Reply to How much are you actually paying your advocates/attorneys and are they even worth it?

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Reply to "How much are you actually paying your advocates/attorneys and are they even worth it?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DD is 9 years old and recently diagnosed on the autism spectrum, dyslexia, and severe ADHD-C. We strongly believe she needs a different placement within MCPS but the school team does not want to recognize her needs with a formal IEP. So far they have been more flexible on a 504 plan. We love our school but know she needs more. We have reached out to a few advocates and attorneys about the case. Most attorneys are saying we need an advocate, too. We had quite a bit fo sticker shock at some of the prices and are curious how much you are actually paying per hour for these services? We will do anything for our daughter, but want to make sure it is worth it in the end.

FWIW, DD has a FSIQ of 112, but low adaptive skills, low performance in reading, and very poor ASD and behavior rating scales. We are also looking for tutor recommendations if you have those, too.

Thank you so much in advance. This is such a minefield.[/quote]

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. [/quote]

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