DCPS IS halting all therapy services for kids in private schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi OP & all this is Amanda,

Wanted to share this update that I received from Child Find (Brigid Cafferty) explaining the policy change - in case you haven't already had this same info shared:

"The consultation model provides for 1 consultative visit per month (minimum of 30mins/maximum of 60 mins) in each of the disciplines the student qualifies for services. As your daughter qualifies for speech, occupational therapy, and physical therapy she would receive 1 consultative visit by each related service provider, for a total of 3 consultative visits per month. The DCPS related service providers will come to <your School> for these visits and coordinate with the school's staff schedule. The consultation model consists of the DCPS related service provider first observing the student in the private school classroom, then modeling and discussing strategies the private school teacher can use to support the student in the classroom.

I see that <your daughter's> ISP was completed this summer by DCPS Early Stages. I appreciate that the timing of this practice change is frustrating. Unfortunately, a state complaint was filed against DCPS with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE). In OSSE's letter of decision, OSSE determined that DCPS's previous equitable services practice of providing direct services at a DCPS local school placed an unfair burden on parents. OSSE ordered DCPS to change our delivery model for equitable services. This consultation model relieves that burden on parents and allows for greater integration of the student's private school curriculum into their ISP service goals."

I understand that some have had success with the coaching model but we have found it quite stressful in our family when Early Intervention started to transition to it during our daughter's last year with them. We don't have the resources in our family to properly implement the training, and I'm not sure my daughter's school will either. It is a terrific school but we have been pioneers in the inclusion model there and her teacher does not have a background or extensive experience with special needs children. I really respect the education that therapists have; I have watched them work miracles with my daughter, where she acquired a new skill in only several sessions with them that we had been trying for months to get her to learn.

Anyway at the risk of having my email blow up (this is too important!), I can be reached at amandajprovostATyahooDOTcom. I would love to connect directly with you to learn more about your advocacy and strategies for getting the best possible outcomes for our children.

Thanks,
Amanda

Interesting, Amanda, that is quite a different letter than ours. I want to be open, too. My email is [e-mail]
We need to communicate! Will try my best tomorrow, but will be watching my own 2 kids plus another. Thursday is more sane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You said your daughter was bullied and did not have a good experience in her DC public school. If you are in DC, can you not lottery for a better public school option?

Because we got the news after the lottery closed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am shocked. Just appalled at the parents on this forum who are so insensitive. This particular forum is supposed to be a place of support for parents who have kids who need extra help. I think what is going on here is similar to what happens on the private school forum, where parents bicker over the choice of private over public. Public school parents feel as though families who choose private over their public school are somehow snobby or too good for their public school. And now this is the public school population striking back at those private school parents...even on the special needs forum!! Come on people. These are children with special needs. They are entitled and NEED these services because a lot of private schools (especially the inexpensive parochial ones) do not have the resources!! OP does not have to explain why she chose private. But it appears she had good reason. Even if the reason was because she just wanted her DC to have a religious education, it should NOT matter. She chose this private school based on the fact that those services were available to her. Now she may have to send her child back to public only to have to withstand bullying again. How sad, and shocking that you people have no compassion for this child.

No, actually Federal law is very clear on this. AND any money DCPS makes by removing direct services must be forfeited back to the Feds.
Many of us who are at private schools pay for private therapies (private pay or insurance). I understand why OP picked private as did we but then we are responsible for the services and meeting our child's individual needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is really weird. So in answer to the complaint that it was burdensome to have to travel to a DCPS to get actual services (for however many hours) they now have "coaches" travel to the private schools instead? That really makes no sense and seems like it is in retaliation for whatever that complaint was.

Didn't OP originally say that it was the Archdioscese of Washington that complained about the undue burden being created by requiring parents to transport their kids to a DCPS school? And was asking for therapists to be sent to the parochial schools?

What a mess.

That's how I read it. Its not reasonable to expect therapists to run school to school as then they can't see as many kids. The school system is helping by training the staff instead.

[Anonymous]

Look a therapist can't "train" another to do what one has usually had six years of training to learn. And just how is a classroom teacher going to find one-on-one moments to do whatever is recommended on the half hour or more increments. But it is also true that a public school division does provide direct services within its school buildings. I can see that the Archdiosce thought it would be helping more families by officially saying therapy could be done on site during school hours. I think it would have been more honest for DCPS to just say they do not have the budget to do so beyond a coaching approach, so if you want direct service model one must be in a DCPS school site. Like it or not every school division has a finite budget to meet the varying needs of many kinds of students. Every parent has to prioritize the needs of their child and go from there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am shocked. Just appalled at the parents on this forum who are so insensitive. This particular forum is supposed to be a place of support for parents who have kids who need extra help. I think what is going on here is similar to what happens on the private school forum, where parents bicker over the choice of private over public. Public school parents feel as though families who choose private over their public school are somehow snobby or too good for their public school. And now this is the public school population striking back at those private school parents...even on the special needs forum!! Come on people. These are children with special needs. They are entitled and NEED these services because a lot of private schools (especially the inexpensive parochial ones) do not have the resources!! OP does not have to explain why she chose private. But it appears she had good reason. Even if the reason was because she just wanted her DC to have a religious education, it should NOT matter. She chose this private school based on the fact that those services were available to her. Now she may have to send her child back to public only to have to withstand bullying again. How sad, and shocking that you people have no compassion for this child.

No, actually Federal law is very clear on this. AND any money DCPS makes by removing direct services must be forfeited back to the Feds.
Many of us who are at private schools pay for private therapies (private pay or insurance). I understand why OP picked private as did we but then we are responsible for the services and meeting our child's individual needs.

I am the PP. You are exactly the kind of person who should not be sharing on this forum. Like I said before, this forum is a support forum, not a place to vent anger. I have two kids with special needs, both in privates. Both get support outside of the public school system BECAUSE WE CAN AFFORD IT. This is likely not the case for OP. I would like to know that as a taxpayer, if something happened with our financial situation, we could always utilize the public school for whatever needs we may have, including both the services only, or going back to public if need be (God forbid!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Look a therapist can't "train" another to do what one has usually had six years of training to learn. And just how is a classroom teacher going to find one-on-one moments to do whatever is recommended on the half hour or more increments. But it is also true that a public school division does provide direct services within its school buildings. I can see that the Archdiosce thought it would be helping more families by officially saying therapy could be done on site during school hours. I think it would have been more honest for DCPS to just say they do not have the budget to do so beyond a coaching approach, so if you want direct service model one must be in a DCPS school site. Like it or not every school division has a finite budget to meet the varying needs of many kinds of students. Every parent has to prioritize the needs of their child and go from there.

Apparently that is what they did say - and then they got a state complaint filed against them by someone and OSSE agreed that parent transport was burdensome.

So DCPS says that the consult model is what they can afford to do if specialists have travel to the private schools.

It sucks for families who the previous system was working for. But clearly there were some who it didn't work for, or the complaint wouldn't have been filed.

[Anonymous]

Hello. I am OP. It has come to my attention that may students and parents impacted by this immediate cessation of services are only just now realizing that a change has been made. DCPS has done a very poor job of consulting/notifying parents and schools. If your child is enrolled in a private school and has received therapy services at a public school in the past, please contact me.
Erin McKeon
[e-mail]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am shocked. Just appalled at the parents on this forum who are so insensitive. This particular forum is supposed to be a place of support for parents who have kids who need extra help. I think what is going on here is similar to what happens on the private school forum, where parents bicker over the choice of private over public. Public school parents feel as though families who choose private over their public school are somehow snobby or too good for their public school. And now this is the public school population striking back at those private school parents...even on the special needs forum!! Come on people. These are children with special needs. They are entitled and NEED these services because a lot of private schools (especially the inexpensive parochial ones) do not have the resources!! OP does not have to explain why she chose private. But it appears she had good reason. Even if the reason was because she just wanted her DC to have a religious education, it should NOT matter. She chose this private school based on the fact that those services were available to her. Now she may have to send her child back to public only to have to withstand bullying again. How sad, and shocking that you people have no compassion for this child.

No, actually Federal law is very clear on this. AND any money DCPS makes by removing direct services must be forfeited back to the Feds.
Many of us who are at private schools pay for private therapies (private pay or insurance). I understand why OP picked private as did we but then we are responsible for the services and meeting our child's individual needs.

I am the PP. You are exactly the kind of person who should not be sharing on this forum. Like I said before, this forum is a support forum, not a place to vent anger. I have two kids with special needs, both in privates. Both get support outside of the public school system BECAUSE WE CAN AFFORD IT. This is likely not the case for OP. I would like to know that as a taxpayer, if something happened with our financial situation, we could always utilize the public school for whatever needs we may have, including both the services only, or going back to public if need be (God forbid!).

(New poster here) You are no one to say who should or shouldn't be on this forum. The PP shared some specific points. Challenge them or ignore them. But enough of ad hominem attacks.

[Anonymous]

I apologize in advance as I have nt read all the posts but does this apply to kids age 4 or older who aged out go DC EI when school started. So would this mean that if the child has an IEP, a consultant would come to the school once a month in each of the areas they qualify for service through the IEP?

Thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I apologize in advance as I have nt read all the posts but does this apply to kids age 4 or older who aged out go DC EI when school started. So would this mean that if the child has an IEP, a consultant would come to the school once a month in each of the areas they qualify for service through the IEP?

Thanks

sorry for my typos. also wanted to add that my child will be in a private pre-K

[Anonymous]

Will the consultants be specialists in their field? For example, a SLP for speech and etc?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I apologize in advance as I have nt read all the posts but does this apply to kids age 4 or older who aged out go DC EI when school started. So would this mean that if the child has an IEP, a consultant would come to the school once a month in each of the areas they qualify for service through the IEP?

Thanks

sorry for my typos. also wanted to add that my child will be in a private pre-K

No one is sure. Contact your coordinator.

[Anonymous]

If your child has an IEP with frequencies listed, then you need to pin DCPS down exactly how is staff in a private school even if willing and to say nothing of their backgrounds, going to be able to find the time even with idea of "push in" to provide speech, physical therapy or occupational therapy. If it has been "pull out," then I think you would have an even stronger case to keep things as is. It is more than crazy to change over from qualified therapists to coaching except for the most mildest cases of say speech and OT. But again, it is a cheaper way of doing it. You would think that DCPS might want to give the more vocal and strident families "an easy out" in one sense to get off their backs by going private and just be willing to provide the therapies in a correct manner with probably a backing off of hours as soon as possible. It was done at the last moment to prevent families from organizing any kind of aggressive or public response.

It is hard to judge the legality of it because on the one hand the former model served the needs of only a few families who could provide the transportation to a DCPS school setting for direct therapy. Otherwise, families of equal means even were footing the bill for private therapy. On the other hand this approach closes the door to a private school setting for all students with special needs by diluting level of direct service delivery and also limits choice.

OP - I can sympathize with the sudden change of therapists because years ago with our youngest I was able to keep her in a split model preschool program of regular and special ed programs and get her to up to five sessions of speech, OT and PT in the preschool years before and after her programs, but I did not work and it was at the very local elementary school. In those years the "medical model" of therapy was used by school divisions, which went away a long time ago. It is often a hard choice between an appropriate academic program, a setting with positive peer social interactions in an inclusive setting and one which provides the additional related therapies and/or appropriate behavioral supports. In our case we opted for a lot less social inclusion for an appropriate self-contained program to meet her academic needs and the therapists she knew from preschool years who served her well. She was actually the behavior role model, and we supplement speech with private speech as well year-round. There is usually some tradeoff in seeking what will work for your child or teen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I apologize in advance as I have nt read all the posts but does this apply to kids age 4 or older who aged out go DC EI when school started. So would this mean that if the child has an IEP, a consultant would come to the school once a month in each of the areas they qualify for service through the IEP?

Thanks

sorry for my typos. also wanted to add that my child will be in a private pre-K

No one is sure. Contact your coordinator.

Anyone over 3 years who has aged out of early stages is impacted. No idea who will be doing coaching. The other question is who is being coached. It is most certainly not your child.