New AP at Williamsburg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:+1 this! BUT the issue is being an afraid to speak up. I know families that have and their kids have suffered.. ie being denied services… sadly it’s this delicate dance you have to do with APS in order to get you SWD services. It’s messed up

Can you say more about this?

DP. Families fear retaliation. And they don't know more about their rights. Retaliation happens all the time in APS and APS benefits from what parents don't know. This person is notorious for falsifying information, gaslighting, you name it. She should have been fired but instead she's getting moved to a middle school where she'll sit in the IEP meetings because APs usually do that. OP was right to warn Williamsburg parents.

As a Williamsburg SPED parent who has had good, productive IEP meetings thus far, I'm very concerned, but not sure what I can do.

Check all of your docs for accuracy before and after meetings. Have a paper trail after meetings about what was discussed or agreed to that you send to staff. Document anything she says that you disagree with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

But how do you meet with him? As a Williamsburg parent, I'm really concerned. I'm trying to talk to other SPED parents, but it's hard to know who they are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

But how do you meet with him? As a Williamsburg parent, I'm really concerned. I'm trying to talk to other SPED parents, but it's hard to know who they are.

What would you say if you met with him? I heard from an anonymous stranger on a message board that this new person is terrible?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

But how do you meet with him? As a Williamsburg parent, I'm really concerned. I'm trying to talk to other SPED parents, but it's hard to know who they are.

What would you say if you met with him? I heard from an anonymous stranger on a message board that this new person is terrible?

Lol. I actually know that she is terrible because several SPED parents I know have dealt with her gaslighting. Not from WMS though. I don't want to deal with her myself as an LEA/AP. There's a reason why people are sounding the alarms now in DCUM. Must be nice if you're not affected.

I know it's too much to ask, but I really would appreciate an answer from someone who can actually help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

But how do you meet with him? As a Williamsburg parent, I'm really concerned. I'm trying to talk to other SPED parents, but it's hard to know who they are.

What would you say if you met with him? I heard from an anonymous stranger on a message board that this new person is terrible?

Lol. I actually know that she is terrible because several SPED parents I know have dealt with her gaslighting. Not from WMS though. I don't want to deal with her myself as an LEA/AP. There's a reason why people are sounding the alarms now in DCUM. Must be nice if you're not affected.

I know it's too much to ask, but I really would appreciate an answer from someone who can actually help.

Make a public comment to the school board and get a lot of other parents to do the same thing. That'll get their attention.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

Is this actually true? principals have no say in who their APs are?

[Anonymous]

Why does WMS cycle through APs like Kleenex?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

Is this actually true? principals have no say in who their APs are?

Principals also have no say in where they get re-assigned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know how APS works. Does Syphax administratively transfers APs or does the principal hire them?

Just curious if anyone knows.

Syphax decides without consultation. The Superintendent flip-flops if there's much public pressure. It pays to meet with him personally. Repeatedly. He's a pleaser.

But how do you meet with him? As a Williamsburg parent, I'm really concerned. I'm trying to talk to other SPED parents, but it's hard to know who they are.

What would you say if you met with him? I heard from an anonymous stranger on a message board that this new person is terrible?

Lol. I actually know that she is terrible because several SPED parents I know have dealt with her gaslighting. Not from WMS though. I don't want to deal with her myself as an LEA/AP. There's a reason why people are sounding the alarms now in DCUM. Must be nice if you're not affected.

I know it's too much to ask, but I really would appreciate an answer from someone who can actually help.

Make a public comment to the school board and get a lot of other parents to do the same thing. That'll get their attention.

That's bad advice IMO. It'll get attention, but of the bad sort. Parents may be setting themselves up for retaliation against their children. And Dr. Koval knows all about gaslighting and retaliation unfortunately. I wouldn't do this publicly.

[Anonymous]

My advice is to work any connections you have connections to see if you can meet with Dr. Duran or maybe Kim Graves and just express your concerns to them. Try to gather as many WMS SPED families as possible. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Just email Duran. I’ve emailed him and he responds and usually directs me to who I can talk to and we’ve gotten results.
But agree more ppl complain the more results. And document everything!! Esp progress reports. Make sure you are getting these
‘

[Anonymous]

I don't think that Duran can speak to personnel issues, so I wouldn't expect a response. But I agree that the more people who do so, the more he might take it seriously. I hope Williamsburg families find this thread. It's actually useful for once! Good luck, OP.

[Anonymous]

I'm sending my friendly wishes to you all.

If you have a bad interaction with a "team" member, you can ask that they not be invited to the next meeting. I did this and yes, it's not often done but I had a paper trail, direct quotes, a couple of teachers who had left APS and backed me up so it wasn't my first step. It was step 3700 or something.

I agree with posters who suggest meeting with other parents, sharing stories but also choose your path. I was part of a group of dozens of parents of SN kids at a school and we all choose different paths. I low-key worked within the system until I deemed it bad for my. mental health and went private. Others sued. Others got admin transfers after squeaking a lot.

It's so weird how APS's focus on equity doesn't include SN kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that Duran can speak to personnel issues, so I wouldn't expect a response. But I agree that the more people who do so, the more he might take it seriously. I hope Williamsburg families find this thread. It's actually useful for once! Good luck, OP.

You can call his attention to issues, and like I said, he will direct you to the right person who can address them. I would go to your school administrator before going this route. But you absolutely can email Duran.