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all day yesterday and today I kept thinking that something about this week was important in our lives but i couldn’t quite put my finger on it. We’ve had a lot going on lately so I figured it could be anything…but then it hit me! One year ago Thursday is when we received the ALJ’s decision in Owen’s case. That was an entire year ago – 365 days ago. I don’t think I ever thought that this whole ordeal would be over after that decision and I did brace myself for it to go on as long as a year, but still…. We are now at the year mark and all I can say is that we are currently in some administrative blackhole (for lack of a better and more accurate description) somewhere in the fedearl court system. I don’t like this part. The waiting. It’s hard.
Yet, we push forward. We still believe 110% in what we have done and what we continue to do.
In case you need a refresher on last year’s event – here’s the blog post I wrote then: https://educatingowen.wordpress.com/2009/06/24/d-day/
And here’s a summary of what that initial decision said:
Administrative Law Judge Melissa Lassiter’s Final Decision in the case OMM v. Orange County Board of Education rules in favor of the Petitioner (OMM) on every count.
Judge Lassiter found that Orange County Public Schools
1) failed to provide OMM, a 4 year old boy with high-functioning autism, a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) through the development of an Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
2) failed to provide OMM FAPE through an IEP that was reasonably calculated to provide OMM with education benefit
3) failed to provide OMM FAPE in the Least Restrictive Environment
4) procedurally and substantively failed to provide OMM FAPE by failing to provide OMM with education services before Oct 28, 2008
AND she found that
1) the Parents’ private education placement was appropriate and that they are entitled to reimbursement for costs and expenses as provided in the Conclusions of Law.
One of the issues with creating a group like a Special Education PTA is that because of FERPA, schools can’t just hand you a list of all the parents with children who have special needs and receive special education services from the school disctrict. As a result, it is inevitable that some parents and guardians of children with IEPs in the Orange County school district will fall through the cracks and not know that there is actually an organization created to help and support them. I’m hoping that if you are one of those parents/grandparents/guardians For more information about the Orange County SEPTA, you can visit its website at http://orangencsepta.org/.
Being that we are in the midst of School Board Election campaigns, the Orange County SEPTA’s next general meeting will be a Candidate forum. Below, I have included an email (in its entirety) from the OC SEPTA President. This is a great organization and I’m glad to be part of it. If you have a child in Orange County schools who recieves services from the exceptional children’s division I encourage you to get involved in SEPTA.
Orange County SEPTA invites you to join us on April 22, 2010, 6:00 p.m. at Hillsborough Elementary.
School Board Candidates will discuss special education and address questions of interest to parents of children with special needs.
April 22, 2010
WHERE: Hillsborough Elementary
WHEN: April 22, 2010
TIME: 6:00 p.m.************************************************************************************
Upcoming Events
April 8th – 12:30- OCSEPTA Board Meeting (Open) – Hillsborough Public Library, W. Margaret Street
April 22nd – 6:00pm -General Membership Meeting – Hillsborough Elementary School, Union Street
May 6th – 8:30am –OCSEPTA Board Meeting (Open) – Weaver Street, N. Churton Street
May 20th – 6:30pm – OC SEPTA General Elections – A.L. Stanback Middle School, Story Lane, New 86
Also, we have formed a google group for everyone interested in getting updates and information. If you would like to be part of the google group please email [Pam] @ pamscism [at] aol [dot] com.
Thank you,
Pam Scism
I’ve finally posted the latest court documents to the site — the most recently filed documents can be found under the court document page or by clicking the links below. The first two are just a continuation of the ongoing pleadings that have been filed in federal court (which, I’ve been told, are now closed) while the last two are the most recent documents and have been filed by the Orange County School Board requesting that the Judge rule that the State of North Carolina and the State Board of Education should be named as defendants in this case.
- OCPS Answer to Plaintiffs’ First Amended Complaint and Counterclaim
- OMM Answer to Defendent’s First Amended Counterclaim
- OCPS Motion to Join the State of North Carolina and North Carolina State Board of Education as Parties
- OCPS Proposed Order Directing Plantiffs to Amend Complaint to Join State of North Carolina and North Carolina State Board of Education as Parties
Very little surprises me these days when it comes to the Orange County School District. This is particularly true when it comes to legal issues, policies and compliance. The folks over at OCpearl posted the following yesterday BOARD OF EDUCATION REFUSES TO RELEASE CLOSED SESSION MINUTES – and violates closed session state laws. It’s time for concerned citizens to speak up and demand a transparent Board of Education that follows federal, state and local policies.
And for those of you who may doubt that Joe Q. Public should be allowed access to closed session minutes, North Carolina’s open meetings law, Chapter 143 of the General Statutes, requires that all meetings of state and local governmental bodies be open to the public unless there is a specific statutory exemption authorizing closure. And even when an exemption exists, the public body holding the meeting is required, by law, to keep “full and accurate” minutes that provide a “general account” to let a person who wasn’t there “have a reasonable understanding of what transpired.” In addition, the board must must make those minutes available for public inspection. More information on Open Meetings Law in NC can be found here.
Is it just me, or does anyone else think that there is something really wrong with the Orange County Schools? Three top administrators leaving…how many more will it take for the current Board of Education to wake up and realize that something needs to change. Or, better yet, for the community to take notice and demand change. I’m just saying…
From today’s News of Orange County: Three OCS veterans retiring
I’ve decided that 2010 is the year that, when possible, I’ll stop waiting around for things to happen and do everything possible to move them along at something other than a snail’s pace — or at least try. Last night, in an effort to put some closure to an issue that has been dragging on way to long. Here’s what I had to say to the Board. Now let’s see how they respond.
(The following are comments, as prepared, delivered to the Orange County Board of Education at their Jan 4th meeting. I have audio of what I said, which only deviates slightly from this, and hope to figure out how to post that later.)
Members of the Board and Superintendent Rhodes, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to speak.
About 6 months ago, I first stood before you to introduce myself and address what is still an ongoing due process case. I come here tonight not about this case but about another matter that, I fear, if unresolved, may result in the filing of another complaint against this board – something I do not what to do but may feel compelled to do so if this matter is not properly addressed in a timely fashion.
Last July, our son’s IEP team met to address the issue of Extended School Year services (ESY) – a matter that should have been dealt with back in February, but was not due to ongoing litigation. Together the IEP team – school representatives and parents TOGETHER – determined that our son was eligible for services and proceeded to develop an IEP for ESY.
Because half of the summer had already passed, and the schools had not been providing services but we had, it was determined (and first suggested by your lawyer at the time) that the school district reimburse us for the services we had already been providing our son during the summer months. It was also determined that the school district would reimburse us for any other services that our private therapist provided our son going forward to meet his ESY needs – our private provider would pick up the hours that the school district could not provide due to staffing issues during the summer.
In August a letter and invoices for placement and services was sent to your lawyer, as we had been instructed to do so. Over the past 6 months we have made repeated attempts to address this.
To date we have still not been reimbursed.
I want to believe that this is just an oversight and that because of your change in lawyers handling the due process case, this matter simply fell through the cracks.
I urge the members of the board to look into this and honor the agreement that was made with my son, per his IEP.
As we now approach the time when ESY for the upcoming summer is addressed I would very much like to have this issue closed so that I head into my son’s next IEP meeting with the belief that agreements made by the board in good faith are in fact honored.
thank you.
These are the latest documents filed in our on-going case against the Orange County Board of Education in North Carolina, which is now in federal court.
First Amended Complaint & Petition for Attorneys Fees Pursuant to IDEA
SO…Apparently when we filed our complaint in federal court, OCPS switched law firms. I’ve known about this for a while, but hadn’t said anything because I didn’t really know what it meant for the case or for us. I still don’t have a clue as to how things are going to be different with a new law firm on the other side of the table. Though I have been told by a number of sources that the new firm Tharrington and Smith and, in particular, the new lead lawyer, Ann Majestic, are rational, reasonable and not likely to pull some of the ethically challenged antics of the last firm. Right now, all I do know is that Tharrington and Smith is getting up to speed on things and that they have until Nov 13th to file a response to our complaint. So I guess it’s just a waiting game, again, to see how things are going to go this time around.
So, while the case has all but stalled, I’ve been thinking a lot about what shape this blog can take while there is no new information to share on the court proceedings. I could tell you stories about what it was like to go through due process, I can share with you what I’ve learned during the past year and a half in dealing with not only the schools but with life as a mother of a child on the autism spectrum. I could tell you a bit more about myself and my family, if that would interest you. I could finally finish the timeline, add more info “about me” on the appropriate page, or I can just leave things as they are. I guess I’m wondering what you all would like to read, here about, learn about. Let me know by posting a comment or email me offline at nicolemariemcwhirter (at) gmail (dot) com.
I imagine some people end up here looking for answers to some question they may have. What are looking for and how can I help???
The following info may be of interest to those of you within the Orange County Public School District lines:
You are invited to attend the first chartered meeting of the
Orange County SEPTA
Date: Thursday, October 22
Time: 6:00 – 6:30 p.m.
Location: AL Stanback Middle School Media Center
3700 NC 86 South, Hillsborough
We’ll introduce our organization and discuss membership. If you cannot attend the meeting and wish to become a member, please contact one of the individuals listed on the bottom of this message. This meeting will be immediately followed by a Parent Information Session:
6:30 – 8:00 p.m. Public Health Funding Programs: Accessing Federal, State & Local Funding for Special Needs Children
Teach parents of severe and persistent special needs children how to access funding from public resources.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact:
Pam Scism, SEPTA President pamscism@aol.com
Susan Wingate, SEPTA Vice President swingate2007@gmail.com
Barbara Moto, SEPTA Treasurer bmarotto@hotmail.com
Ingrid Branigan, SEPTA Secretary msingrid@nc.rr.com
edited to add: reposted from yesterday’s N&O blog…
The Orange County Special Education PTA will meet for the first time this week.
Following this summer’s court battle concerning the education of a student with autism (which is still ongoing – visit the mother’s blog for updates), some parents say this group couldn’t come soon enough.
The meeting will take place Thursday from 6 to 6:30 p.m. at AL Stanback Middle School’s media center, 3200 NC 86 South in Hillsborough.
The introductory meeting will be immediately followed by a parent information session on public health funding programs for special needs children, which will last until 8:30 p.m.
Educating Owen: one mother's very special education 
what you’ve been saying