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Special Needs
Lawyering up and preschool
We are starting pre school in less than a year my son is very delayed in EI now and we are aging out soon has anyone ever found using a lawyer for special need services in public school of state private special needs schools? A friend mentioned it and I want to be prepared and get all the services we are eligible also making sure we are offered everything to help his development. Thoughts?
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Re: Lawyering up and preschool
I would not put "Lawyering Up' as one of my first steps. If you go to the IEP expecting a fight, you will probably get one. You and your husband/partner or a friend should be enough.
ETA: My short answer is no. I have never hired a lawyer or SN Advocate for an IEP meeting. Then again, we have not had many problems getting services....
Wait, I am confused. If he is "very delayed" he should be eligible for services. Do you mean that you are getting services, but he is still really behind?
Regarding this issue you are TOTALLY not alone. I have had some guidance from EI but it was wishy-washy at best. I have had to "read between the lines" of our Service Coordinator just to figure out what Nate's potential preschool placements would be (If we went IEP) so I could do a bit of research on my own. They SAY that the placement will not be decided until the goals are written, but come on. I am SURE they have some idea of where he would be placed.
We ended up just extending the IFSP until age 4 so that Nate could gain some more skills. Do you have the option of an extended IFSP? Not all states offer this....
Thanks for the feedback appreciate it!
You may want to look at the library and see if there are any books that could help you. Even if it is not a book that specifically talks about your child's Dx, they may have a chapter on how to advocate for your child. I found some great info in a book I checked out about Down's Syndrome and that is not Nate's dx.
I really need to get my head around Wright's Law so I know what is what when Nate transitions at 4. I think if you are aware of what the policies and procedures are for Special Needs education in your state you will be ahead of the game.
Another resource we have here in Maryland that I will probably take advantage of is called "Parents Place". It is an organization of parents who have children with special needs. They have workshops on a variety of topics and I think it is a national organization (?)
My best sources of information are the other special needs parents and therapists I have come in contact with via Nate. We can always dish about services and get ideas from each other.
Thanks again
It's all different depending on your state and sometimes even county specific. Here, in VA your child ages out of EI and is eligible for the SN preschool as early as age 2. But, by age 3 they can no longer receive EI. They get, at most 4 hours a week and get no one on one PT, ST or OT. So, if DD1 was still experiencing the same caliber of gross motor delays she was a year ago, it wouldn't be incredibly beneficial for her.
I've found the majority of my information from blogs whose children share the same or similar dx in my state. I found out about things I didn't even know about, like the medicaid waivers and HIPP that way. No one really tells you about this stuff, so i get where you are coming from. I completely disagree though, that you should enter with a lawyer, and like auntie said, I would use that money for private therapies.
You could also try to contact a local disability resource center and see if they can give you some information. Good luck! I just spent close to a year dealing with the preschool process (P has medical needs that keep her from attending typical preschool but she does not have a cognitive delay) We started this process last May, were denied over the summer, I did some more research, found no options for us, they did more testing and we just got approval that they have made a spot for her as a neurotypical peer. I don't think this would of happened if I would have lost it and been all, "I'm calling a lawyer!" Yes it was frustrating, and yes I got mad, and yes I said some kind of not so nice things, but I wasn't threatening, I took more of the feeling like a victim approach.
Unless you and your partner are the lawyer, I think bringing one in to your first IEP meeting is like drawing the line in the sand and saying "bring it" and that's not what you really want to do.
I would say that looking into one and knowing what's available to you is a good idea and then see how your IEP goes. If you feel you aren't going to be getting the kind of help your son needs, then speak to your lawyer. You may be surprised. I will say it won't be as touchy feely as EI is. They believe in LRE which comes with a certain level of "we won't hold his hand as much as we've been doing" and for us moms we immediately balk at that but in the end, they do need to learn to navigate the world with as minimal help as possible - as much independence as they can and it has to start early. That's not to say that if you think that he really does need some additional help you shouldn't fight for it but you have to stand back a little first. Who knows, your kid may end up surprising you?
Hi... I am actually in the same exact position you are and we have our IP1 meeting this coming Tuesday...
We decided to hire a Special Education Advocate for DS. I'm not sure what your district is like, but from other people I know who have gone through the process in mine - they all said that if they could start over again, they would have hired a SNA from the start. Not to be litigious, if anything to AVOID having it get to that point. This is just someone to guide us through the process - helping with little things like the proper verbiage to use and what information to reveal and keep to ourselves at any given point.
I hope this helps and good luck to you!