Hi I am looking for help with my sons special needs education. He has been diagnosed with ADHD and is ongoing further assesments for Aspergers with Kaiser. He has been placed on Home Hospitalization with no school. The district has promised to provide 5 hours of school a week and he has had 2 hours total in a month.
We had an IEP meeting and the district is only offering him and ED (emotionally disturberd class) class at another school. In which we have asked to see it and they have told us they will call us to make an appointment. We are in need of someone to help and can not afford attorney rates to get help. Is there anyone that can recommend an advocate that will help.
I agree with Myra. Alta Regional has been instrumental in helping my mother get care for my special needs sister. They fight for you - at no cost. PLEASE call them. Good luck!
Hi J. -
I was a former employee with Alta California Regional Center and I think they may be able to help. Here's the number: ###-###-####. Ask for the Intake Dept. and an Intake worker will take all the information and within a few days a Service Coordinator will call you to make an appt. to assess your child. Good Luck!
greetings J., you have options and luckily reside in the State of California in which is the only state that has Regional center services and advocates to assists. I am a case manager/social worker and work with children w/ special needs. My role is to advocate for my consumers, a huge part of it is with the school system. Please contact the school once again and ask for an emergency IEP, please do not sign the IEP unless you agree to the goals/objectives. If you agree partially then you can initial on the parts that you do agree on. The IEP is a legal document, it is the schools responsibility to make sure it is followed through. The home schooled hours NEEDS to be addresssed. As for the school that they want to send your child too, it MUST meet all of his educational needs/goals & objectives. Please confer once again with the PRogram Specialist who facilitates the transition. Report your concerns by emails, and/or ceritified letters this helps with paper trails and the schools are most likely to respond. The school is obligated to continue services at home until a school program that meets his needs are found. Please do not settle. Also, get a referral going to Alta Regional Center ###-###-#### - get an intake done for your son, this will determine eligibility so that he can recieve free services like a case manager, respite services, and other theraputic services that can assist your son.
hope this helps.
D.
Hi,
I worked with kids with special needs for 8 years,(autism) Aspergers is on that spectrum. Go to the FEAT website I think it is FEAT.org you can find advocates on that site. I hope this helps
Hello,
I work for Department of Education, Special Education Division. If you have problems or questions regarding your son's IEP, please give me a call at ###-###-####.
Thanks
I am appauled by what the school district is offering. My son who is now 13 had the same experience wherein one day a christian school i took him to day care thought he might be autistic. Well i tried not to panic, i contacted the school district at the time (Mt Diablo School District, Contra Costa County.) The school had two locations for kids who might be in special needs and this included regular classes for other kids. My son is not autistic but he did have a learning disability for speech. He basically started school at the age of 3 1/2. There was a school physcologist they did all sorts of testing and was able to work with him on a daily basis. At the time we did not leave close to the school so he bussed. The teachers were great and eventually he blended in with all the other kids in first grade. He was taken out of class for a short period every day to work with the special day class teachers (1 - 6). He went as far as up to six grade with assessments done every six months to a year. I am very proud to this day, he is a great student, he does his homework without me having to tell him. I can't tell you how much all the teachers worked hard with him. In his last year of elementary he won the highest award from school which was the President's Achievement Award.
So don't give up. Demand that you have a special assessment test for your child and maybe contact the school district i mentioned to compare. I was definately not impressed with Elk Grove's Program for special needs. I have also requested for my other children and the teacher felt there was no need. A parent knows their child best. Good luck.
Advocates are free. Ask the district office for the phone number to contact in your region. I am a special ed teacher who lives nearby. I'd be glad to answer any questions you have about the process.
Remember once he is in the special ed class, it's very hard/impossible to get him out once he has grown out of ADHD, my son has grown out of his hyperactivity and now, complains that he isn't learning in his special ed class, and is discouraged to go to school, now that he's 14. Don't let them diagnose your son with another symptom, because they will give him a new one every year, I've been through tough times trying to keep my son a good name, Best of luck, I could go on all day talking about this.......
hi J.,
I can't help you with your need for a advocate but you should also place an add in http://www.sacmomsclub.com/
also join a couple of yahoo groups http://groups.yahoo.com/search?query=adhd
Good Luck...
Hi J.,
First, I had a son who had ADHD and he did vey well but it took time. I would recommend reading as much as you can on the CHADD website. You have rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act to get a 504 Plan in place with the district. Go online and get more information, but basically it allows you to get what you need for your son and the district should have offered it for you. As for home/hospitalization, my daughter has a teacher come to my house every week and gives her assignments and has all school year. Advocate hard and heavy. Elk Grove Unfied has to give your child the same as if he were in the classroom. He is just at home, it is not home school, it is home hosptial. Threaten to take the before the school board and get your 504 plan in place. Feel free to ask me more questions. I am happy to help you, I know what you are going through, my daughter has been home hosptial schoolsed for 2 years, but we have a great teacher. Don't settle for less! I can help you if you need it. M.
Hi J.,
I'm a mother of an 18 year old son w/ Aspergers and he has anxiety issues also. He was diagnoise in the 3rd grade. Too late for me. He father and I always knew there was something going on but could not figure what it was. He was first diagnoised as having ADD, but it was later we found out he has Aspergers. We did not want to put him in one of those schools only because there were other students with far more worse issues. We also were told by advised by his other teachers those schools were not the place for him. We are in the Elk Grove School District and the elementary schools will modify the class work & home work for your child. My son is at Sheldon High School and his grades are all A's & B's and he's doing fine. After his diagnoises we heard about Fair Oaks Therapeuticum on Fair Oaks Blvd. We talked to Ursula Stehle Ph.D. They programs to offer for Autism Spectrum & Asperger's Disorders. Give them a ____@____.com son and our family went there for his one on one therapy & group therapy which helped him tramendously. He was taught to read body language and read facial expressions which gave him so much more self esteem than you realize. They were fantastic. My son is doing so well now. He's prepping for college and his trip by himself abroad. J. you need to be your child's advocate always and you will make the right choices for him. The best of luck to your and your family.
TT
