009, I completed ADHD coach training with Jodi Sleeper-Triplett [http://www.jstcoach.com]. Building upon the skills from my general life coaching training as well as my 20 years of experience working with families with children and youth with ADHD, this course provided me with the more specialized skills and strategies to coach persons with ADHD as well as others with executive function challenges.

I opened my coaching practice in September of 2010 and balance that with a legal practice.   Check out my website: http://FullMoonCoaching.com