Forum to focus on special needs





Obtaining services for children with special needs in public school is often difficult, time consuming and stressful. To bridge the gap between parents and school administrators, the law office of Newman, Aaronson & Vanaman will conduct an open forum for parents on how to obtain school services for special education students.

The May 16 session will be conducted at the Agoura/ Calabasas Community Center, located at 27040 Malibu Hills Road, Calabasas. Registration is at 6:30, and the program will run from 7 to 10 p.m.

“We’re most concerned with parents having accurate and complete knowledge of the services that can be provided,” said attorney Valerie Vanaman, who will speak at the event.

Sharon Robinson, an Old Agoura resident who works at the law firm, said she’s always been an advocate for special education students and their families. “It dovetails nicely with my other civil rights work, in that it is advocacy on behalf of those for whom so few seem to care and so many want to vilify or use as a scapegoat for larger problems,” Robinson said.

Parents of children with special needs face many obstacles, Robinson said. “The biggest obstacle parents face when trying to access services for their children is usually a lack of knowledge about what is appropriate and what is available,” she said.

“The search for information often starts with the child’s teacher or school administration,” Robinson said, adding that schools and districts are not always forthcoming with information.

Robinson said many people disagree as to what is considered an appropriate education for special education students. Conflict arises when a parent discovers alternate programs that may be more suitable for the individual needs of their child.

The series was started as a means to provide technical and legal information to educators and lawyers, Robinson said, adding that, over time, it grew into parent-focused meetings.

After a short introduction, Vanaman and other attorneys will field questions from parents for the duration of the session.

Special education services are broadly defined. The federal mandate is purposely broad so the unique and individual needs of each child can be met. Services might include parent and/or child counseling, recreational therapy, help with speech and language development, occupational therapy or even an individual aide to assist a special needs child in class.

“I believe the (Las Virgenes Unified School District’s) special education program does a wonderful job of providing an appropriate education for many students, and particular credit must be given to the teachers in the trenches who implement a child’s program on a daily basis,” Robinson said. Some children don’t fit “neatly” into a district or school program and require other services, Robinson said.

“This could be due to a difference in opinion about educational theory and practice, or simply a lack of information available to parents and educators, depending on the situation,” Robinson said.

“Being an advocate for one’s child is not an easy role to assume in the face of unknowns, and parents need all the help they can get to do justice for their children.”

The series is ongoing, Robinson said. In the past the law firm has helped parents understand the role of assessments of their children’s progress, updates on special education laws and the remedies available if agreed-upon services are not provided.

Due to limited seating, the firm is requiring participants to preregister by May 14. The $20 cost includes seminar materials and a light dinner. Spanish and sign language interpreters will be provided at the session if people in need of these services preregister by May 10.

For further information on the forum or to preregister, visit www.NAVlaw.net.


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