I have a question about services i can request at first IEP coming up for my soon to be 3-Yr old who has ASD?

I am new to the whole IEP process. There are no special Ed pre-school services for autistic kids in my school district and so my school district has referred me to the special Ed school for the county which is quite far(30 miles) and they would provide a school bus. I am not comfortable sending my 3yr old by him self on a school bus. There is another very good school near us which offers the services my son needs and they said they need a referral from my school district. Can I ask for a referral to this school in his IEP? Can my school district reject this request? My son right now receives EIBT services from early intervention program through Regional center at home. Can I ask my school district to continue those services? What will happen if I don't agree or sign the IEP with the school district recommended school? I appreciate all your help and answers.

Thank You
Sophie

You must live int he Central Valley of California. Your child is receiving Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA). The Regional Center, VMRC, called this "EIBT." I am guessing your child is receiving about 30-40 hours per week of ABA with either CVAP, Pathways/Kendall School, ABC, BEST or Genesis Behavior Center. Once your child turns three years old, they are the responsibility of the school district. ABA services can and should be continued (for the vast majority of children) once they turn three years old. The school district will most likely still call it EIBT...doesn't really matter what it is called. Do not listen to VMRC or anyone else tell you your child "no longer qualifies" or "doesn't meet continuation criteria" and needs to be "transitioned" into a different program.

The transition process (from regional center to school district responsibilty) is a VERY tricky process and must be handled with great care to ensure the child receives maximum benefit with the ultimate goal of full inclusion in a regular Kindergaretn when the child reaches school-age. From here on out, I highly recommend you do EVERYTHING in writing and not verbally. If someone calls you, follow up with an email outlining the converation. Give the school distrcit and VMRC at least 24 hours notice that you will be tape recording ALL meetings. Do not have "informal" meetings outside of an IEP. And please, please get the help of an advocate and/or support group. Please feel free to call me any time at (209) 321-6510. I would love to help you through this process.

When you go to the meeting for the 1st IEP, you can discuss this. That is one of the reasons for the meeting. The school district has a system, and believe me it is quite regular for a student as early as 3 to be bused 30 miles or more. On a ESE bus, there will be an assistant to tend to the students, as required by law. (No exceptions) Just be honest, and try to be constructive, and I am sure they will be receptive. Good luck.

The school bus situation is perfectly legal, albeit a long ride. Like Me said, the bus will have an aide. Many special education buses have built in car seats for the little ones, too. Ask to see how this is typically handled in your area.

If you don't agree with what they offer, ask what other options you can receive. Write these down as you hear them. That will motivate the school personnel to tell you ALL of them. At 3, I would expect them to offer in-home services once or twice a week. Depends on what you would like. Sometimes, what they offer is a take-it or leave-it situation.

I'm not sure what EIBT stands for, but always ask. When you ask and they say no, tell them you expect that to be on the DEC 5 (or summary of the IEP meeting form). Play nice about it, but, if anyone is trying to do something illegal, you have proof of it. This is where taking notes during the meeting, certainly helps.

Contact the local autism society in your area for some parental support. Best wishes to you and your son!

In my state-yes-

The school might just want you to go to the county school because it is the easiest for them--but 30 miles can easily be more than an hour bus ride each way (with all the pick ups).
Hopefully, there will be at least 1 aid on the bus-3 year olds with autism are bussed all over teh country-but 30 miles is rough.


In my state there are private schools that are state approved as an alternative to a public school

There is also a possibility the school district contratcing with the early intervention provider to continue services.

Your district can reject it-but you can take tehm through due process-you should have been given a book about your rights in special ed that explains this.

If you don't sign the IEp it will delay the start of services.

Look into any autism support groups/organizations in your state-they may be able to give you a list of schools that are approved in your area.

Other parents are often the best source of info

Wow! Out here in Hawaii, we have one Local Educational Authority for the entire state, and we don't have to deal with these kinds of headaches. Honestly, I don't know why every town has to have their own school district. It seems terribly inefficient to me.

You can ask for anything in an IEP meeting, but you'll get better results if you ask *before*. The outcome will be a team decision, normally a consensus reached with the family and the district/school. The most efficient schools come with a proposal or provide you a draft ahead of time and ask for your input.

If the school knows your concerns, say, a week before the meeting, they have time to research the possibilities. Bad decisions and programs often result from the bombshells that get dropped out of the clear blue sky at these meetings.

The school puts together "an offer of FAPE" a Free and Appropriate Public Education. Their offer is basically a draft IEP. As I say, the team decision is normally a consensus. But when home-school relationship breaks down, the school has to essentially say, "This is our offer of FAPE. You can take it, or you can leave it."

You have some options beyond "take it or leave it", at that point, if you think you've been done wrong. You can file an official state complaint. You can ask for mediation, or you can file for due process.

Taking a school to due process is almost like filing for divorce. You bring your grievances to a hearing officer, who reads a pile of documents, lawyers interview both sides, with cross-examination and everything. In the the end, the decision ends up being about issues neither the school nor the family cared about. I know a lawyer who says, "You don't win due process. You either lose, or you lose big, and nobody loses more than the child."

To me, all that energy is better spent on good communication with the other members of the team to begin with. That goes for the school staff as well as the family!

You'll receive a copy of your rights and the opportunity to review them at IEP and eligibility meetings. Wrightslaw is a good resource for information about Special Ed law.

The Disability Rights Advocate I work mostly with and sometimes against (we're working towards the same goal, but we don't always agree on how to get there) tells me that there are Disability Rights organizations in every state. I assume that, like ours, they have advocates who may go to meetings with you. You normally have to sign a consent for the school to release information to that organization before they can do much for you.