Anonymous wrote:Non attorney advocate to start. Thank you to the prior poster for linking a thread as well. Do any of the people already mentioned in this thread have MCPS experience?

The people in the thread that was posted all cover MCPS. The ones in this thread seem to be mainly in Virginia, unless someone knows otherwise.

Non attorney advocate to start. Thank you to the prior poster for linking a thread as well. Do any of the people already mentioned in this thread have MCPS experience?

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to bump but does anyone have experience with an advocate who understands severe ADHD in upper elementary in Montgomery County?

Do you want an attorney advocate or non-attorney advocate?

I meant to attach a thread. Here you go: https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/946247.page#19162483

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to bump but does anyone have experience with an advocate who understands severe ADHD in upper elementary in Montgomery County?

There have been other threads with recommendations for advocates in MCPS. Not sure if any are specific to ADHD.

Sorry to bump but does anyone have experience with an advocate who understands severe ADHD in upper elementary in Montgomery County?

Couldn't sleep so I went in the COPAA database to see who named in this thread is registered (and therefore legitimate in my eyes)- Grace Kim, Joan Proper, Juliet Hiznay, and Liz Capone.

Make sure all communication with school is emailed. Emails can be shown as correspondence during an IEP meeting, a chat with the AP at pickup cannot.

What is the issue, op?

^Sorry about the typos, DS had a rough night and I'm zonked out.

Eh attorneys are more of a last resort situation when you absolutely must to go to due process. And often schools will bring one of their attorney when you say you'll bring yours to the IEP meeting. That being said, I'd avoid advocates who also claim to do diagnostic testing and evals. They tend to find what they want to find, if you catch my drift.

Joan Proper is another special education attorney in VA..positive FB review which is a good sign. I recommend you write down all the main facts in advance so whomever you call can hear exactly what the main issues are - this would help them decide if you need an attorney vs an advocate. Like current hours of service, what recent IEP progress reports include -- those can be full of great informative data, especially if your child isn't making progress. Knowing what problem you want solved may help guide your decision of attorney vs advocate. Remember, you can request an IEP periodic review any time, not just when the school contacts you for an annual review.

Anonymous wrote:Most important things to look out for in an advocate- do they answer their phone/call you back within a day? Do you have to go through multiple layers of people before you actually speak to the advocate? Do they make you more knowledgable so you are better able to fight the school system without them there? Do they explain the terminology and jargon in a way easy for you to understand, without talking down to you?

This.

I'd recommend Liz for ADHD.

Most important things to look out for in an advocate- do they answer their phone/call you back within a day? Do you have to go through multiple layers of people before you actually speak to the advocate? Do they make you more knowledgable so you are better able to fight the school system without them there? Do they explain the terminology and jargon in a way easy for you to understand, without talking down to you?