IEPadvocate4you

Carol Sadler
Special Education Consultant/Advocate
770-442-8357
1105 Rock Pointe Look
Woodstock, GA 30188
CarolSadler@bellsouth.net
www.IEPadvocate4you.com

I am a lay Parent Advocate assisting parents of children with disabilities in school IDEA, 504 and SST meetings. I am a former CHADD and LDA Coordinator, graduate of the 1st GA Advocacy Office PLSP legal training course and most importantly parent of two children with various disabilities.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Tomorrow!! NFASG Meeting 2-12-12 Advocates Arsenal - IEP Tips and Strategies the Regulations Don't Tell You

FYI – Wrap up snuggly warm and come join me as I speak tomorrow on “IEP Tips and Strategies the Regulations Don't Tell You” at the 2/12/12 NFASG meeting below.  Not too late to make your reservations to DebbieDobbs@comcast.net .  Information to help you advocate for our precious babies!!

Please share with other parents, professionals and disability groups!!

Advocacy & Consulting Services - IEPadvocate4you
Carol Sadler, Special Education Consultant/Advocate
GA Advocacy Office PLSP I Graduate
770-442-8357
1105 Rock Pointe Look
Woodstock, GA 30188
CarolSadler@bellsouth.net
www.IEPadvocate4You.com
http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com

IEPadvocate4you also now on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IEPadvocate4you-Carol-Sadler-Special-Education-ConsultantAdvocate/139597000964  

http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolsadleriepadvocate4you

 

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Sunday, February 05, 2012

NFASG Meeting 2-12-12 Advocates Arsenal - IEP Tips and Strategies the Regulations Don't Tell You

FYI – Please come join me as I speak on “IEP Tips and Strategies the Regulations Don't Tell You” at the 2/12/12 NFASG meeting below.  Make your reservations to DebbieDobbs@comcast.net .

 

Please share with other parents, professionals and disability groups!!

 

Advocacy & Consulting Services - IEPadvocate4you
Carol Sadler, Special Education Consultant/Advocate
GA Advocacy Office PLSP I Graduate
770-442-8357
1105 Rock Pointe Look
Woodstock, GA 30188
CarolSadler@bellsouth.net
www.IEPadvocate4You.com
http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com

IEPadvocate4you also now on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IEPadvocate4you-Carol-Sadler-Special-Education-ConsultantAdvocate/139597000964  

http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolsadleriepadvocate4you

 

"There is nothing more unequal than the equal treatment of unequal people." ---- Thomas Jefferson

“Refrain from Restraining, Secluding and Corporal Punishment & Aversives are Abusive and Dehumanizing” ---- Carol Sadler, Advocate

GNET=GetNoEducation/Therapy=PsychoNOed=Jail without Jury or Trial=Imprisonment without Legal Representation

 

CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVILEGED
Information contained in this communication is confidential and privileged. It is not meant to represent legal or medical advice, but rather advice given based on my knowledge as a trained Parent Advocate by the GA Advocacy Office, Council of Parent Advocates & Attorneys, CHADD, LDA, the GA DOE Parent Mentor program as an invited guest and the special education attorneys that I often work with on educational matters. Please do not forward without my permission.

 

 

 

[Attachment(s) from Debbie Dobbs included below]

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Attachment(s) from Debbie Dobbs

2 of 2 File(s)

"Favorable" Decision in AW vs Fulton County School District

All parents and advocates should read the 65 page PDF decision (at the bottom of this post) in the Alex Williams vs Fulton County School District decision regarding horrific physical and mental child abuse by a special education teacher at Hopewell Middle School and years of school cover-up by the Principal and County officials.  In this case, had this teacher been fired when abuse was first noted by school personnel and reported to Special Education County staff and Principal, Alex would not have been abused and allowed to be tormented.

 

As parents and advocates, this case teaches us we must all work together to change Mandatory Reporting practices for all educators.  NO longer can we allow what happened in this case.  No longer can we allow Principals ALL power.  This impacts ALL children, not just special needs.

 

It also teaches us we must continue to advocate for Inclusive and Non-segregated classrooms.  Special Education classrooms should NOT be isolated alone down one hall, but intermingled amidst general education classes.  Where are your classrooms?

 

Here are related articles published this week regarding this decision:

 

AJC - Alex Williams Was Denied a FAPE  http://www.ajc.com/news/judge-fulton-schools-owes-1327242.html#.Tyn0BGXVcCI.email

CBS - Judge: Fulton Co schools violated students rights, must pay  http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/16651222/2012/02/01/judges-ruling-expected-today-in-fulton-school-abuse-case

WSB - http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/fulton-schools-ordered-pay-tuition-after-abuse-tea/nHSHD/  

Thanks to parents of Alex Williams and attorney Chris Vance, this case was open to the public.  Myself and many special education advocates and attorneys attended daily to support the Williams family.  Additionally, the media was present daily and I want to personally thank Jeff Chirico at CBS for his excellent coverage of the case I’ve posted at http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com/2011/08/abuse-cover-up-on-spec-needs-students.html .  Mike Petchenik with Channel 2 news is also covering this decision and doing a terrific job keeping it in the spotlight.  None of us must ever forget.

Fulton County residents should be furious this case was allowed to be litigated wasting your tax payer dollars.  There needs to be an Open Records investigation to find out the entire cost of this case.  You need to hold your School Board accountable for this tragedy.  Two Fulton County school attorneys quit because they refused to litigate for the firm.  The school district already had a shocking internal investigation documenting years of abuse and cover-up between 2004-2007, which has been previously posted on my blog at http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com/2011/08/fulton-county-report-of-investigation.html .  Additionally there was a report by the GPSC posted at http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com/2011/08/gpsc-investigation-report-of-melanie.html .  These are must reads for all parents, esp. parents in Fulton County.  School Board President, Linda Schultz testified she was aware there was an investigation report documenting abuse by one of their teachers, but she had never read it.  If you even believe that, you must ask WHY?  Even if she hadn’t read it but knew about it, WHY had she not taken action?  Should she still be your school board President??  Five years later, WHY has the teacher who abused the children and the Principal who covered it up never been prosecuted?  Tough questions that need to be answered!

What is even most shocking is the school districts response to CBS regarding the decision in this case:

“This situation never should have happened and our hearts go out to the family for what their child has experienced.

It is in no way an indication of the character or culture of Fulton County Schools. We are pursuing criminal charges against the former teacher in this case. 

We hope that this brings some sense of closure to this unfortunate circumstance.”

If their hearts went out to this family, WHY did they put them through this Due Process hearing stating their school district provided this child FAPE (Free and Appropriate Public Education)?  Why did they never apologize?  Why did they not notify the parents when they discovered abuse occurred?  Why did they not share the internal investigations reports with these parents?  Why did they continue to not provide all educational records?

How can any parent ever trust Fulton County School District again in light of this case?

Advocacy & Consulting Services - IEPadvocate4you
Carol Sadler, Special Education Consultant/Advocate
GA Advocacy Office PLSP I Graduate
770-442-8357
1105 Rock Pointe Look
Woodstock, GA 30188
CarolSadler@bellsouth.net
www.IEPadvocate4You.com
http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com

IEPadvocate4you also now on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IEPadvocate4you-Carol-Sadler-Special-Education-ConsultantAdvocate/139597000964  

http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolsadleriepadvocate4you

 

"There is nothing more unequal than the equal treatment of unequal people." ---- Thomas Jefferson

“Refrain from Restraining, Secluding and Corporal Punishment & Aversives are Abusive and Dehumanizing” ---- Carol Sadler, Advocate

GNET=GetNoEducation/Therapy=PsychoNOed=Jail without Jury or Trial=Imprisonment without Legal Representation

 

CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVILEGED
Information contained in this communication is confidential and privileged. It is not meant to represent legal or medical advice, but rather advice given based on my knowledge as a trained Parent Advocate by the GA Advocacy Office, Council of Parent Advocates & Attorneys, CHADD, LDA, the GA DOE Parent Mentor program as an invited guest and the special education attorneys that I often work with on educational matters. Please do not forward without my permission.

Friday, February 03, 2012

SB 355 on Mandatory Reporters related to Child Abuse

 

Date:  February 3, 2012

 

Dear Senator Unterman,

·         In response to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oxeR7M4PvY&feature=youtu.be&a and proposed SB 355 http://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/en-US/Display/20112012/SB/355 , I have attached for your review the recent PDF decision by ALJ Kimberly Schroer in the Alex Williams vs Fulton County School District case of severe and horrific physical and mental child abuse on several students with disabilities including Alex at the Hopewell Elementary School in Fulton County.  It contains and outlines abuse by one teacher, Melanie Pickens who was allowed to continue to harm these students for years due to non reporting practice by the Principal of the school even though the known child abuse was continuing daily and reported to the Principal by many levels of educators and staff at the school including county level special education supervisors, sometimes repeatedly and over several years.  It is a sickening and unbelievable story which quite frankly has set special education back 30 years.  It certainly demonstrates Principals have TOO much power and control and we must work to put checks and balances in our educational systems to protect ALL children so this type of incident can never happen again.

Therefore, we must make sure there are absolutely NO loopholes in SB 355 for Educators and School District employees and there can NO longer be one person in the educational system the “sole” mandatory reporter to DFACS and Police (which previously has been the Principal).  No longer can we allow DFACS when abuse is reported in schools to turn it back over to the school for them to police themselves.  DFACS must be mandatory reporters as well and made to investigate and report to police for criminal investigation.  NO longer can we allow Principals to only report to the School Resource Office, which is a hired school district employee.  School Resource Officers must be mandatory reporters  and report to DFACS and police.

 

VERY concerning, to date, the teacher and Principal in this matter have neither one been charged criminally, even though there has been a Fulton County documented report of criminal abuse and cover-up by the school district since 2007.  WHY?

 

Here are recent news reports on this case:.

 

http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/16651222/2012/02/01/judges-ruling-expected-today-in-fulton-school-abuse-case

 

http://www.ajc.com/news/judge-fulton-schools-owes-1327242.html#.Tyn0BGXVcCI.email  

 

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/fulton-schools-ordered-pay-tuition-after-abuse-tea/nHSHD/

 

 

Wednesday another school case came to light in Bibb county involving seven teenagers at Northeast High School in which a 16-year-old special-needs student was allegedly raped and sodomized for about an hour in one of the school’s boys restrooms.  Here again school police initially did NOT report this matter to Macon Police for criminal investigation.  This must stop!  I have seen no reporting that this matter has been turned over to DFACS.

 

Read more here: http://www.macon.com/2012/02/01/1886921/superintendent-says-he-wasnt-aware.html#storylink=cpy

 

I would love to discuss these matters with you personally at your convenience.  Please provide me a time to call your office that you will be available.  We need to protect all our children in GA, esp. our must vulnerable populations of special needs children who cannot speak and report abuse themselves.

 

Thank you for your time and consideration to this matter.

 

Respectfully,

Advocacy & Consulting Services - IEPadvocate4you
Carol Sadler, Special Education Consultant/Advocate
GA Advocacy Office PLSP I Graduate
770-442-8357
1105 Rock Pointe Look
Woodstock, GA 30188
CarolSadler@bellsouth.net
www.IEPadvocate4You.com
http://iepadvocate4you.blogspot.com

IEPadvocate4you also now on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IEPadvocate4you-Carol-Sadler-Special-Education-ConsultantAdvocate/139597000964  

http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolsadleriepadvocate4you

 

"There is nothing more unequal than the equal treatment of unequal people." ---- Thomas Jefferson

“Refrain from Restraining, Secluding and Corporal Punishment & Aversives are Abusive and Dehumanizing” ---- Carol Sadler, Advocate

GNET=GetNoEducation/Therapy=PsychoNOed=Jail without Jury or Trial=Imprisonment without Legal Representation

 

CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVILEGED
Information contained in this communication is confidential and privileged. It is not meant to represent legal or medical advice, but rather advice given based on my knowledge as a trained Parent Advocate by the GA Advocacy Office, Council of Parent Advocates & Attorneys, CHADD, LDA, the GA DOE Parent Mentor program as an invited guest and the special education attorneys that I often work with on educational matters. Please do not forward without my permission.

 

 

CC: Disability List Servs and Agencies    P.S.  I encourage other parents, advocates and disability agencies to read and share this information as well and help advocate for changes in Mandatory Reporting practices in our schools!  Please distribute widely!

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Attachment(s) from Chris Vance

1 of 1 File(s)