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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

Not OP, but THANK YOU for the informative, excellent advice!  This is what this board should be for.

A few questions.  Can the IB/lottery school refuse the gen ed placement?  Can they make you chose between no supports and self-contained, or can you "bargain" for the level of services? Everything I have heard indicates that it's REALLY hard to get a 1:1 aid in a DCPS, so it seems really tough to get the level of needed service in general ed when the recommendation is 20+ hours.

Why are the inclusion classrooms limited to kids transitioning from Strong Start?  There aren't any inclusion classrooms available through Early Stages placements?

thanks again!

[/quote]

Developing the IEP is a bargaining process/negotiation. Both parties (the parents and the school/Early Stages) must consent to the IEP for it to be put in place. So I think that in the OP's case, the parent can say, "I do not consent to any placement outside of a general education classroom", and the child will start in the gen ed classroom (with no required supports, although the school could provide some supports outside of the IEP, but they don't have much incentive to do that). But at some point (I'm not sure when) a DCPS can say that they cannot provide the child with an appropriate education in the general ed classroom, and offer a different placement (like a CES classroom). If the parent still refuses to consent, then the fight escalates and parents probably want to get an attorney or advocate. Alternatively, the school could decide that they [b]can[/b] provide the child with an appropriate education in the general ed classroom, maybe with some supports. Then the school and the parent can write/rewrite the IEP to say something they can both live with. That's why I suggested that the OP call the school where the child has a slot and talk to the special ed coordinator (or whoever is the point person for special ed services at the school) and see if they can come up with a plan the school and the parents are willing to try out going into the 2018-19 school year. But if the parent demands a 1:1 aide in a general ed classroom, you are right, it is hard for DCPS to agree to that, especially if DCPS has a cheaper program (i.e., a special classroom) that they think would be appropriate for the child. You can see all the special classrooms DCPS can offer in this handbook: https://dcps.dc.gov/node/994272

The inclusion programs in that handbook (such as a seat in a general ed classroom with some support, or the "10:6" classrooms) are not limited to kids coming from Strong Start. Early Stages places kids in those programs. But kids coming from Strong Start were identified (before school age) as needing special education services and had an IFSP which outlined those services before they ever got involved with Early Stages. Those services (they are therapies, not accommodations or things like an aide) are provided to the child at home or at daycare/preschool. Those kids (with IFSPs) have a choice when they reach school age: agree to get all their services through the school system (DCPS or a charter) when the child starts PK3 or keep receiving services through Strong Start as memorialized in an extended IFSP. Once you sign that you want services through the school system, you have signed away your right to an extended IFSP, and you can never get one. (We learned that the hard way.)

So, if you selected the extended IFSP, your child can be in any preschool class (at a CBO, or at a private preschool or daycare) and they will still get their therapies for free. If you don't have an extended IFSP, you can still go to preschool at a CBO or a private preschool, but you won't get any therapies, and you may have to pay tuition. The world of CBO preschool is confusing to me, and apparently, also confusing to everyone at Early Stages and OSSE who I have spoken to. It's unclear which therapies, if any, the CBOs who specialize in inclusion programs will provide to a child who has an IEP but not an IFSP. But I did learn that if you have an extended IFSP, your child can continue to get free therapies in an inclusion preschool class at a CBO, and at least at some CBOs, there will be no tuition. HTH.[/quote]

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