Seven Hour IEP Meeting

We beat our record today. Our longest IEP meeting to date was 6 hours. Today it was seven. 10:30 am to 5:30 pm and we are not even done. What did we accomplish? Honestly more than we have ever before but only due to the fact that we had our newly assigned Advocate/ Investigator from Disability Rights Florida on the phone. The difference it made was astounding!

A World of Difference

All of a sudden; things I had requested were being followed through with, when requested by the Advocate. She turned the IEP inside out, upside down and hung it out to dry. Now we have goals, on at least the one IEP we did complete, that adequately address what is needed for my son to succeed. On Monday they will start a new school. They will be back in a separate day school. This was a HUGE concession on our side. Johnson Middle School had become an unsafe environment for my children.

What We Dealt With

Each time either of them returned, they were suspended, Baker Acted or arrested. Due to the actions of the school, both of my children now know what it feels like to feel the cold steel of handcuffs being placed on their tiny little wrists. They know what it feels like to ride in a cop car and be alone. Malik knows what it is like to spend the nights away from his moms and in an unknown bed in a Juvenile Detention Facility.

They know what it is like to stand in a court of law and be the one who is being charged with a crime. All of these things are direct relations to their disabilities.  Children who have Autism Spectrum Disorder, Intellectual Disabilities, PTSD, RAD, ADHD, trauma related issues etc. lash out when life feels out of control. They have huge blow out meltdowns because they cannot regulate in any other way. School is supposed to be a place to learn but it has quickly become the place they have to hide from to avoid their disabilities being used against them by the people who are charged with educating and protecting them when they are there.

So next week opens a new door for them. It brings a new opportunity to succeed and a new team of staff to get to know. We take it one step at a time around here to ensure Nobody Gets Left Behind, or Forgotten.