Child find in DC- strong start VS early stages

[Anonymous]

My 2.5 year old currently receives both OT and PT through early stages. Our IFSP coordinator wants to schedule a meeting to discuss the transition process from Strong Start to Early stages. As I understand it, we can opt to extend Strong Start for one more year if we would like. Can anyone give me the pros or cons to staying in the current program vs. transitioning at 3?

To complicate things, we will likely be moving to Maryland within the next 4-6 months. I want to make sure we position ourselves to have a good transition from the DC system to one in our new jurisdiction.

My son attends a private preschool and will continue to do so until PK4 or Kindergarten.

I would love to hear any and all opinions on how to proceed!

[Anonymous]

Ugh, I typed wrong. He receives OT and PT through strong start. Sorry!

[Anonymous]

We just went through this. To continue to get strong start services, you have to go through the Early Stages process, through the eligibility decision. Only if he is found eligible for an IEP (ANY IEP, with ANY level of services, even minimal) can you elect not to take the IEP and instead to continue with Strong Start services after 3. It's a PITA, honestly, but the only way to get it.

That said, if you're moving before he turns 3, I'm not sure there's a point. You can take the eligibility decision (and IEP if you let them develop it) to MD, and they won't have the repeat the evals for eligibility, but may need to assess to redo the IEP (they have to meet to redo it or accept it within 30 days). MD has a lower bar for eligibility (25% in one area for developmental delay versus DC's 50% delay), so it's quite possible he won't qualify in DC but would in MD - totally depends on whether there's a separate issue or he's just in the developmental delay category.

We are also plotting a move to MD because though DC found my daughter eligible, they simply can't provide an appropriate placement. For the moment we've taken extended services. I spoke with child find in MD and they said they'll accept the eligibility decision from DC without an IEP (we won't have to repeat the eligibility process), but may need to do assessments before they can properly develop the IEP. They said it's easier if we move from DC to MD with an IEP already drafted. My one issue with that is I don't trust DC, and what they draft won't be appropriate because they'll be drafting with their limited program options in mind. Since none of those are appropriate, what we get in an IEP won't be either. I think I'd rather have MD do it from scratch (with their program options in mind because they DO actually have something that's workable - no one does it like it should be done, draft what the kid needs then find the program). But I'm still thinking - maybe I overestimate MD. The one downside to doing an IEP in DC before a move is I don't know if I have to give up extended services as soon as I ask them to draft the IEP, or whether we can continue right up until the move. So it might mean a longer gap in services.

You can't take extended EI services in MD, because you won't be in their EI program before he turns 3, I assume (you'd have to move before he turned 2 and 9 or 10 months, I think, that's pretty much the cutoff I believe, because after that point they refer you to child find/3+ services regardless). If they don't offer a special ed preschool program in MD, they may offer related services (PT/OT) at a local school, but if he's in a DC preschool, you'd have to get him to a local MD school for them. I don't think they cross bus - that is, I don't think they'd bus from a sped preschool program in MD to a preschool in DC (but if I'm wrong on this I'd love to know because our plan until the MD move was a private preschool in DC). But if you move him to an MD preschool, they might be able to find a location close to his preschool for those related services and they might bus him for just those services (not sure on this point). This is what DC would do too, if you keep him in a private preschool - just have him go to a local elementary school for any related services he needs, but chances are high he's getting more through Strong Start in terms of those related services than he would get through Early Stages (this is not always true, but generally so and particularly for PT).


Does your DSC have any sense if he'd qualify for an IEP? Or do you? Will you be moving before he turns 3 proper - it sounds like not, in which case, you may just go through the early stages process. I guess the one downside would be doing the early stages evals and having DC find him not eligible. I'm not sure if that puts you in a worse position with MD than if you just showed up and said, hey, he used to get services, I'd like to get him tested to see if he still needs them. If the denial would color their thinking at all (even though DC has a different standard for some categories). And they might use the DC evals (which depending on who you get at early stages could be just fine or really bad).