Adversaries (Unfortunately): School Districts and Parents
“I don’t understand why it has to be so adversarial…..”Why can’t they listen to these parents and get a clue that maybe they have some merit?”
So Melissa Van Hook, who has two boys on the autism spectrum, says about the Gilbert School District in today’s Arizona Republic. Van Hook and a former special education teacher, Holly Reycraft, who has a 10-year-old son, have filed formal complaints against the district. State officials have found “no violations.” Van Hook says that she and her husband were not given “given the opportunity to provide input on their son’s plan,” while Reycraft states that “school district failed to ensure she and her ex-husband were both present at the planning meeting.” Other parents have had similar concerns and are calling for more training of staff:
A 5-year-old autistic boy has been physically restrained four times this school year at Settler’s Point Elementary in Gilbert, despite his mother’s repeated requests for the staff to stop it.
The mother, Amy Eddy, told the Gilbert Republic she has asked the district to stop sharing sensitive, extended family medical history that is in her son’s student file in spite of federal health privacy laws. In an e-mail response, officials refused.
Another Gilbert parent, Juliet Chapman, complains that Finley Farms Elementary in Gilbert continually assigns her autistic son to occupational therapy to teach him skills such as tying his shoes even though he already has tested out of it. She adds that the school also continues to ignore her suggestions to set higher goals for her son in his Individual Education Plan.
The Gilbert Public Schools have 4800 special education students; 450 are autistic. Van Hook uses the word “‘unapproachable’” to describe the director of special education programs, Tommi Pierce.
Sad to say, but everything the Gilbert parents report sounds more than familiar to me and, in some cases, has actually happened to us in the past. In particular, past school personnel have used physical restraints (and especially the basket hold) excessively and improperly. It goes without saying that we have too many times found ourselves in an “adversarial” relationship with administrators and sometimes (very unfortunately) with teachers, therapists and other staff. Learning IDEA in and out and our rights as parents, and Charlie’s rights, has been crucial; equally important is that teachers, paraprofessionals, and staff have appropriate and ongoing training, and ongoing supervision and support so that problems can be addressed ASAP. It’s also been extremely important to cultivate relationships of trust and openness with teachers and therapists through disagreements and differences of opinion.
Though sometimes that’s still not enough at all and meanwhile the needs and education of the student get forgotten in all the disputes.
Tags: arizona, asd, asperger, autism, Crime, idea, legal, parents, pdd-nos, school, special education, students, teachersRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Education, Legal Issues
9 opinions for Adversaries (Unfortunately): School Districts and Parents
Niksmom
Mar 14, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Alas, some of this sounds all too familiar to me, as well.
VAB
Mar 14, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Yup. Sooner or later, someone is going not notice that this is a civil rights issue and, as such, make a federal case of it.
David N. Andrews M. Ed. (Distinction)
Mar 14, 2008 at 10:22 pm
Shit, I wish I was a bloody superintendent in that district.
A few people there would be give some serious ToM lessons! Experiential learning is the best in adult education and they’d experience things alright…
The boredom of being stuck at a level they’ve already tested out of, for one thing.
Some folk over there in education have got sod all clue about how to bloody educate, it seems.
Club 166
Mar 14, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Arrogance, secrecy, and twisting facts to suit whatever they want to “prove”.
Yea, nothing new here.
Fortunately for us, we’re in a better place now, too.
Joe
KimJ
Mar 15, 2008 at 12:15 am
Yeah, It’s really frustrating being in Arizona. It’s hard to try and describe the difficulties to other parents and have them give the knee-jerk reply, “that’s illegal, file a complaint, get a lawyer” etc. It’s not so easy or even desirable to get to that point. There are local parents that are saying that advocates are actually working for the schools, not helping the parents.
Another Voice
Mar 15, 2008 at 12:38 am
If someone feels that health information has been improperly shared they should contact Health & Human Services; Office of Civil Rights. HHS maintains 10 regional offices, the link below will take you to a listing.
http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacyhowtofile.htm#regions
While phone numbers are listed, I feel that a letter or fax may work better. These folks do take the law very seriously and will try to insure privacy.
Kristina Chew, PhD
Mar 15, 2008 at 1:07 am
We just left one district for another—-both of us liked the idea of fighting and doing the right thing for Charlie. But then there was the reality, that he needed the right kind of education, and that was far more important than “winning” any battle.
Daisy
Mar 15, 2008 at 3:00 pm
I’ll never forget hearing a PT say “Why do parents have to be involved in these decisions anyway?” and the teacher’s response “Because the district says we have to.” At that moment, I felt angry and hurt that my parental knowledge was so minimized and discounted, and at the same time embarrassed to be a teacher in the district.
ariane
Mar 15, 2008 at 4:11 pm
It never ceases to amaze me at how school systems across the country are failing these children. I praise parents who take an active role in ensuring that their child is being properly educated, but at the same time, I am sad that they have to fight so hard for what should be a given…
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