How much are you actually paying your advocates/attorneys and are they even worth it?
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Anonymous
Yes a child can be put in a different placement with the initial IEP. OP said they think their child needs a different placement within MCPS, not a private placement at public expense. Also, attorneys can counsel parents on what is realistic and attainable or not. It's possible that the child would be ok in their current placement with appropriate supports, as that has not been explored. This is all part of what an attorney can evaluate. |
Anonymous
If they have given her a 504 plan, then they are acknowledging that she is 1) a student with a disability that 2) “substantially limits one or more major life activities”. For an IEP you must show 1) disability 2) that has an adverse impact on education and 3) necessitates special instruction. It isn’t an issue of whether they “want to recognize her needs with a formal IEP”. They are legally obligated to give her an IEP if you can demonstrate 1,2 and 3. It sounds like you have had some kind of formal testing. Did you share it with the school? Did they provide you with a prior written notice as to why they declined to provide an IEP. They are legally obligated to put it in writing why they declined the IEP. Did you provide documentation of how she was doing in class? Emails to the teacher? MAP scores, reading level scores, etc.? Did you identify that she is not reading commensurate with her IQ and that due to dyslexia, she needs to”special imstruction” in reading? She also likely needs “special instruction” in social/emotional communication due to her autism, and special instruction in executive functioning due to her ADHD. A child with this profile needs an IEp, and the need will only grow as school becomes more demanding - typically in 3rd, 6th, and 9th grades. |
Anonymous
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We hired an advocate who was expensive and not worth it. It was the hours of time she charged to get to know our kid that made it feel like such a waste when she didn’t add much at the meetings.
But I do find that having someone with professional credentials at the meeting helped. For meetings that we think might be contentious, we will adk our kid’s therapist (a former school psychologist) to sit in. She usually doesn’t say much, but we’ve noticed that the school definitely is a bit more professional when she’s there so it’s worth paying the extra hour of her time. |
Anonymous
Least Restrictive Environment still applies to MCPS programs. I cannot imagine a situation where a child would go from a 504 to an alternative placement without first getting an IEP with supports and/or pullouts in a regular classroom - especially where the school team believes the 504 is enough. |
Anonymous
Attorney here. It's not common but it happens. |
Anonymous
PP here. I can see a situation where a kid can go from 504 to alternative placement but not with the scenario OP presented. My kid is one of those rare kids where that happened but no one, including Central Office, believed the 504 was enough or the school could continue to support him. It was only a question of where. |
Anonymous
| $250 per hour for a special needs attorney. Initially, I felt like it was a waste of money, but boy was I glad we had the attorney in the IEP meeting. We got all of our requests and it was SO much less stressful for us. The attorney knew which questions to ask and when to challenge, where we did not (and we prepared!) |
Anonymous
| Does it seem like FCPS is being more accommodating or more resistant to offering support? Also has any one thought to check the credentials of both teachers and aides in SpED classes-I fear that increasingly there are more provisional personnel in the classrooms. |
Anonymous
NP. We had a great impression with Kim Glassman. She spoke with us for a few minutes free of charge. We ended up not using her because we pulled our DC from MCPS but if we had stayed, we definitely were impressed. |
Anonymous
| I think you need to ask yourself whether the money you’d spend on a lawyer could be better spent just paying for the services DD needs. And private services are always better than school services bc the ones at school only focus on certain things. If you think DD is safe at school and it’s not traumatizing her, I would use the money to supplement school. If you think she’s unsafe or school is actually traumatic and you think another placement would fix that, the attorney is something to consider. |
Anonymous
And what would you do about it if they aren’t credentialed? You’re really at the mercy of the public school and there isn’t much you can do about anything. |
Anonymous
Glassman rolled in totally unprepared for our meeting. |
Anonymous
A lot of attorneys do an initial consult free of charge, and it's usually more than a few minutes. - special ed attorney |
Anonymous
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We used Lisa Fagan who is an advocate who also advertises she is an attorney. Technically, if I recall correctly she is trained as maybe a tax attorney and got familiar with SN law to advocate for her own kids.
She was fine the first time and we were frustrated enough with one professional I didn't mind her being harsh. The second time she seemed to follow her own agenda and was rude to professionals we liked. She also prolonged the process more when we were already ready to agree, costing us more money. I also didn't like how both times she would come back and tell me the PSL says that the teachers say X (gossip) about you. First off, I kept communications polite and professional and in writing and she saw that and she agreed we did nothing wrong. Really all the gossip part did was attempt to create drama and it made me see both her and the PSL as less professional. It's none of my business what they say about me behind my back, what matters is getting my kids needs met. Stick to the IEP and my child's needs. |
Anonymous
This is a strange criticism. I would be upset if my attorney was told this and did not tell me. Sometimes attorneys have to be the bearer of bad news. |