Meeting highlights resources available to students with special needs

Image: MMSD & MPIE“Parents of students with special needs are concerned about budget cuts [and how] they might affect our children in the classroom,” said Anna Moffit, chairperson of Madison Partners for Inclusive Education (MPIE).

Moffit stood at the doors of La Follette High school Thurday night, welcoming over 100 parents, teachers and service providers to an event organized by MPIE and the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD).

The evening, organized on behalf of parents of children with special needs, featured 28 local service providers who informed parents about types of services available in the community.

In addition, parents had a chance to attend educational, breakout sessions designed to help them understand their children’s Individualized Education Program (IEP).

An IEP—a legal document jointly crafted by teachers, students and special education teachers—is a plan for addressing students’ needs and helping them reach their goals. The plans often lay out accommodations like increased testing time or additional study guides, based on students’ need to learn in the least restrictive environment.

“Parents need [to know] how they can effectively advocate for their child’s needs, and how they can determine if they’re being met,” said Moffit.

But, she added, IEP language is often complex and dense with acronyms—not all parents have the time or information they need to support their children outside of the classroom.

Moffit has three young children, two of whom have been diagnosed as having a form of autism.  She said that students’ needs will evolve as they age and that parents must be flexible and responsive to meet their children’s needs.

For example, she said that while early education is a time when parents and students are about learning to navigate the special education landscape, students in middle and high school need support forming appropriate social bonds and creating post-school plans.

Ted Szalkowski, an MMSD special needs coordinator who has been in the district 11 years, said that one challenge schools face is supporting special needs students as budgets are shrinking.

“The number of special education teachers that are in our schools today is less than it was 10 years ago,” said Szalkowski, “State aids to schools are being cut, which eats away at school budgets and the money we can put toward staff, programs and services for kids.”

Szalkowski said that as schools face additional funding concerns, teachers and parents need to collaborate on students’ behalf.

“Teachers need to be respectful of the challenges parents face in the home, and parents need to be respectful of the challenges teachers face in the classroom,” said Szalkowski.

Szalkowski facilitated an evening breakout session specifically for parents of high school students with special needs.

His presentation covered—along with other topics—strategies for helping students prepare for life after high school.   One parent asked for advice on how to encourage her child to engage in activities outside the home. Another parent said that daily challenges sometimes take precedence over long-term planning.

Szalkowski said that many students with special needs face similar challenges, and many parents have similar questions.

“First, students need to believe that a dream exists,” said Szalkowski.  “Once they believe, and identify that dream, students, parents and staff need to work together to create a plan to reach it.”