I always give enormous credit to courageous teachers who take positions against their interests, in favor or children, even at risk of their jobs or job assignments. Here is a recent article regarding a Brooklyn teacher who was apparently reassigned to the "rubber room" (a term of art in New York Public Schools) for speaking out against violations of IDEIA in her school.
Obama Endorsed by Teacher’s Union-AFT
Senator Barack Obama today was endorsed by the AFT, a national teacher’s union, which is an organization that traditionally has been antagonistic to the rights of special needs students. At the same time he was addressing this endorsement, he called for changes to NCLB (specifics?) and more money for IDEIA. Is he playing both sides of the street? Stay tuned, as details about his positions regarding special education hopefully come into greater focus. Here is the full text of the endorsement and Senator Obama’s remarks.
Action Needed: Illinois’ Autism Insurance Bill Has a Second Chance
Illinois’ autism insurance bill has new life, thanks to
the
efforts of parents Pete DiCianni, Laura Cellini, Nelly
Aguilar, Enrique Abraham, Senator Jim DeLeo,
Representative Angelo Saviano, and
now Governor Rod
Blagojevich.
As you may recall, SB1900 was
introduced this spring, passed the Senate 50-
0 and passed the House 113-
0. However, the bill got derailed by a dispute over
a late
amendment that did not go to the substance of the bill,
and it has been in limbo since.
On June 13, 2008, in
a rare Sunday press
conference at Chicago’s Children’s Museum at Navy
Pier, Governor Blagojevich announced that he was
going to
add the language from SB1900 to another bill that
was already on his desk,
HB4255, through an
amendatory veto. That bill
was introduced by Rep. Bob Pritchard to increase
coverage for multiple sclerosis. Rep. Pritchard
was also at the press conference to announce his
support
for the addition to help our kids, along with Rep. Elga Jefferies, the
State Insurance Director Michael
McRaith, and many of our families.
Please call your State Representative on June 14, 2008 at
their local office, or June 15, 2008 at the Capitol.
Ask
him/her to vote to concur in the amendatory veto of
HB4255, which adds insurance coverage for autism,
up to $36,000 per year. Your state rep has already
voted for this coverage under SB1900. Please thank
them for their support, too!
We need your help if Illinois is to join the other states
with new autism
insurance legislation this year, like Texas, South Carolina,
Arizona, Louisiana, and Pennsylvania.
San Francisco Newspaper Lacks Coherent View of Special Education
The school systems in the San Francisco Bay Area lack a coherent approach to teaching children with autism according to Nanette Asimov, the education reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, she defines the problem in terms of the following:
"For years, the high cost of
special education has forced districts to skim off money from their
regular education budgets. But today, regular education is a virtual
ATM card for special education.
***One reason for the indecision is
that autism shows up differently in different people: Some can speak;
some can’t. Some are bright; some aren’t. Some behave unpredictably;
others behave with robotic consistency."
She seems to define a "coherent approach" as being on unified method that works for all students and lacking that uniformity the system is failing and will fail students. Among her other premises is that the system is suddenly being overwhelmed with students and that is the primary cause of issues in teaching children with autism. Her analysis misses the point.
Co-Teaching an Effective Strategy to Support Inclusion
After three decades of IDEA being the law, in one form or another, the benefits of inclusion should be well known and understood by all. Unfortunately, that is just not the case, and the benefits of educating children in a LRE seem to be brand new to many. Here is an article from Barbara Glaeser, a thoughtful teacher in Washington D.C. (not an easy place to be a teacher), extolling the virtues of co-teaching to support inclusion for students with disabilities. Her presentation material includes school-based data that demonstrates the profound effects of inclusion on student achievement. Download Co-teaching_presentation.pdf. With lots more teachers like Ms. Glaeser perhaps the significant benefits of inclusion for all stake holders in schools will be accepted as a matter of course, and not as a point of ongoing controversy.
New Jersey Plaintiffs Win Major LRE Court Battle
The Federal District Court in New Jersey this week ruled that a major suit can go forward against the New Jersey Department of Education. The suit is premised on allegations that New Jersey has systemically excluded special needs students from being educated in inclusive settings. As reported:
"The complaint
charges that the defendants violated both the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act by systemically placing students with disabilities in segregated,
disabled-only classrooms. For years, New Jersey has had the worst
record in the nation in complying with the IDEA and Section 504
mandates to educate students with disabilities in the "least
restrictive environment," alongside their non-disabled peers."
Score one for the good guys! We need a whole lot more like this case to make a real dent but it is a nice start in big state.
Support for Students with Autism at College
Some colleges and universities around the country are actually taking proactive steps to address the needs of students with autism. For many students academics is not the top issue. Socialization, organization and advocacy top the list for many students. I have seen a number of students that I have represented at the K-12 level get into 4 year college but then fail because they spent excessive amounts of time playing video games or otherwise not able to handle the social and organizational pressures of college or university.
A recent newspaper report stated:
"The Organization for Autism Research, a nationwide group, is creating a
line of videos designed to educate college staff. The first is aimed at
professors; a second, in the works, will be geared to resident
assistants.
AHEADD, the Pittsburgh-based organization, recently opened
offices in Dallas, Washington and Albany, N.Y. It charges between
$4,200 and $5,700 per semester for help with all aspects of college
life."
This AHEADD program sounds promising and could be the difference between matriculation and flunking out. George Washington University also has a clearinghouse of information that is accessible online. It is nice to see that at least to some degree colleges and universities are recognizing that there are large number of students on the spectrum and other disabilities who are capable of college but need supports to make it a reality.
Education Drops as a Campaign Issue
A recent poll revealed that economic issues have overtaken education as the top issue on the minds of voters this Fall presidential election. Education was the number one issue but has dropped to third. There is no break out for where special education falls in the overall rankings. Download Education_drop_polls.doc
I would suspect not even close to third.
Milwaukee Public Schools Strike Out Again
The common refrain is that schools are short on money largely because of the costs attributable to students with special needs. In Milwaukee, Wisconsin no school official can even remotely make this argument with a straight face. The school officials in Milwaukee applied for roughly $40,000 of the nearly $5.4 million available state-wide. Milwaukee is the largest city in Wisconsin with a long history of not meeting students needs. Its problems are systemic and long-standing. Even in a time of great need, it left a lot of money on the table, that it would have received but for apparent administrative inaction or worse. Short on cash MPS, do not blame the students with special needs just look in the mirror.
Autism One Radio Interview About the Special Education Law Clinic
Robert and Sandy Waters of Autism One Radio interviewed Nelly Aguilar and I regarding the new clinic. Nelly is the the Executive Director of the Special Education Advocacy Clinic and has been the driving force behind the the clinic. The interview starts with a folk musical introduction and then continues with a nice discussion of the new clinic.
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