Have You Been Butting Heads at School Meetings?

Published: Tue, 01/22/19

Have you been butting heads at school meetings?

Sarah Davis, disability rights activist, our guest shares with us, The Failings/Difficulties With Current Dispute Resolution Options.

We talk about some of the pros and cons of state complaints, Office of Civil Rights complaints, mediation, resolution sessions, and due process.

We also discuss the success rates of these options and how parents have to persist in order to create systemic change.

I think you'll be nodding your head in agreement a lot as you watch the replay.

One of the things we didn't address in the show was the need to include our children's voices and other self-advocates. We always need to remember, "Nothing about us, without us."

If you'd like to connect with Sarah, her email address is
[email protected]
It'd be great for you to join her Facebook group
www.facebook.com/groups/ParentAdvocacyConsortium

The Failings/Difficulties With Current Dispute Resolution Options

Watch the replay, Click here.

Listen to the podcast when you're playing chauffeur. Click here.

Check out these Key Take-Aways by going to the specific time stamp in the video, or on the podcast.

* What are some informal and formal dispute resolution

options? 3:22

* If parents prevail in a due process hearing will they

automatically get their attorney fees covered? 4:56

* How parents can use professional licensing boards

when there are concerns about how a teacher or related

service provider is providing or not providing services. 5:27

* How you can use the Americans with Disabilities Act or

the Rehabilitation Act and not just IDEA 6:22

* Cautions about filing Office of Civil Rights complaints 6:44

* What to consider when looking at the cost benefit analysis

of filing a complaint or using other dispute resolution options 8:48

* What about resolution meetings? 10:22

* What can happen if you ask for compensatory education

with a state complaint? 11:01

* How to use info on your state dept. of ed. website 13:23

* Anticipating the emotional turmoil 15:55

* How to narrow your issues for a state complaint 17:00

* What are the timelines for dispute resolutions? 17:36

* A favorable response from the Office of Civil Rights

doesn't always equal a remedy. 21:55

* What happens when a remedy from a due process

hearing isn't implemented? 24:07

* What happens when a remedy from a state complaint

isn't followed? 24:44

* The importance of having a support system. 27:41

* What changes need to be made to the dispute resolution

process? 27:58

* Recent legislation that passed in Washington D.C. 28:47

* When parents have rights in some states to consent to
changes in the IEP and how that changes the dynamics 29:30

* What parents can do to influence state legislators 30:50

* What kind of systemic change do we need in the total

education system? 32:25

* How can parents make a difference at the local level? 38:20

Here are some quotes from the recent The Art of Advocacy show.

We find that while parents can potentially be successful in finding of the violation, they won't necessarily get the outcome that they're looking for because in addition to not stipulating for the most part what the remedy will be, oftentimes there's not enough accountability around whether a remedy was implemented effectively.
Sarah Davis

So many times the complaint officer will rule that there have been violations of IDEA and then recommend it go back to the IEP team for remedies. The parents have already spent hours at IEP meetings, it's unlikely that there will be agreement at the IEP table.

Charmaine Thaner

I think one of the tips for parents who are considering writing a state complaint is it would be very helpful to take the time to review other state complaints that are identifying similar or the same issue that you are experiencing. And then you can just copy and paste and lift some of that language right out of those state complaints that are similar to your circumstances.

Sarah Davis

It's disheartening because at that point you've put all the pieces together, you know exactly what's gone wrong. You know that, that there is a lack of accountability and that your child has been failed. And, so just be prepared that it requires a lot of cups of tea and a lot of hugs from your support system to get through that process.

Sarah Davis

Our systems are in place because that's how they're designed to be. The powers that be, have created these dispute resolution options in such a way that they favor the school system and the school system continuing and their decision making.
Sarah Davis

It's important for parents to look at other laws besides IDEA. You can look at the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. This can help you have a stronger case, but it still takes such persistence on the parent part.

Charmaine Thaner

Our shoulders as parents are not broad enough to carry the burden of enforcement and that's really what what is happening at this point.

Sarah Davis

I'm passionate about looking at systemic change for education in general because I think when we keep ourselves in this special education silo, we do ourselves and our kids a disservice. We need to embrace other families that have students that had been marginalized, students who are learning to speak English as a second language, to students from single families, and transgender students.There are so many students that are marginalized in our schools. We can widen our circle of allies and look at this as a change for the whole district, for the state. This will help each of our kids get the kind of education that they deserve.
Charmaine Thaner

We're all saying that all of us need access to opportunity. All of us need access to resources. All of us have a contribution to give and need to be celebrated for the unique things we bring to the table. And it's not just one community or another community, it's all of us working together and by broadening to include other civil rights organizations and focuses, we have more voices at the table.
Sarah Davis

Here are some selected resources about dispute resolutions.

The Advocacy Institute has a wealth of information, especially about state complaints. Find sample state complaints, basics about filing one, and which states make decisions available. Click here.

"The following states make state complaint decisions available online: Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Of these states, we consider Indiana and Wisconsin as exemplary in the manner of presentation (i.e., databases that allow users to search reports by issue, date, district). Oregon also provides a user-friendly listing of complaints. Other states should be encouraged to present state complaint decisions online in a user-friendly and timely manner."

The Advocacy Institute

An interview I did with Candace Cortilla, the Director of The Advocacy Institute. Click here.

The Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE) is funded by the federal Department of Education. Click here. There are many resources there, including a helpful comparison chart of the different dispute resolution options. 

More goodness coming your way!

• Thurs. Jan. 24th: Kathie Snow, author of Disability is Natural and international speaker. Topic: Moving Beyond The Status Quo.

• Thurs. Jan. 31st: Courtney Hansen, blogs about special education at inclusionevolution.com and is an advocate in the state of Washington. Topic: Creating Change Through Legislation.

• Thurs. Feb. 7th: Marcie Lipsitt, is a Michigan-based advocate and founder of the Michigan Alliance for Special Education. Topic: Filing Office of Civil Rights complaints.

Our live shows are at Noon Mtn. Time, 2pm ET, 1pm CT, 11am PT.
We’ll be live at www.facebook.com/VisionsandVoicesTogether.
The replays will also be available.

Put these shows in your phone calendar now! Need a reminder? We've

got you covered. Just click here and my IEPBot will send you a friendly reminder.

See you soon!

We'll be on at Noon Mtn. Time, 2pm ET, 1pm CT, 11am PT

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P.S. Are you looking for gifts with INCLUSION messages for your child, yourself, or best friends? You are in luck! Checkout the Inclusion T-Shirts by Charmaine Thaner. Click here.

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