3 Steps to Understanding Stay-Put When used correctly, stay-put provides a powerful and important protection for families who have children with disabilities. In short, stay-put prevents unilateral action by a school district when parents object to a change in their child’s educational program or placement. The protection ensures consistency in a student’s program during a dispute – which is critical for many students with disabilities. For example, a student is placed at a private special education school placement pursuant to an IEP, and a school district proposes to transition the student ..read more

The Power of the Partial Rejection An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a legal document that guides the delivery of special education services and supports for a student. After a school district proposes an IEP, parents, who are members of their child’s special education Team, have an opportunity to respond. A family can accept, reject, or reject an IEP in part. Whenever a dispute exists, I almost always advise rejecting an IEP in part (a partial rejection). When a family fully accepts an IEP, they are telling the school district that they agree wholeheartedly with its proposal ..read more

School Observations: A Parent’s Right Recently, a parent sent me an email asking whether a school district could significantly limit an observation of her son’s classroom. The school district was attempting to impose numerous restrictions. An amendment to the special education law in 2008 solidified a parent’s right to observe, and an advisory from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) instructed school districts that they must follow the amendment. Legislators and the department have made clear that observations, whether by a parent or an indepe ..read more

FAPE and the School Bus The right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) does not end at the schoolhouse doors. Students who have disabilities have a right to transportation as a “related service” when it is necessary to benefit from special education. A school district is responsible for providing transportation to ensure a student receives all the special education services outlined in their Individualized Education Program (IEP). In a recent Massachusetts Bureau of Special Education Appeals (BSEA) decision, a hearing officer made clear that the obligation of a school district to pr ..read more

Presentation by Daniel S. Perlman for the Georgetown Special Education Advisory Council (SEPAC) Topic: Beyond Basic Rights: Resolving Special Education Disputes Date: Wednesday, March 21, 2018 Location: Georgetown Public Library 2 Maple St, Georgetown, MA 01833 Time: 6:45 PM SEPAC Website/Information: http://georgetownsepac.wixsite.com/sepac/meeting-workshop-schedule   Receive blog updates by email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The post SEPAC Presentation: Georgetown and Surrounding Towns (new date) appeared first on Law Office of Daniel S. Perlman, LLC ..read more

Presentation by Daniel S. Perlman for the Malden Special Education Advisory Council Social and Emotional Learning and the Law Date: Thursday, January 25, 2018 Location: Forestdale School Cafeteria 74 Sylvan Street., Malden Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm SEPAC Website/Information: https://www.facebook.com/Malden-Special-Education-Parent-Advisory-Council-SEPAC-248455821909795/   Receive blog updates by email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The post SEPAC Presentation: Malden and Surrounding Towns appeared first on Law Office of Daniel S. Perlman, LLC ..read more

Below is a link to a powerful article by Phoebe Adams and Cathy Mason about the challenges for students with dyslexia in our public schools. The article also highlights legislation that is pending in Massachusetts requiring early screening procedures for dyslexia – a step in the right direction to helping students with language-based disabilities. From the authors: “Many students who receive generic reading instruction learn to read at grade level. However, dyslexic students require structured literacy approaches. As one first grader said, ‘I have a locked box in my brain and no ..read more

I’m looking forward to presenting at the Coalition to Defend Special Education meeting about Discovery and Maintaining Client Records and Communications for Advocates and Attorneys. The meeting will also include an Ask the Attorney session on special education topics – please send your questions to Leslie Lockhart in advance of the meeting. Date: October 26, 2017 Location: The meeting will be held at the Institute for Human Centered Design, 200 Portland St, Boston 02114. For more information on the Institute and for directions and parking information, see their website, http://humancentereddes ..read more

After a case is resolved, my clients often ask me how they might help families who are less fortunate: “What do parents do when they don’t have access to an attorney or advocate?” Others ask how they can help improve special education for other students: “My child is in a good placement, but how do we help all the other students in the public school?” My answer is always the same: support Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC). MAC has led the charge with its partners in pushing through every major piece of special education and school discipline legislation in Massachusetts. From the Auti ..read more

In his final blog post at Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC), former Bureau of Special Education Appeals (BSEA) hearing officer Bill Crane wrote an excellent analysis on the right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). In the post, Bill discusses the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District RE-1.  The post is definitely worth a read, and, if you haven’t already, I encourage you to read Bill’s entire series of posts over on the MAC website (as well as MAC’s other excellent online resources). Click here to read the blog post.   ..read more