Lisa Lightner

I am just trying to figure out how to live stream in the forums...which I have been told I can do. So don't mind me, if you see me popping in and out, and this thread will be deleted once I figure it out.

Always something!

What is your end goal? Do you believe he needs specially designed instruction, or just accommodations for the sensory issues?

Here you go-- https://www.berrycast.com/conversations/dea61fad-2345-5177-b1af-706f62aff7c7

Hey there-- I just wanted to make sure that everyone is aware of this. I have already sent out a few emails letting you know that registration for my online advocacy training will be open next week. I am offering a special discount to two groups of people who have been supporters--those of you who purchased an IEP toolkit, and those of you who are early adopters of my discussion forums. I will only send out 1-2 more emails about this, so don't delay. Or delete! This weekend only: Use code THANKYOU2022 to get $44 off the training. This code will only work through Sunday, November 20 at midnight. Thanks for being a supporter! And yes, you can share this code with a friend. Is my online training for parents, or advocates? Short answer: BOTH If you want to be an awesome IEP advocate, you need to master the IEP process. Mastery isn’t as hard as it sounds. Mastery=Tactics + Tools/Knowledge + Strategies Don’t IEP Alone will give you this, and so much more. Hiring an advocate is expensive. Many charge $50-$200 per hour and more. For the same price as what you would pay an Advocate for just a few hours, you will have a lifetime of advocacy skills. Don't IEP Alone Academy is $297 for lifetime access. I get lots of questions as we do registration, so here are some answers. What can you expect from Don't IEP Alone Academy? Don't IEP Alone Academy will walk you through my proven process for addressing IEP concerns. It will show you how to avoid the most common mistakes parents make when trying to resolve these problems and instead show you how to be heard and get results. The curriculum is extremely comprehensive, and over the course of 7 lessons, it will literally walk you through the exact process and framework that I use for all of my 1:1 advocacy clients. My framework fits within the defined IEP process in IDEA and state regs. (and we talk about those a lot too!) WHAT'S INCLUDED WITH DON'T IEP ALONE ACADEMY? Don't IEP Alone Academy is 4 courses in one Academy-- Special Education Advocacy-7 recorded sessions plus weekly live chats Professional Advocacy-14 recorded sessions so far, plus weekly live chats Deep Dives into IEP Topics-36 recorded sessions so far, new one is added each week New for 2022-a course dedicated to learning how to lobby your legislators (3 sessions) You have access to these pieces of training, live or recorded, for a lifetime. Including all the printable materials. WHAT’S THE INVESTMENT? Don't IEP Alone is $297. This is a one-time fee, and you will have lifetime access to all of the content. When life gets in the way...take a step back. We'll be here waiting for when you're ready to return. Most Special Education Advocates charge $50-$100 per hour and more. For what you'd pay an Advocate for an hour or two of work, you will have a lifetime membership to my library of training and resources. Do I need to be struggling with my IEP right now to benefit from this training? No. Even if things are going well for you now, these are strategies you can implement now to prevent future issues. Don't IEP Alone is for anyone who is a parent with an IEP and wants real solutions for addressing their concerns and being heard. It’s for anyone who has been gaslighted at IEP meetings, or repeatedly told "No" or "Let's wait and see." My 4-step process works on any IEP concern, large or small. Before enrolling in Don't IEP Alone Academy you should already have a child with an IEP, or be trying to obtain one. HOW DO I KNOW WHETHER DON'T IEP ALONE IS RIGHT FOR ME? If you parent a child with an IEP, then this is for you. Friends, caregivers, grandparents, Godparents...you're all encouraged to take the course so you can be a support person for the one(s) you love. If you wish to become a professional advocate, this is for you. If you already are a professional advocate, this is for you (I have heard from many working advocates that the live weekly chats are invaluable!) CAN I BECOME AN ADVOCATE WITH THIS TRAINING? Yes, but know that there is no licensure or certification with this program. But, there is a separate section just for professional advocates, or those who wish to be. Don't IEP Alone is fantastic for those who wish to become advocates. Other places charge $1100-$2000 for their training. That can be daunting when trying to launch a new business. WHAT WILL I LEARN? In Don't IEP Alone Academy, you'll learn: How to do an IEP Records Review How to develop an action plan for your Annual IEP Meeting. How to be prepared with data for your asks. How to Effectively Use your Parental Rights Have a 4-step formula for every IEP issue or concern. How to Be a Better Advocate for your child. Too much to list on one page! HOW DOES THIS WORK WITH THE LAWS? Many training agencies just take you through IDEA and other laws, pointing out a few things here and there. I'm turning the advocacy process upside-down--we're taking an advocate's approach and working within the framework of IDEA. Memorizing the laws isn't helpful. Having an action plan to implement, that follows the laws--that's helpful. Many of the Deep Dives go over relevant laws. Please note: I am not a lawyer and do not play one on the internet. I will be teaching IEP advocacy skills only. Not to be construed as legal advice. Hope to see you there!

First, yes, what Judi said. Read the IEP and see what it says specifically about this. Second, as far as them hiring a 1:1, I feel your pain. Really, I do. But this is one of those things that is really "nobody's fault" as we said in our advocate chat a few weeks ago. My son has been without a 1:1 nurse all school year. Beeelieve me when I tell you that I am the squeaky wheel. It was listed with one agency in September, now it's up to 8 agencies. But at the end of the day...it's on Indeed and all the other websites, and no one is applying. Can I really go down the route of getting them to change the pay rate for this? I can't force them to find applicants when I know that they are having monthly job fairs and all that. I would be amenable to trying school without a 1:1 aide because that is your end goal anyway, right? Just go through all the what-ifs, what the crisis or de-escalation plan is, and so on. Make sure it's documented in the IEP.

How do I post a question? https://www.berrycast.com/conversations/544adafd-cea8-5efc-9bd4-d819ad6effdb

One of the many hats I wear is that I am on the EPAC for the Epilepsy Foundation. EPAC=Education Policy Advisory Committee Sharing something they shared with me today: Dear Lisa, Happy National Epilepsy Awareness Month (NEAM)! After the mid-term election next week, members of Congress will return to Washington, D.C., and will need to finish working on the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 budget. Now is the perfect time for you to reach out to your elected officials and ask them to support increased investments in critical epilepsy-related programs and research in the final FY 2023 budget. The Epilepsy Foundation and many grassroots advocates have been meeting with lawmakers over the past year to ask them to support $13 million for the CDC's Epilepsy Program, $164 Million for the Safe Motherhood & Infant Health Program, and $19 Million for the VA Epilepsy Centers of Excellence. With increased funding for these important programs, we can expand quality epilepsy services that reduce healthcare costs, improve health outcomes, and help raise public awareness. We have provided template letters, but we strongly encourage you to share your own personal experience as a member of the epilepsy community and why this funding matters. With gratitude, Laura Weidner Vice President, Government Relations & Advocacy Epilepsy Foundation

I will look into that.

I just changed it for you. It can be done, but it has to be requested by an admin. I'll go thru the settings and see if I can do this at the owner/moderator level, that any club "owner" or person who started it, can change the status.

Not necessarily. They will likely be a plan of rewards and punishment. This article explains what to look for: https://adayinourshoes.com/school-fba-behavior-plan/ To answer your question, yes. An IEP does not exclude a child from receiving discipline. But, there are different procedures they need to follow. https://adayinourshoes.com/child-suspended-from-school-iep/

Each of them should have an X in a circle, usually but not always in the upper right corner of the ad. That should close it. (as I'm typing this, one appeared that has the X in the upper left.)

This is a common problem right now. I also am struggling with my son because he has no nurse. First, know that IDEA 2004 does NOT address these issues. So don't look for it there. I have the OSEP letter at the end of this post. Missed Therapy Hours at School First, be proactive. Add it into the IEP. Or at least in writing via email. Have a system to track service hours. (note: I have service hour trackers for parents to use in the IEP toolkit) How often will progress and services be monitored? Weekly? Monthly? How will you be informed? Email? Checklist? Who will inform you of missed sessions? What is the school's policy on missed or make-up sessions? (ask to see the policy!) How many do they miss before they are made up? Do they utilize substitutes for therapies? And, stay on top of it. It would be lovely if every parent could be assured that every therapy session is taking place or being made up. Still, it makes me roll my eyes when I see a Facebook post in May that says, "My son missed 22 sessions this year! What should I do?" Really, 22? Why did it take you until 22 to ask for assistance when they are 8 days of school left? Parents must take responsibility for progress monitoring, including service hours. A team is much more likely to cooperate with the detail-y stuff like this if you make it simple for them. You can offer to do a weekly or monthly email asking to verify the service hours and all they have to do is respond yes or no. Then you put it on your calendar or use a scheduling program to schedule all the emails ahead of time. 2. Know your school's policy and monitor your child. Once you get a system in place, and you know what the policy is, monitor it. And, having a non-verbal child myself, I get it. Sure, I trust my team. But, it's always a good idea to have documentation and records too. We must, as parents, take ownership of this. 3. Ask for it in the IEP. It might be school policy to not make up sessions due to illness, weather or whatever. Ask for it in the IEP. "If Jacob misses more than 4 sessions this year, they will be made up....." I can tell you that in 99% of schools, therapists have an extremely high caseload with very little to no wiggle room in their schedules. Take that into consideration and work with the team and you'll get a lot further. For example, offer to have your child pulled out of class if another child is absent so that the therapist can fill in the gaps in their schedules from other absences. You can also ask that your school have a back-fill agency for therapists. This will vary by the child because not every child is going to respond well to a substitute. But if missed sessions are getting to be more common, again, be proactive and ask that they have a backup agency to send therapists to avoid missed sessions. 4. Do all your requests in writing. As with everything else, do all your requests and make-ups and schedule changes in writing. Even if you talk about it in person or on the phone, follow up with an email. 5. Can I ask for comp ed? Short answer, yes. You can ask for anything. Are you going to get it? You might. Hopefully, it won't get to that. You can also ask for reimbursement, and find an outside therapist to perform the missed sessions. Again, get it in writing before you commit your own personal money. There are no guarantees unless you have it in writing. My fitness trainer gave me a whole list of exercises I can do at home if the weather prohibits me from getting to the gym. You can do the same. Get practice exercises and do them at home. Really, you should be doing this anyway. Practice makes perfect. Think about your piano teacher from the 1970s. No one learns the piano from taking one 30-minute session of lessons per week. The same goes for any sport or activity. You should be practicing with your child all the time. This way, one or two missed sessions will just be a small bump in the road. OSEP Guidance on Missed Therapy Sessions In 2007 and again in 2016, OSEP gave guidance on missed sessions. Basically, it's no help at all. Awesome. Because it says that it should be handled on a case-by-case basis. "...OSEP reiterated that the determination of whether an interruption in services constitutes a denial of a free appropriate public education is an individual determination that must be made on a case-by-case basis." This doesn't mean you shouldn't try. It just means that it's not in IDEA, and OSEP gives little guidance, so in this advocate's opinion, being proactive is the way to go.

For your first meeting, this is exactly what you can do--discuss what the group wants to do. "Improve special Ed" Ok, so what does that look like? What trends are happening now? What challenges is the district facing? What common experiences are parents and kids having? If things were better, what would that look like?

The school has to assign the LEA duties to someone else. IDEA does not define who can be an LEA, the district can assign anyone.

Just a reminder that we vote 2 weeks from today. Mastriano has openly said that he will cut school funding in half. Make a plan to vote. Line up child care if you need it. Know where your polling place is, when it's crowded and how long you can expect to be there. Pick a time and make a plan.

Sorry I missed this. Does this help-- https://www.berrycast.com/conversations/7a6ab01d-80b6-557a-af21-558dedcbddb1

Ah ok, I'm going to have to read help documents for that. Let me look into it. I like the options on this platform, but not much of it is intuitive for me to set up.

No, not every meeting requires a formal invitation. Only the annual. In my experience, teams get really squirmy in their seats when you do anything to a NOREP/PWN besides check "I agree" and sign it, lol. This is basically an extension of the annual IEP meeting, but it doesn't require a separate formal invitation. LL

Are you not seeing the option that I put in the screencast above? If not, dm me with the club and I'll add it.

It was a spam setting. If you put a link in a post or reply, it would hold on to it. To prevent spam. So I removed it. If spam becomes an issue, I suppose we'll deal with that then.

Then yes, she should have a transition plan and all the appropriate evals that go with transition time. https://adayinourshoes.com/iep-transition/ https://adayinourshoes.com/vocational-assessment/

Yes, the IEP annual renewal date. I'd use that as your nudge. "I'm asking when our next meeting is, because I see that the annual IEP renewal date of Oct 15 is quickly approaching......"