There any alternative schools he could go to or are you able to get a second opinion on his diagnosis?

Well, unfortuanetly they can dispute the Doctors diagnosis. What they can't dispute is a outside evaluation that they have to pay for. I would demand an outside eval. try to pick someone that you can both agree on. Problem with alternative schools is that the districts DON'T want to PAY for them!!! Good luck, Denise

i dont think i would have agreed to put off the meeting, they had just as much notice as you did for the meeting if they dragged their heels thats not your problem. maybe you should call someone higher up and demand a meeting sooner, get advise from an advocate or get an advocate. all the things i would do i wish i could do, lol, my hubby takes caare of the school and is a push over with them, he is learning the hard way that the school is not going to do anything more then they are forced to do. dont back down! hang in there i am sure there will be others posting to this with great advise with details!

First thing: contact the parent's advocacy group for the school district to ask for help. I quickly searched for Michigan and found http://www.bridges4kids.org/HelpForKids.html Ask them how this is supposed to work, how many people should be evaluating your son, etc. Immediately reschedule the meeting. Normally the don't come to the first meeting with an IEP. You should only be meeting to discuss the test results. Maybe someone from the advocacy group could go with you to the IEP meetings, I've found that the more you show the school district you know where to go over their heads the more they are will do the right thing to stop you.

Also get EVERYTHING in writing, if they tell you no for something ask them for it in writing so if you do go up the chain you it's not just hearsay. A lot of times if you ask for it in writing they will suddenly be able to do what you asked because they were being lazy in the first place and just didn't want to do it. Sad to say but it's true. Feel out the other evaluators of your son, I highly doubt the school psych was the only one to see him. (The Autism Specialist in our school district wouldn't say he was Aspergers but everyone else in the room was there when she went down the criteria sheet for autism he meet almost everyone of them, so even if she wouldn't say he was, his IEP is written as Aspergers. And he hasn't been diagnosed by a doctor yet.)

And even if the psych didn't feel he was needing services ask for the meeting anyway. They should send you a letter of notification for the time and date, take the time to contact as many of the evaluators and ask them to come to the meeting. It should be his case manager taking care of arranging the meeting, hopefully not the school psych, contact that person or your son's teacher to find out who tested him. If only one person has tested him then I would contact the school's special ed teacher and ask what's up. Keep contact with your son's classroom teacher for updates on his days.

I know it's a lot of time, but play the intested almost obnoxious parent. One of the best pieces of advice I've ever gotten was "You are your son's advocate, if you don't do it who will?" Be calm at the meeting, be strong, hold your ground, listen to what they have to say but be willing to speak up for what you know is right. Make sure you have a full copy of your doctor's evaluation, any chance he or someone from his office could come speak for him? Make sure you have a few copies.

If the psych is still giving you problems make a meeting with the school principal and hopefully you're son's teacher also so there is someone else there that can support your observations of his behavior. Explain to him how it will benefit the school to have him in the right program, I know it sucks to have to go that way, but there are too many people that just lay down and take whatever the school district tells them will be done and they are not the only expects. Autism is called a spectrum because it is so wide and varying. Do not sign and IEP you disagree with. You do not have to, at the first meeting they should tell you how the appeals process in that district works at least who to contact. Make sure you show them how interested you are in that and if they don't give it to you, they are doing it wrong! It should be something you have to sign for.

Lastly I would look into other schools in the district that are more willing to help your child, and make sure to bring that up at the meeting, ask around for names of teachers, get their opinions of the situation, how they would handle it. There should be parents that come to the center you work at that have some names of teachers or schools that have better prepared teachers, special ed teachers and teams of evaluators.

http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/iep.index.htm

Please check out wrightslaw regarding IEP's they have fab. infor!

Mention the word Aspergers, some people say its not a part of Autism, but it is, but maybe they'd say yes, he has Aspergers, and then at least you'll know he's on the autism spectrum, just a different label...so frusterating isn't it...

Kris

Do as SandyPie says, and stand your groud. You have rights,and just the fact the school psy did not include your interview at first proves that person incompetent. You need to hang cool and the district will either help him with services or not. If not you hold out and DO NOT SIGN THE IEP. You will have to continue the process. See the wrightslaw and be cool. Good Luck!