Summer’s coming! So today, special education parent and advocate, Lisa Lightner, founder of A Day in Our Shoes, joins me to discuss Extended School Year services. What are they? Who gets them? And do you need them?
Check out ADayInOurShoes.com
TRANSCRIPT (not proofread)
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
parents, child,
ies, extended school year, iep, school, school district, hear, social skills,
students, program, summer, services, lisa, special ed, offering, camp,
regression, week, disabilities
SPEAKERS
Lisa Lightner,
ADayInOurShoes.com, Dana Jonson
Dana Jonson
00:02
Hello,
and welcome to need to know with Dana Jonson. I’m your host, Dana Jonson. And
I’m here to give you the information you need to know to best advocate for your
child. I’m a special education attorney in private practice, a former special
education teacher and administrator, a current mom to four children with IPS
and I myself have ADHD and dyslexia. So I’ve approached the world of disability
and special education from many angles. And I’ll provide straightforward
information about your rights and your schools obligations, information from
other professionals on many topics, as well as tips and tricks for working with
your school district. My goal is to empower you through your journey. So please
subscribe to this podcast so you don’t miss any new episodes. And I want to
know what you want to know. So like, follow and drop me a note on my need to
know with Dana Jonson Facebook page. Okay, let’s get started. Hello, and thank
you for joining me today. I’m very excited to talk about the extended school
year today. We are in mid June, which is the end of the school year. And so
hopefully if your child requires Yes, why you’ve already established that in
your IEP. But what we’re going to talk about more is why do we have it? What is
this? Why? Why do we have it? Why do we want it? And do we really want to use
it. And I have with me Lisa lightner, who is a parent, and advocate and the
founder of a day in our shoes, which is an amazing resource for parents a
website with an amazing resource. And we’ll get into all of that in a minute.
But I wanted to first touch on the fact that if you have not heard yet, I will
repeat myself I am going through a transition or not I am not my podcast is
need to know with Dana Jonson is going through a transition. And next week will
be the final episode as need to know with Dana Jonson. And then I will relaunch
again in August as special ed on special ed, it will be special ed experts
talking about special ed topics. So basically the exact same content. I’m just
changing the name and the logo, because what I learned is that when you search
for a special education podcast, need to know doesn’t necessarily pop up on
your screen. So I have a wonderful and solid loyal audience. And I love you
all. And I want to reach more people. So we’re just going to change do some
cosmetic changes. But I’ll be back in August with all the same great content.
So I do hope to see you there. Now back to Yes, why? Hello, Lisa, thank you so
much for joining me today. Yay. I want to talk to you because you have a lot of
experience with special ed and also with helping parents and with going through
the process yourself. So I was hoping you could give me a little background and
maybe introduce yourself and how you and a day in our shoes came to be because
that website is so amazingly full of information for parents, and probably
teachers and administrators as well. I’m going to guess a few of those peruse
your site.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 03:03
Yes, I
know that I do get a lot of school staff traffic, especially for my lists of
IEP goals and the various disciplines or areas of need. So yeah, so it’s good
for both parents and school staff. Although my main goal from the get go and
you know, as it continues to be today, as always been to help parents
understand the IEP process. Actually, in March, the site just turned 10 years
old, which is a little crazy. I know, I can’t believe it. Prior to that I
actually did have a different I had a separate site and I was working as a
teacher, I used to teach a vocational program. And I had a sight completely
unrelated to anything disabilities. But I did have a baby with disabilities,
his preschool sent home a flyer to take training to become a special ed
advocate. His school did. Yeah, he went to an arc preschool.
Dana Jonson
03:55
Okay,
that makes more sense. I’m envisioning the public school sending you out a
flyer. I
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 04:02
know you
went to an ark preschool. So they sent home a flyer to do this special ed
advocacy training. And I did it merely because he was a toddler. And I said,
you know, this seems like a lot. And I already understood that like, Whoa, this
is pretty overwhelming because people were always coming to my house and
explaining things to me and paperwork was just, you know, phenomenal.
Dana Jonson
04:25
It
Anyway, during the lab work and special ed.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 04:28
But
during the last recession, I lost my job during the 2008 recession. I lost my
job, I was already in the training. So suddenly, I had a lot more time on my
hands and became you know, was still going through the training, started volunteering,
merge that into working part time for the arc as an advocate and then went on,
you know, went off on my own started the website. And it’s funny because I
started the website actually with another friend who is also an advocate and we
were like, oh, we’re gonna like this website’s gonna be about everything
special. needs and like we live near where we live in Philadelphia. And we’re
like, we’re going to list camps. And we’re going to list programs and support
meetings. And I mean, for Philadelphia alone, that amount of information is
completely overwhelming. And what I, what I had learned early on is that
parents really weren’t just coming to the site for the IEP information. And,
you know, some of my earliest posts are on things like what to do when your
child’s suspended manifestation hearings, and just because no one explains that
to them and in language that they can understand and kind of walks you through
the process. So you know, really, it was the parents who told me, this is what
we need to hear, this is what we want to hear. So it’s just grown since there.
Dana Jonson
05:44
I love
it. Because I feel like as you said, it breaks things down in a way that is
consumable. You know, that makes sense. And I even find, for me, when I go to
look something up, if I go to another attorneys page, sometimes about something
in the law, and even I get bored, you know, like, this is so dry. So it’s great
to have that translation, you know, in what I call real, you know, I
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 06:07
do read
Ida off and in the procedural safeguards, and the Federal Register that goes
with it. And you know, it’s those paragraphs, you have to go through them three
and four times and the sentence at a time and well, then there’s case law that
defines it afterwards. And it’s not really clear cut or black and white as we’d
like it to be
Dana Jonson
06:25
let’s
talk about is why does your child heaviest? Why did you have to have this
battle at some point?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 06:29
Well,
first of all, let’s let’s just clarify, because I do this to ies y means
extended school year.
Dana Jonson
06:35
Yes.
Thank you for slowing me down. I talked so fast. And sometimes I completely
forget that. I’m just talking in my own language. But you’re right, we’re
talking about extended school year services, not summer school, not camp, it’s
very specific service, that children who qualify are entitled to from their
school district. And it’s an extended school year. That’s exactly what it
sounds like. It means that your school year will continue beyond when the
typical school year ends. So how do we get there? Lisa, why do we want it? What
is it?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 07:08
Right?
Well, so first of all, you said, Did you ever do that battle? And I’d have to
say No, I’ve never had to fight that battle with my child. That’s great.
Pennsylvania actually does have one case, he’s in what is known as the
Armstrong group. And it was based on a case you know, Armstrong versus someone
I don’t remember who it was. But the Armstrong group is kids whose needs are,
you know, they’re pretty high needs pretty severe autism, intellectual
disability, situations like that. So it’s kind of like says kids in the
Armstrong group are always going to qualify for Yes. Why they’re always going
to need it. So he’s in he’s in that group. So it’s not thankfully, that’s one
battle, I don’t have to fight every year.
Dana Jonson
07:54
Well,
that is a good point. And and to start right off the bat, let’s talk about why
a student might need Yes, why. And I think that there is a misconception, there
are several misconceptions about it. One is that it is only for regression. So
right, only if you’re going to regress, now, all students regress, right? So
let, let’s just start there, all of them regress over the summer, it’s called
the summer slide. That’s why we have those silly packets, we have to force them
to fill out and do over the summer. And you know, in the first month of school
is really teachers trying to get kids back into the swing of things and caught
back up and figuring out where their slides were. And for children with
disabilities, if they are going to regress even more than that typical amount,
then that’s when we’re looking at extended school year services. But what
you’re saying about this arm strong group in Pennsylvania, which is specific to
your state, but we also argue here in Connecticut, which is and everywhere else
is that if the nature of the disability is so severe, that the student requires
those additional weeks or months to meet their goals and objectives, because
that’s what they require. They’re continuing to work on those pieces, then they
might also qualify for extended school year.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 09:09
Yeah.
And they’re actually you know, as you know, there are other criteria, as far as
is the child on the verge of an emerging skill, how long it takes them to
recoup lost skills, and things like that. So I think that that is probably the
biggest myth out there that, you know, he he doesn’t regret he’s not at fear,
or he’s not at one of the standard line that I hear from parents is that he’s
not at risk for regressing, so he doesn’t qualify.
Dana Jonson
09:34
Well, I
think that’s how do you define regression? Because as you said, if you’re on
the verge of an emerging skill, and if you wait till September to continue it,
and you will lose that ground, that’s called regression. I mean, I think that’s
how I look at it anyway, you know, so I think we have to look at it from a lot
of different places, and sometimes I hear well, they’re fine on Christmas
break. So we don’t have regression,
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 09:57
right?
And that’s where I tell parents that you know, It’s you have to stay engaged in
the process, you know, year round. And because a lot of kids, I mean, a lot of
kids do regress, even over Christmas break, but the parent doesn’t necessarily
document that or it’s not the things aren’t as visible. And I have to remind
parents all the time that, you know, teachers in schools only see what happens
at school. So if you’re seeing additional things at home, you need to start
documenting that. Right.
Dana Jonson
10:24
And
that’s been a neat change over COVID. Right, is that I think parents voices are
getting a little louder. Yeah, because they’re actually seeing this progression
or understanding what regression is. And, and I think that’s a good point,
because maybe, as you said, an emerging skill. And I’m saying, I see that as
regression. But if the parent doesn’t know that emerging skill is happening in
school, then the parent isn’t going to know to document the regression either.
Right? So a lot of that comes back to communication and understanding what’s in
the IEP and what your child is working on.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 10:54
Yes. And
I believe, and I, sometimes I get confused in my head, I’m like, is this
Pennsylvania specific? Or is this Ida, but I believe it’s in Ida that no single
factors should decide whether or not the child gets Yes, why. So even if that
alone, if you’re saying, well, the child doesn’t regress enough to get Yes.
Why? Well, Ida says, it shouldn’t be any one single factor,
Dana Jonson
11:16
right?
There should take in a whole bunch of components. And as we know, every child
is different. And we individualize. So how do you find ies wise typically
provided when you’re advocating for students? And you’re looking for extended
school year programs? How do you find that that is typically provided to families?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 11:35
Yeah, so
one of the other tenets of ies why is that it’s supposed to be individualized?
No.
Dana Jonson
11:45
I heard
a rumor.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 11:48
But that
is honestly I would say, and I get it, I get that only certain teachers agree
with their contract to work over the summer, certain therapists, things like
that, and busing and, you know, bus, what’s the word? I’m looking for contracts
and therapist contracts, you know, because a lot of these things, therapies and
you know, like bcbas, and transportation, mostly, you know, a lot of schools
don’t have their own they contract out. So I get that, from an administrative
standpoint, it makes a lot of sense to just say, Hey, we’re doing four weeks in
July, Monday through Thursday, nine to one See you there. But around here
anyway, that’s getting to be just the norm. You know, hey, we’ll see in July,
Monday through Thursday, nine to one,
Dana Jonson
12:32
right
and less if it depending on when the Fourth of July falls? Yes. Right. Because
that could add or eliminate a whole week,
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 12:39
right?
And then we have a whole other situation where in the city, if the buildings
aren’t air conditioned schools get canceled. And a lot of you know, because I
live in an old area. I live near Philadelphia, and a lot of these buildings
aren’t air conditioned. So then that throws in a whole other.
Dana Jonson
12:55
No,
yeah. And Connecticut schools can’t go past the end of June because no schools
are mandated to be air conditioned. And it’s hot here. You know, we had a
heatwave the other week, I was surprised, no schools closed. Because you need
air conditioning in Connecticut in the summer.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 13:10
Right.
And they did actually, that was just You’re right. That was just like last
week, and Philadelphia schools did dismiss early they dismissed at lunchtime
each day, because it just got too hot. So yes, I would say the biggest trend
and but it’s also the biggest concern is just that that whole individuality
piece, as far as eBay just gets tossed out the window. And I think parents need
to engage more and investigate. Like, I think they spend so much time focusing
on whether or not their child qualifies. And oh, I just want them to get as why
that they’re not digging deep and saying, Okay, I gotta Yes, why now what’s
going to happen? Because it’s to be based on your child’s IEP. And if they’re
going to do you know, two hours of La each day and two hours of math and then
send your kid home, and your child doesn’t necessarily have needs in those
areas, then you know why, you know, nobody wants to go to school in the summer,
right? As Americans, we’re just we’re programmed to not think about school to
not go to school in the summer, and nobody wants to do it. So if you’re going
to get your child in ies why let’s make it meaningful, right? Let’s, you know,
if they’re going to go and you’re going to do that, let’s make it meaningful.
Dana Jonson
14:15
I hear
that as well, that, you know, we want as why we want as why, and then, you
know, maybe I get EMI for my client. And later they say, Well, that wasn’t
really what they needed. I have to remind clients that that you are the parent,
and they’re all these experts around you. And you know, I’m using air quotes
for experts that you can’t see. But there are all these experts around you
telling you what it should be. And at the end of the day, as you said, if if
it’s focused on math and reading and your child’s issues, their social skills,
and schools can’t mandate typical students to attend summer programs or ies.
Why then is that program really benefiting your child? You have to figure that
out. There’s no one else around is going to do it for you.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 14:55
The flip
side of that is that parents who are fairly certain that their child is going
to get the Guess why they some of them jump right to the so I found the summer
camp. mean, I found the social skills summer camp, and I’m going to make the
school pay for it. Meanwhile, social skills isn’t even an identified area of
need in the IEP. So right, you know, again, it has to be individualized. But it
also has to be defined as an area of need in the IEP. And as you said, they
cannot force non IEP students to attend Yes, why to enable that LRE.
Dana Jonson
15:26
That’s a
very good point, because I have had parents call me and say, You know, I think
my child really needs the social skills piece. But there is no social skills,
as you said, in the IEP, that’s a red flag, right? If, if you’re looking for a
service that is not in your child’s IEP, it should be, then we need to revisit
that whole component. Because, you know, some children, if they go the whole
summer, and they don’t have friends, their parents can do their level best to
get those interactions, but they’re not getting that peer interaction, like
they get at school. And that’s a really long time to go without that.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 16:02
Right.
It is, and especially this year, you know, because many had at least a year
gap, if not more, you know, some stayed home through May or June and are not
going back until the fall. So they haven’t been there since last March. You
know, and I know a lot of schools have been in the fall and it gradually more
and more throughout the school year. But yeah, I mean, it’s that is a long
time.
Dana Jonson
16:22
Did you
find where you are or where you are now? Do you find that schools are opening up
ies wise and or summer school and or recruitment programs? Not recruitment Brit
re yeah recoup recoup not recruit programs to help students who had that that
huge gap because I find there are some some schools around where I am that are
doing that that are being more proactive and saying like last year, they said
anyone who wanted to go to ESRI could
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 16:51
Yeah. So
Laura. And I actually know Laura, who works for those of you missed it on Laura
did was gracious enough to do a facebook live with me. And we talked about comp
services due to COVID and getting the services. Because what another issue you
know, of course, keep in mind, nobody ever comes to me when things are going
well, they only come to me, right? things aren’t going well, right? I have to
constantly remind myself of that. But a lot of parents are inquiring about comp
services like hey, my child missed a year of this and you know, you’re have
that. And then it’s Oh, well, he can go to ies Why then he can go to ies Why?
And again, it’s about that digging deeper and saying well, but this is what he
missed. So what is ies? Why, and and what’s going to happen there? And is that
sufficient? Because yes, I do see a lot of schools being more generous with offering
EFI to students. But again, just bring them in for a couple of hours to do some
reading and some math.
Dana Jonson
17:47
Kids
don’t progress through osmosis. Right? Right, just appearing in the school,
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 17:53
they’re
not getting that pull out, or they’re not getting their therapy, or whatever it
is, because I hear all kinds of crazy stuff like, well, we don’t do OT and E s
y. And like, I don’t you know,
Dana Jonson
18:02
any any
statement that starts with we don’t, is usually incorrect.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 18:08
The only
thing the only one that I will say applies this time is that for as why the
school cannot guarantee LRE. But other than that everything apply.
Dana Jonson
18:18
And
that’s fair, because you can’t compel typically developing students to go to a
summer program. Right? I do hear that argument, though, for students who really
require interaction with typically developing students that truly is what helps
their progress and their success in the classroom or the environment that
they’re in whatever that may be. And so, you know, I often have situations
where parents say, Well, why can’t they do their ies? Why at a camp? Why can’t
they do that? And my responses they can, we can absolutely do that, if that’s
what’s necessary. And how do we set that up to make that that argument that
that is what your child requires. But that goes back to what you’re saying
about the individualization. And I think a lot of parents are trained to
understand that are taught that this nine to one July program is actually what
he is why it is, right. Yeah, you know, that they actually believe that’s what
it is. So because that’s what it’s called. And so, you know, when we’re looking
at extended school year, you know, programs and I hear schools say, well, it’s
really just about regressions, so we don’t have to add anything new. So we’re
okay here. How do you go about working with parents to come up with creative
ways to identify and and obtain those different kinds of extended school years?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 19:43
Okay, so
first of all, it depends. I have to tell you, it honestly depends on what time
of year they come to me because the parents who are coming to me now and it is
happening now, sometimes time is just not on your side, right? It just isn’t,
and so to Come to me, you know, Memorial Day or June 15, and say, Oh, well, I’m
not happy with this ESP program from a time factor, there’s usually not a lot I
can do, because what I have always always preached is, you know, look at the
present levels, present levels is what drives the IEP. And if this need is not
in present levels, it’s, then there’s not going to be a goal for it. And if
there’s no goal for it, there’s not going to be any supports and services for
it. Right. And so that’s, that’s usually at the core of the issue is that
there’s an identified need. So then, okay, well, let’s get it identified. Well,
that takes time. And that’s the kind of thing you know, like, he’s, like you
said, going back to their social skills example, if mom and dad are seeing that
the child’s struggles with social skills, but he’s able to get through school
day, and it’s not an identified need on an IEP, you know, again, you can’t go
to the school and say, Well, this is the social skills camp is what he needs
for EAS, why? What his child needs is some evaluations to show that he lacks
social skills. And that’s going to take time, and on June 15, you know, I can’t
necessarily help you there. So from the school’s point of view, what I do
always do say to parents, as you know, like, look at these camps, most of them
are nonprofits, look for scholarships, look for, you know, go to your Lions
Club, though, to your co Ana’s club, your rotary and see if they do sponsorships
for, you know, children in the community with disabilities. And if they would
sponsor this camp for you, if you cannot afford it. And also, you know, if you,
I get it, we’re guaranteed faith, and that first word is free. But just because
our kids are guaranteed fate doesn’t mean that if you have a disabled child
that you’re never ever going to have to pay for anything for them ever again.
So you know, some good point, yeah, and some parents are in a position to pay
for these things. And that is, you know, what I call the path of least
resistance. If I can’t help you demonstrate this week, you know, that your
child needs social skills, then I just don’t really think that’s going to be an
option for you. Like, we can go through the motions and we can get things
started. But the school is under no obligation in most cases to evaluate for
this camp starts and things like that.
Dana Jonson
22:09
I’ve
seen that there was like a, as a plan on school districts part is that they
make it a little difficult. So for parents who can pay for ies why they just do
they just find something and pay for it. And again, the path of least
resistance. And I do get that as well. But then I also find that what ends up
happening is the people who can’t afford to place are stuck and fighting their
district. And the district is playing the same game with them. So they’re
having to push back and they can’t afford to push back or to unilaterally
place. And that’s where we run into trouble. A lot of times, too, when I get
that call, I also have to remind parents that hiring me to get the school
district to say yes to Yes. Why may cost you more than the EMI program.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 22:55
Right. A
great example is several years ago, I had a family and they wanted this 15 $100
s y program, and we ended up going to mediation. And yes, the girl got it, the
female student got the program in mediation that that we wanted. But I mean,
I’m sitting there in mediation, looking at this table of like, seven or eight
school staff. And it was this time of year. I mean, it was summer had already
started school is out. And I thought you know, here, we have a superintendent
and me, you know, they’re paying me and all these people and to challenge us on
a 15 $100 program. So and yes, I certainly acknowledge that, you know, of
course, I go off on tangents and talk about this stuff all day. There certainly
is a gap in a you know, in public education, certainly between the haves and
the have nots. And having a parent pay for a program that they can afford, can
exacerbate that gap. And I’m not I don’t want to come across as that I’m
comfortable with that, like, Oh, well, too bad for you. If you can’t afford it,
you know, again, that’s how I understand Yeah, you can look into, you know, you
can try to look into scholarships and things like that. But for the parent who
can afford it, like I said, you know, you and I will probably still get one or
two more calls this week, from parents. Yeah, from parents who are looking for
EMI. And you know, in some cases, when you come to us at this time of year that
if you want that program, they’re like, well, it starts June 21. Like I These
are your options, you sign up and pay for yourself or you know,
Dana Jonson
24:22
well
until that point, and I want to be really clear that neither Lisa nor I are
giving any legal advice here. Lisa is not an attorney, but I am and I’m not
giving legal advice and I don’t know your your students situation. But to that
point, if a parent were to do that, and go pay for their program themselves,
and I always want to make this clear to any parent anytime. If you expect any
money back from a district that you spend, you have to go through a very
important legal process and document and note it properly. And the most, the
most important part is you have to give 10 days notice so Before your child
leaves the public school, not before they start the new program, before they
leave the public school 10 days beforehand, at least, you must have given
notice in writing that the school district did not offer an appropriate
program, that you’re in disagreement with their program, that you believe this
is an appropriate program. And that you will be placing your child there, and
that you expect to get reimbursement later that you’re preserving your rights
to reimbursement. That’s very important. I also usually mentioned to parents,
if you’re spending money, you want to get back, talk to a lawyer, it’s that
simple. talk to a lawyer is the best way to make sure you’ve covered your
ground. But so for those of you who are listening to us right now and thinking,
Oh, I didn’t get ies why yet I got to figure that out. Make sure that you talk
to somebody, so you’re doing it the right way. But for people who already have
it in their IEP, and the issue is a dispute of where it is, you know, yes,
there are a lot of options. So that kind of brings me to another question that
Lisa, which is through your child does qualify and you do get it? Do you have
to go? And I get that a lot from parents too, who say I don’t want to say no to
anything. I don’t I don’t want to say no, because you don’t you don’t want the
IP to be weakened because you’re going to visit grandma for the week. You don’t
want to not have it in there. So how do you advise parents who asked that
question? Do I have to go to ies wire does my child have to
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 26:21
go? I
know it’s parents spend so much time and it is such a fight some time to get
services that they’re so they just don’t want to decline? Anything that’s
offered to them. And I get it. I
Dana Jonson
26:31
never
did either. I mean, I bore kids with IPS. So I totally understand.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 26:37
I mean,
first of course, ask the special ed director or ask whoever’s running the EFI
program, you want to know what’s going to happen there. Because as I said
earlier, you want to make it meaningful, right? If you are going to send your
child to school during the summer, which is going to affect you know, the
entire household, right? You want to see what’s going on? And is it appropriate
for your child? Is it going to be meaningful? It’s not talked about a lot, but
school districts are not actually permitted. And it’s not legal advice. But
school districts are not permitted to retaliate against parents for refusing
services. So in a perfect world, no, that shouldn’t be held against you, as we
all know what what the statute says and what happens every day is not
necessarily the same thing. But no, they’re not supposed to retaliate against
you are not permitted to retaliate against you for refusing a service. That
being said, I haven’t This isn’t an area where I would necessarily expect to
see a lot of retaliation because they the school district has planned their ESP
program. They’ve hired X number of teachers and X number of Paras and they do
kind of have a cap on, you know, yep, this is how many kids we’re going to
offer. Yes. Why to? So being able to cut those numbers back, I wouldn’t
necessarily expect retaliation in this area, because it is going to save the
district money, right? If five parents say no, that might be another pair that
they don’t have to hire for ESXi. So I wouldn’t necessarily be afraid of that.
I would you know,
Dana Jonson
28:04
I also
find that as wide disputes, and as soon as I say this, it’s going to change.
I’m going to jinx myself. But I tend to find that because yes, why programs, as
you said you’re fighting over a 15 $100 program, oftentimes as Why is not as
cost prohibitive as a program during the school year. So I find that those
disputes are often easier to resolve, because they’re short term, they’re short
lived, and they’re not tremendously expensive. So I see the bigger fights for
ies wise, when you have a child who really requires a 12 month program, that’s
usually where we have like the more major disputes, and we don’t have that in
place. Or for students who require two months of extended school year, not just
one,
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 28:47
right,
that I that you’re right, and that, you know, if they’re offering where I see
the disputes is the parents who are trying to buck the school with the you
know, this, this nine to one monday through thursday camp program isn’t
appropriate for what my child needs. So and in fact, that 15 $100 program was
just that we wanted something at the local university, which was completely
appropriate for what this girl needed. And the camp program that the school was
offering was not appropriate. So like he said, that’s where I see the issues is
when parents don’t want to do the camp program, and they do want the summer
camp or the something else, which in many cases may be really appropriate. You
know, if social skills is your biggest is your child’s biggest need, you know,
but again, it’s going back to getting that documented, and is that a you know
documented area of need and all that
Dana Jonson
29:34
I often
recommend the parents if they are sending their child somewhere else that they
explained to the school district how that will address some of the issues for
us Why? Because a lot of times going to that summer camp. It’s not a special ed
camp. It’s not providing those educational components, but it will address the
special education needs of the child and that’s what we’re looking for. right
we’re looking for to address the special education needs of the child. And I
think that oftentimes that puts the district at rest to Okay, well, you’re
doing your thing, but we know that at least that they’re getting some services.
So when we come back to the table in September, we’re still on the same page.
You know, school isn’t going to say, I can’t teach your kid because you didn’t
send them to us why, right? That’s not gonna happen, right? Yeah, I
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 30:21
was for
EFI, or for any really, you know, I guess, an alternative si program is really
an out of District placement, right? Because you’re not doing with the
district, in district for any out of District placement, I say, go there, ask
them or talk to them read the website, what are they doing at that placement
that your child needs, that they are possibly, they’re just never going to get
that in what the district is offering, right.
Dana Jonson
30:47
And a
lot of times, it’s the typically developing peers, the role models, the social
skills, and I’ve had school districts send a para to the local camp, if a
student was maybe going to the local camp, and the parent was paying for the
camp, but maybe the school sent the para, that’s not typical. So don’t get excited
about that. But I have seen it happen that way. I’ve also seen ies y in the
form of like some one on one tutoring.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 31:12
Yep. Oh,
yeah, I’ve seen a lot of you know, some kids don’t need nine to one every day.
But they do need to keep up on some things. So once or twice a week might be
you know, and now every school district in the country just about is set up to
do things virtually. So if your child’s needs are strictly academic, you know,
maybe they don’t need to leave the house, maybe they do only need an hour, a
day or an hour a week of some online tutoring, or some you know, instruction or
something like that, working with his teacher. Yeah, I mean, just, you know,
like you’re talking about an out of District, but they sent the para, you know,
be creative and think about everything, you know, think about what you can
offer them and because it is you know about being collaborative,
Dana Jonson
31:51
and I
find that the more options a parent comes to the table with and also though, to
your point, understand what your school is offering going in and saying I know
you’re Yes. Why is canned? And doesn’t do anything isn’t an argument. Right?
It’s definitely not a legal argument. But it’s also not an argument and you don’t
have a really good ground to stand on. You know, if you’re and I think other
parents are great resource, and we need them, and they help you. But you have
to get the information yourself.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 32:21
Yeah, I
would ask to see like curriculum or lesson plans or something, because what
I’ve found is a lot of parents will call an IEP meeting to talk about this. And
then they say, Well, my child needs this and they go, okay, we do that. And
they go, Well, my child needs this. Oh, yeah, we do that they do everything.
Right. They do everything in these four hours, right. So it’s, it’s getting
some not just verbal reassurance, but something else that like, you want to know
what they’re doing each day, I’ve found that a lot of them are just a lot of
fun time to you know, a lot of outdoor games and, and I get it, it’s summer,
you want to keep things light, but you know, I’m not going to send my kids
every day to go play in the playground for four hours, either, you know,
because that’s not helping him or anyone else. So
Dana Jonson
33:05
right.
So yeah, so I think, you know, understanding very thoroughly what the school
district is actually offering and what that looks like, it’s hard because
parents can’t observe the ESA, during the school year, because it’s not there.
So that’s a bit challenging. So you do have to rely on other parents and their
experiences. But yeah, going to your team and asking them to pull out specifically,
what are we working on, I hear a lot of well, it’s only to prevent regressions.
So it’s going to be a lot less, it’s going to be minimal. It’s going to be all
these things. I actually this year had a an PPT or in Connecticut, we call them
ppts. But an IEP meeting, where they said the formula we use is and I thought,
okay, thank you for sharing, we’re going to revisit that. You know, there’s no
one formula for ESP for every child on the planet. And that is really the key
part. And I do believe that a lot of the ESP programs that schools have can
address a lot of students needs, but not all of them, right? Not every child
and not every need. So we do really need to take those those ideas and those
thoughts and think outside the box. I also caution parents that a lot of times
I find schools, at least I have found and again, I don’t come in unless there’s
a problem. And there’s another attorney at the table. So usually we’re there to
try and fix the problem. That’s the goal. But I find that we can be very creative,
and in a way that school districts can’t always be at the IP table. So to also
be a little flexible with the IEP team. Yeah. Could we could we maybe come to a
better agreement outside of this meeting? Because I think we can resolve the
issues. You know, if there’s an issue and an easy way to resolve it, why
wouldn’t the school want to
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 34:51
Right,
right. I think also, you know, obviously the internet and social media has been
a complete game changer for IEP parents, right like One of my mentors has a
disabled son who’s my age. And so she tells me about in the 70s standing by her
mailbox, like literally waiting for this newsletter to get to her home, you
know, because that’s was the 70s. Right? So it’s been a complete game changer,
the
Dana Jonson
35:13
fact
that she could find a newsletter in the 70s and 80s. I’m really impressed with.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 35:19
But I
think that it’s it’s been a mixed blessing because I think parents see other
parents getting things doing things, and then they think, Oh, my gosh, I have
to be doing that. And not every child with an IEP gets ies Why? And not every
child with an IEP needs is why and you kind of have to go with your gut, I, you
know, go with your gut instinct, and then work on defining that gut instinct,
you know, with your IEP team, but it’s okay, if your child doesn’t need ies
Why? Just because you see all these other parents doing it. And I feel like it
has become kind of like the latest, like buzz word are out there like, Yeah, do
you have Yes. Why do you have vs? Why? What do you know? And it’s okay to not
go to ies why it’s okay. You know, again, it’s okay to tell the school No, but
it’s also okay, if
Dana Jonson
36:04
you can
also get your accommodations for your summer packet, you know, so, so your
child might not need Yes, why, but if they had that summer packet that
everybody else has, you can be requesting things through their, their IP that
they may need to assist them through that packet. And that may even include
touching in with a teacher, or, or something like that, without necessarily
being an extended school year.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 36:29
And I
but I see a lot of I think parents, IEP parents, we are so fists up ready for
battle all the time, that as soon as we hear no, we’re prepared to fight for
it, you know, and so you’re in your IEP meeting in January, February? And they
say, okay, yes. Why we don’t think your child qualifies. And just because they
were told no, like, the parent automatically thinks, well, they told me no, so
I better fight for this. And again, not every child needs it. And that’s okay.
Dana Jonson
36:57
You
know, and I also like, when they say that in October, I usually say can we
reconvene, and let’s just reconvene and like may and talk about it again, we
get a little closer. But I agree with you, just because it exists doesn’t mean
you have to have it or that your child can get it, you know, your child truly
may not qualify. Right, right. And then you’re fighting a losing battle. And I
do see that because I think that if you feel like you’re not getting everything
that you need, or your child is not getting everything that they are entitled
to over here. And then you see this other thing over there. And like, why can’t
we get that? And I try to remind parents to keep the focus, what is it that you
want, just because you’re not getting this thing over here doesn’t mean we want
to distract our efforts to fight for all this other stuff over there that maybe
we don’t really need. Let’s stay here and get this piece here that we want. And
I think that’s a good point. You know, not everybody qualifies for it. And it’s
it’s not the end of the world,
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 37:53
right.
And also that I see a lot of parents put their hopes into, they think that in
the summer program that their child is going to catch up, well, that’s great,
I’m going to send him to ies wine, he’s going to catch up to his peers, I have
never seen that happen. I mean, never
Dana Jonson
38:07
well.
And I like to say if your child didn’t catch up with their peers over the
school year, there’s a good chance, they won’t catch up in four weeks from nine
to one, you know, so it’s and it’s not meant for that it’s not summer school,
it’s not you fail the class. And so now you’re taking it again, or you’re
improving your grade. it’s specific to the IEP, and it’s specific to the
child’s needs, and to ensure ongoing progress and a lack of regression. So you
know, as we said, I do hope that everybody out there who wants to swipe either
has it or has it lined up. But keep in mind that you don’t necessarily require
EMI. And if you don’t require it, or if you don’t like it, you don’t
necessarily have to go to it. The other piece I like to tell parents is you can
disagree with it and send your child that’s another one you have to remember,
if you disagree with it, but you don’t have an option. You can tell them you
disagree with it to preserve your rights for later on down the road. If
something else comes up, you can say I disagree with it. I don’t think this is
appropriate, but I am going to send them. So that’s sort of a another piece to
consider. Because I also know sometimes parents don’t speak up because they’re
afraid if they say they don’t that it’s not appropriate. There won’t be any
other options.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 39:17
Yeah.
And it always goes back to what I’ve preached for 12 years is that all parents
need to stay engaged in, you know, an IEP is not just an annual meeting, you
have to stay engaged all the time. And yes, in Ida it says that you’re supposed
to be notified of the school’s ies why decision with enough time to exercise
their procedural safeguards. So, you know, again, I tell parents, if you’re if
you haven’t heard anything by March or April, you know, it’s okay to send an
email, you know, look at your IP, see what it says and send an email and ask,
you know, because you do need time to exercise your procedural safeguards,
Dana Jonson
39:53
but
don’t wait for the school to come to you. Right, right. Exactly. It’s sort of
like if your point of my teenage I have three teenagers driving right now. And
I told one of them, I was like, oh, look out for that. And they’re like, oh, if
they hit me, it would be their fault. And I thought, Well, yeah, it would be
their fault. But you wouldn’t have a car, or you might have broken bones. So a
little bit of an extreme example, but you know, if you want, yes, why, and
you’re waiting, and you know, the school district hasn’t done it, and you’re
waiting, then, you know, you’re you’re hurting yourself. It might be their
fault. And they might be wrong, but your child won’t have this. Why?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 40:30
Right.
And it’s June 15. So it’s June 15. You hire me or or Dana, you know, it’s gonna
take us weeks to you know, even get going on that.
Dana Jonson
40:41
I mean,
it would take me two weeks to even establish probably a first call with an
attorney. Yeah, you know, cuz no one has time to breathe right now. So now,
that’s a good point. Thank you, Lisa. Is there any last points on eBay? I feel
like we kind of covered it all. You
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 40:55
know
what, I just want to ask you one question, because it’s your house. I’ve only
had one family in 12 years. Have you ever successfully, you know, with or
without your services? Maybe they maybe they resolve it on their own? Or you
heard it from another attorney colleague, you know, forever? I’ve been told
that he is why is not just for summer. It’s anything that goes above and beyond
the school year. Have you ever been successful with like weekend or holiday
Christmas holiday? Yes. Why? Things like that? I’ve only ever had one?
Dana Jonson
41:24
a great
question. I have not actually argued that. That is not in 15 years, I’ve been
practicing as an attorney for 15 years in special ed. And I have not argued
that. But that is a great question. Because you’re right. Yes, extended school
year is extended school year, we’re trained to believe that extended school
year is nine to one in July. Right. Right. That’s how we’ve been conditioned.
But it’s not. It’s an anything above and beyond that same as extended day.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 41:55
There
are advocates around here who preach that and they say, well, you can ask for
stuff on Saturdays. And you can ask for stuff on Christmas break and things
like that. I’ve never, like I said I’ve had one. But we have a we have a weird
thing in pa where most kids with disabilities can get wraparound behavioral
health. So we can get home services. And those folks are permitted to do
community based instruction and go out in the community with your child. So we
can go about it the Medicaid route and get that. Now mind you, that’s nothing
academic, it’s only behavioral.
Dana Jonson
42:27
But if
it’s impacting their education, it’s educational right here, it’s
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 42:30
not
really even an issue because like, well, this is my wraparound services
Dana Jonson
42:34
students
I’ve had who require that level of intensity are usually in our placements.
When I’m involved. That’s usually my experience. So I haven’t argued for that
or really seen that as a problem. But it is a really good point. And I think
the good piece about the vagueness of VSI is what if you want a service that
you can only get on a Saturday, you know what, if there’s something out there,
then it really shouldn’t matter when it’s offered? Does that make sense?
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 43:02
Yeah,
no, because we do have a university around here that does a lot of behavioral
stuff, and a lot of social skills and executive functioning clinics and camps
and sessions and, and they’re all on Saturdays.
Dana Jonson
43:14
So it shouldn’t
matter that it’s on a Saturday, it should be you know, and if it’s during the
school year, you could argue it’s extended school year, because it’s additional
school days, or extended school day. You know, I’ve had students where they
say, Oh, well, if the student you know, they have to attend the homework Hall,
if they have to attend it, that sounds like an extended school day to me, you
know. So I think there there are definitely ways to argue that I just I have
found typically when I have had students in cases where they required that
level of intensity, they’re already in a program that probably provides it and,
and in Connecticut, we also have other agencies that provide Home Services,
depending on your situation, depending on your disability, depending on your
insurance, depending depending depending so many things. So but again, that
goes back to individuality of the child.
Lisa Lightner, ADayInOurShoes.com 44:03
And I
was just curious, because I’ve just heard it exists, but it’s like a unicorn.
I’ve
Dana Jonson
44:06
never
really seen it in action. But if if anyone out there has seen this, please
reach out to me. I would love to hear about it. If you have obtained extended
school year services and in a unique manner. I would love to hear about it.
Lisa, thank you so much for joining me today. This was really wonderful. I
thoroughly enjoy all of your resources and your website and your video casts
and your live streams. So I strongly recommend you check out a day in our
shoes. And if you’re listening to this, you can go back to the show notes. I
will have all of Lisa’s information on her website in there. If you feel like
Lisa speaking my truth. She’s the only person I can talk to. I’ll ever contact
information. And you know, hopefully everybody is set up and ready to go into
summer God willing. Thank you so much for joining me today. Please don’t forget
to subscribe to this podcast so you don’t miss any new episodes. And if there
Anything you want to hear a comment on, go to our Facebook page and drop me a
note there. I’ll see you next time here on need to know with Dana Jonson have a
fabulous day
