To Parents of Special Education Students

As a school psychologist I cannot stress how important it is to know your rights! You must be handed a copy of the parent rights before assessing your child and at every IEP meeting. When you get the rights, be sure to read them and understand them! I can't stress how important that is. Many parents trust the school district to do the right thing for their child and are agreeable to the recommendations of the schools faculty. In many cases that is true. The faculty does have the best interest of the child. However, in many cases I have seen, the faculty or administration do not have the best interest of the child in mind, but their own interests. An example of this was where a special education student was sent to the continuation school after swearing toward an administrator. The parents, in this case, was railroaded to sending their student to the continuation school. This, in my opinion, was not in the best interest of the student. He was in challenging curriculum and doing well. To be sent, without proper procedures, was down right wrong. If the parents were aware of their rights, or sought legal advocacy, this would have turned out different. Parents, know your rights! SB