Here are two articles about some technological supports available to help the parents, advocates, and educators of children with special needs. I am not personally endorsing either of these publications or products but wanted to make the information available to you so that you can take a look for yourself!
Enjoy!
App Store Special Education Section
IEP Checklist for iPhone
Showing posts with label current events. Show all posts
Showing posts with label current events. Show all posts
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Victory for Georgia Students
The following was originally written and posted on July 8 by Leslie K. Lipson, Staff Attorney with the Georgia Advocacy Office. Many thanks to her for allowing me to share this here and for her unending advocacy efforts for Georgia's children!.
Congratulations to all who helped and are continuing to help fight this battle for Georgia Students!
Rule Passed
July 8, 2010
Today is a historic day for Georgia public school students, as the State Board of Education voted unanimously to enact Rule 160-5-1-.35 which prohibits the use of seclusion, prone restraint, mechanical restraint, and chemical restraint. The Rule will limit the use of physical restraint to those situations involving imminent danger. Additionally, the Rule requires schools to notify parents within one school day that their child has been restrained. Before today’s historic vote, schools could restrain or seclude any student, at any time, for any reason.
The Safe Schools Initiative commends the Department of Education and the State Board of Education on this inaugural action to limit these dangerous practices. However, one key safeguard is noticeably missing: there are no provisions for reporting incidents of restraint beyond informing parents. Oversight, data collection and analysis are pivotal in identifying schools that need additional support to appropriately maintain a safe educational environment. After receiving overwhelming public support for data collection, the Board decided to withhold data collection about individual districts until the federal government mandates such practice. There is federal legislation considering the issue that is currently in committee, but the timetable and outcome are unknown. The Board publicly announced its eventual intent to collect outcome data; but the timeline, methodology, and stakeholder access to information are all unknown.
The Safe Schools Initiative is a collaborative effort of five organizations – The Georgia Advocacy Office, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University, the Institute on Human Development and Disability at the University of Georgia, and Parent to Parent of Georgia – to end the restraint and seclusion of students in Georgia schools.
For more information about the Safe Schools Initiative, please contact Jenny Holland at (404) 885-1234 or jholland@thegao.org.
Congratulations to all who helped and are continuing to help fight this battle for Georgia Students!
Rule Passed
July 8, 2010
Today is a historic day for Georgia public school students, as the State Board of Education voted unanimously to enact Rule 160-5-1-.35 which prohibits the use of seclusion, prone restraint, mechanical restraint, and chemical restraint. The Rule will limit the use of physical restraint to those situations involving imminent danger. Additionally, the Rule requires schools to notify parents within one school day that their child has been restrained. Before today’s historic vote, schools could restrain or seclude any student, at any time, for any reason.
The Safe Schools Initiative commends the Department of Education and the State Board of Education on this inaugural action to limit these dangerous practices. However, one key safeguard is noticeably missing: there are no provisions for reporting incidents of restraint beyond informing parents. Oversight, data collection and analysis are pivotal in identifying schools that need additional support to appropriately maintain a safe educational environment. After receiving overwhelming public support for data collection, the Board decided to withhold data collection about individual districts until the federal government mandates such practice. There is federal legislation considering the issue that is currently in committee, but the timetable and outcome are unknown. The Board publicly announced its eventual intent to collect outcome data; but the timeline, methodology, and stakeholder access to information are all unknown.
The Safe Schools Initiative is a collaborative effort of five organizations – The Georgia Advocacy Office, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University, the Institute on Human Development and Disability at the University of Georgia, and Parent to Parent of Georgia – to end the restraint and seclusion of students in Georgia schools.
For more information about the Safe Schools Initiative, please contact Jenny Holland at (404) 885-1234 or jholland@thegao.org.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Restraint and Seclusion in Georgia **TAKE ACTION!!**
If you have reached this page looking for the sample letter to the GA DOE, please scroll to the bottom of this post. YOUR VOICE NEEDS TO BE HEARD!!!
Please, help make our schools safe!
************************************************************
June , 2010
VIA E-Mail to ameyer@doe.k12.ga.us and US Mail
Allan Meyer
Assistant Director, Policy
Georgia Department of Education
2053 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
RE: Rule 160-5-1-.35 Seclusion and Restraint
Dear Mr. Meyer:
I am writing to provide feedback regarding the Rule 160-5-1-.35 “Seclusion and Restraint for all Students.” I appreciate the opportunity to comment on the draft rule and to be involved in the development of the rule prior to its proposal. I care about this issue because… As such, I am committed to the development of a rule that supports schools to educate children in safe and positive environments that foster learning and growth.
I support the Department’s decision to address the issue of restraint and seclusion through the development of a rule. In particular, I support GDOE’s prohibition on seclusion, prone restraint, mechanical restraint, and chemical restraint. The comments below are designed to impose significant limitations on the use of physical restraint and to build safeguards into the process by which school personnel use restraint on a student.
(Please choose one, all, or none of the following bulleted points. Please add any comments you wish to share with the Department of Education).
Again, thank you for the opportunity to provide commentary on this initiated rule. We respectfully request the School Board members resend the current rule and strengthen the accountability and enforcement provisions and reinitiate the rule in the June 2010 meeting to continue this important work. I look forward to continuing to work with you to help keep the children of Georgia safe.
Sincerely,
Family Doe
cc:
Nancy O'Hara
Associate Superintendent
Innovative Instruction
1752 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
nohara@doe.k12.ga.us
Debbie Gay
Director, Special Education Services
1870 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
DGay@doe.k12.ga.us
Kim Hartsell
Director, Special Education Supports
1870 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
khartsell@doe.k12.ga.us
Ruby Moore
Executive Director
Georgia Advocacy Office
Safe Schools Initiative
150 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite 430
Decatur, Georgia 30030
info@thegao.org
Leslie K. Lipson, JD
Director, Parent Leadership Support Project
The Georgia Advocacy Office
One Decatur Town Center
150 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite 430
Decatur, GA 30030
(404) 885- 1234 or 1 (800) 537- 2329 (voice or TDD)
llipson@thegao.org
www.thegao.org
Please, help make our schools safe!
Did you know that any student in our public schools can be restrained and secluded for any reason, at anytime, by any employee of a school district, without telling the student's family? That any student can be locked in cells in school for any length of time and no one know that it happened? Do you want this to CHANGE?
The State Board of Education must hear from YOU! ATTEND or WRITE THEM about how they must protect students and schools from these dangerous practices next Wednesday, June 9th in Atlanta at 1:00. TheTIME IS NOW.
Please help us fill the room on June 9, 2010. If you can attend, please RSVP to Rashidah Ansari at GAO at 404-885-1234 or ransari@thegao.org.
If you are not able to attend in person, please write to the Board of Education to voice your concerns. A sample template is here.
The Safe Schools Initiative is hosting a press conference following the public comment (at 2:15 p.m.). Please stay and join the crowd to show the State that you support safe learning environments for all students.
Meeting details are as follows:
The public hearing is at 1 p.m. at the Department of Education (DOE), which is located at 2053 Twin Towers East, 205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive SE, Atlanta 30334. The DOE is on the 20th floor. To access the public hearing space, turn right when you get off the elevator and you will be at the room. Below are directions, parking information, as well as MARTA information. Parking is $5 cash.
We recommend you arrive early if you plan to make public comment. There will be a sign-up sheet as you exit the elevator to the right. There is a food court located in the building. We suggest you arrive early, sign up to speak, then have lunch and return to the meeting space.
Please note that all speakers have only three minutes to speak. For that reason, we suggest you make a script or have notes to help you stay on track and within the allotted time.
The Floyd building is located directly northeast of the State Capitol in the block between Piedmont Avenue and Butler Street, facing Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. Parking is available in the Pete Hackney lot on Butler Street. To access the Floyd Building, there is a bridge on the 5th level of the parking deck. Once you cross the bridge, take the stairs or elevator to the 3rd level to enter the Building.
For premium convenience, the Georgia State MARTA Station is located in the Floyd Building.
Traveling I-75/85 Southbound
Exit #248A Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive. Turn right onto Martin Luther King, turn right onto Butler Street, then right into the Pete Hackney parking lot.
Traveling I-75/85 Northbound
Exit #246 Fulton Street. Turn right onto Fulton, then left onto Capitol Avenue. Cross over Memorial Drive turn right onto Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. Turn left onto Butler Street, then right into the Pete Hackney parking lot.
Traveling I-20 Westbound
Exit 258A Capital Avenue. Turn right onto Capital Avenue and follow to Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive and turn right. Go to the first traffic light and turn left onto Butler Street. Parking deck is on the right.
Traveling I-20 Eastbound
Exit 256B Windsor/Spring Street follow straight on this street to Central Avenue (3rd traffic light). Turn left onto Central Avenue turn right on Memorial Drive. Go to second traffic light and turn left onto Capitol Avenue. Turn right onto Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. Turn left onto Butler Street. Parking deck is on the right.
More information:
Parent to Parent: http://www.p2pga.org/index.
Georgia Advocacy Office:
See Sample Letter Below.
************************************************************
June , 2010
VIA E-Mail to ameyer@doe.k12.ga.us and US Mail
Allan Meyer
Assistant Director, Policy
Georgia Department of Education
2053 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
RE: Rule 160-5-1-.35 Seclusion and Restraint
Dear Mr. Meyer:
I am writing to provide feedback regarding the Rule 160-5-1-.35 “Seclusion and Restraint for all Students.” I appreciate the opportunity to comment on the draft rule and to be involved in the development of the rule prior to its proposal. I care about this issue because… As such, I am committed to the development of a rule that supports schools to educate children in safe and positive environments that foster learning and growth.
I support the Department’s decision to address the issue of restraint and seclusion through the development of a rule. In particular, I support GDOE’s prohibition on seclusion, prone restraint, mechanical restraint, and chemical restraint. The comments below are designed to impose significant limitations on the use of physical restraint and to build safeguards into the process by which school personnel use restraint on a student.
(Please choose one, all, or none of the following bulleted points. Please add any comments you wish to share with the Department of Education).
- Physical restraint, an inherently dangerous practice, should only be used in situations of risk of serious bodily injury and is only justified based on actual behavior of the student in the time of emergency.
- Physical restraint may never be used for disciplinary purpose, convenience of faculty or staff, or as a substitute for appropriate positive teaching strategies, techniques, and supports.
- Restraint is prohibited to those situations when less intrusive efforts are not effective and there is danger of serious bodily injury to self or to others.
- Schools should use Positive Behavior Supports as an intervention for students with disruptive or challenging behaviors. Early identification and intervention are key to effective utilization.
- Physical restraint should only be applied to students by school personnel who have been trained and certified in a State-approved training program consisting of instruction not only in applying restraint, but also in de-escalation strategies and problem solving techniques.
- School systems should be required to document and report each specific instance of physical restraint on a student in their school.
- Behavioral support for students must promote the right of all students to be treated with dignity and to be educated in a safe environment.
- Data should be collected using uniform methodology and regularly reviewed at the local, district, and state level to ensure system wide compliance and transparency.
- Data results and comparisons should be made readily available to the Department of Education, parents and other stakeholders in order to promote opportunities for training, education, and development.
- Standards of data collection concerning the use of physical restraint should be uniform across all districts. Districts with reduced incidences in accordance with set standards should be recognized for achievement and highlighted for training opportunities; conversely, districts who fail to decrease and/or exhibit an increase in incidences of restraint and seclusion should be subject to further investigation, probation, and appropriate re-training.
- Individual incident counts should be an integral facet of data collection in order to accurately trend schools and districts effectively and/or excessively utilizing the approved practices of restraint. The specific nature of this collection will serve to promote accountability and awareness for administrators, facilitators, and parents.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to provide commentary on this initiated rule. We respectfully request the School Board members resend the current rule and strengthen the accountability and enforcement provisions and reinitiate the rule in the June 2010 meeting to continue this important work. I look forward to continuing to work with you to help keep the children of Georgia safe.
Sincerely,
Family Doe
cc:
Nancy O'Hara
Associate Superintendent
Innovative Instruction
1752 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
nohara@doe.k12.ga.us
Debbie Gay
Director, Special Education Services
1870 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
DGay@doe.k12.ga.us
Kim Hartsell
Director, Special Education Supports
1870 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
khartsell@doe.k12.ga.us
Ruby Moore
Executive Director
Georgia Advocacy Office
Safe Schools Initiative
150 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite 430
Decatur, Georgia 30030
info@thegao.org
Leslie K. Lipson, JD
Director, Parent Leadership Support Project
The Georgia Advocacy Office
One Decatur Town Center
150 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite 430
Decatur, GA 30030
(404) 885- 1234 or 1 (800) 537- 2329 (voice or TDD)
llipson@thegao.org
www.thegao.org
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Teamwork
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." Helen Keller
I love this quote. I came across it during a webinar that I attended today and it so thoroughly sums up part of my personal advocacy philosophy.
When parents, educators, and advocates come together to work through a child's IEP, they are called, "The IEP Team." Yet all too often, it becomes a situation of "us" against "them".
Our educational systems are facing serious crisis right now. Test scores put enormous pressure on educators. Budget cuts further reduce already limited funding. Class sizes are increasing and hired teachers are decreasing. As educators struggle to stretch precious resources, parents and advocates often fear that the scales are tipping against their children.
These strains are turning what should be collaborative settings into often combative ones.
Twice in the last several days, I have been told by educators that it is "scary" to have an advocate invited to an IEP. This was concerning to me because if advocacy is done with the child in mind and with collaboration as the goal, having an advocate in the room should be seen as a benefit rather than a threat.
I'm not suggesting that every IEP meeting should start with hugs and end with bouquets of flowers.
However, I do believe that if all of the team members come together with an open mind and a willingness to collaborate, no one should leave the room with hard feelings or a sense of defeat.
One of the first things that I do when I meet with new educators is let them know that I am there for the child. Likewise, when I take on a case I let the parents know that while I do acknowledge that they are experts on their own children, I may not always agree with what they perceive to be best.
The bottom line is this: if your focus as an advocate - whether it be for your own child or for another child - is on collaborating as a TEAM for the best interest of the CHILD, your priorities and goals will remain in tact, no matter how difficult the situation might be.
I cannot be responsible for the thoughts and actions of others, only for those of myself. I cannot always ensure that everyone around the table will have the same "right" focus as I have. But I can lead by example. I can fight tirelessly for what I believe in, as long as my focus remains pure: collaborate as a team for what is in the best interest of the child.
I love this quote. I came across it during a webinar that I attended today and it so thoroughly sums up part of my personal advocacy philosophy.
When parents, educators, and advocates come together to work through a child's IEP, they are called, "The IEP Team." Yet all too often, it becomes a situation of "us" against "them".
Our educational systems are facing serious crisis right now. Test scores put enormous pressure on educators. Budget cuts further reduce already limited funding. Class sizes are increasing and hired teachers are decreasing. As educators struggle to stretch precious resources, parents and advocates often fear that the scales are tipping against their children.
These strains are turning what should be collaborative settings into often combative ones.
Twice in the last several days, I have been told by educators that it is "scary" to have an advocate invited to an IEP. This was concerning to me because if advocacy is done with the child in mind and with collaboration as the goal, having an advocate in the room should be seen as a benefit rather than a threat.
I'm not suggesting that every IEP meeting should start with hugs and end with bouquets of flowers.
However, I do believe that if all of the team members come together with an open mind and a willingness to collaborate, no one should leave the room with hard feelings or a sense of defeat.
One of the first things that I do when I meet with new educators is let them know that I am there for the child. Likewise, when I take on a case I let the parents know that while I do acknowledge that they are experts on their own children, I may not always agree with what they perceive to be best.
The bottom line is this: if your focus as an advocate - whether it be for your own child or for another child - is on collaborating as a TEAM for the best interest of the CHILD, your priorities and goals will remain in tact, no matter how difficult the situation might be.
I cannot be responsible for the thoughts and actions of others, only for those of myself. I cannot always ensure that everyone around the table will have the same "right" focus as I have. But I can lead by example. I can fight tirelessly for what I believe in, as long as my focus remains pure: collaborate as a team for what is in the best interest of the child.
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