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Thursday, May 2, 2013

Einstein HS Principal: "...there is no cause for alarm..."



We will have a new special needs program at Einstein next year called Extensions. The technical description of the Program is, “ … these students have moderate, severe, or profound intellectual disabilities, or multiple disabilities including intellectual disabilities and/or autism. These students have a prolonged history of aggressive, self-injurious, destructive, or disruptive behaviors that have not responded to functional and systematic behavioral interventions … .”

Our current School Community Based Program is very similar except for the, “ aggressive, self-injurious … ” component. The Extensions Program is self-contained with the exception of their physical education class which is restricted to Extensions students only.

I am aware that some are concerned about the aggressive nature of some of the kids in the Program. Extension students will come by special transportation, have two of their own classrooms and restrooms, eat lunch in their rooms and essentially be self-contained other than their phys. ed. class.

Although it is sad that these students do not have the same capacity and abilities and be able to totally participate in Einstein life, as the remainder of our student body, we will welcome them and their parents and guardians with open arms and gladly. There is no cause for alarm that any of the students not in the Program are in danger. This Program exists in other schools and is growing which is why we have been awarded and welcome its placement at Einstein.

If you have any questions or concerns about the Program please contact me or Charmaine Roberts who is in charge of our special education program.

Thanks,

Mr. Fernandez

26 comments:

  1. Extensions
    Extensions is designed to meet the needs of students ages 12 through 21, who have moderate, severe, or profound intellectual disabilities, or multiple disabilities including intellectual disabilities and/or autism. These students have a prolonged history of aggressive, self-injurious, destructive, or disruptive behaviors that have not responded to functional and systematic behavioral interventions in the least restrictive setting.Goals for these services focus on providing intensive educational programming designed to enable students to acquire more appropriate social and communicative skills, as well as other self-management strategies; ensuring that students have access to the Fundamental Life Skills program curriculum; and offering students opportunities to participate in integrated employment and community activities.

    Students’ behavioral needs are addressed using a comprehensive functional behavioral analysis approach to determine appropriate behavioral interventions and replacement behaviors which are infused throughout the day. The focus of intervention is on positive, educational behavioral programming using a range of positive proactive interventions. Students receive instruction in a variety of community and vocational settings.

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  2. There is cause for alarm. Something is wrong with this principal.

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    1. Au contraire. The Principal is communicating with his school community about a program coming to their school about which he has received questions expressing concern. This is called truthful honest communication. Sorry to hurt your feelings, but there are people with concerns. The Principal addressed them.

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    2. Superintendent Starr disagrees with you. He had the letter removed from the Einstein website.

      If this were "honest communication" it would have also discussed how the new students are going to be kept safe from the current students. But, this was clearly a one sided piece that slammed the incoming students.

      Interesting that you acknowledge that these are hurtful words that hurt feelings. Is your MCPS spin that the only way to communicate is by hurting feelings and bullying? That would be the MCPS way.

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    3. How are my words "MCPS spin?" Apparently anything that agrees with an MCPS decision is so- called "MCPS spin" to you. I suppose the general public is not intelligent enough to form its own opinion in your universe.

      Incidently, if Dr. Starr disagrees with me, that means you agree with Dr. Starr. How about that!

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    4. Who said you were the "general public?" No evidence of that. As far as anyone knows you work for the MCPS PR department. No reason to think otherwise, you haven't identified yourself. If you had the courage of your convictions you would have a name.

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    5. When Superintendent Starr was selected by the secret committee didn't everyone have hope for a new day in MCPS? Unfortunately, that has not been the case.
      Where is the Superintendent's public statement on this incident? Will Joshua Starr stand up for the students he claims he taught once upon a time?
      Jerry Weast pulled tons of things off the Internet when caught. How is this any different?

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    6. It's your website. You should be able to see if the comment came from an MCPS computer. And if you have a problem with anonymous comments, then don't allow anonymous comments.

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    7. We have opened our blog up to anonymous comments to allow parents, who are OFTEN bullied by MCPS administrators, to speak freely.

      If the MCPS PR department has something to say, they can put out a press release.

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  3. There's racism, ageism, sexism...but when people (unnamed?) have biases against people with intellectual disabilities they call it "concerns"...when it is really just plain BIAS and IGNORANCE and DISCRIMINATION against people with intellectual disabilities. Wasn't it at Einstein where a gun went off in the restroom a couple of years ago? Frankly I'd be more "concerned" about the criminal element at Einstein than kids with disabilities. Or are all the "general education" kids at Einstein angels with no behavior problems? and what about the GANGS? oh, sorry, "criminally oriented youth subculture."

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  4. A government organization is judged by how its most vulnerable consumers are treated. Unfortunately, many families of children with special needs are quite busy just dealing with the issues of their children. Therefore, many are not politically vocal and have to trust MCPS to provide adequate services. Based on many of the experiences related by these families, MCPS could be doing a better job. In fact, recently, MCPS and the Board of Education adamantly opposed the proposed bill to place the burden of proof in a due process hearing onto the school system. If MCPS was really interested in true collaboration with the families, this change would not even cause a problem. MCPS has misused this trust and frequently ends of being the bully. If anyone has doubts, just review the transcripts of the due process hearings.

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  5. I think it is reasonable for parents to have concerns when an incoming population is described as "aggressive", even if the existing population has some aggressive elements. I basically like the principal's letter, which provides some details (but not enough) about how the hazard of aggression will be handled. I do not at all agree that it "slams" the incoming kids by quoting their technical classification. However, the letter should have said something about the nature of the "aggressive" behavior, and why it will not be a problem in PE classes.

    Parent concern is generally a good thing. I would like to see the principal try to channel this concern into more parent volunteers.

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    1. Who said the incoming students were aggressive?

      Where is it stated that current students are NOT?

      Where is the concern for the SAFETY of the INCOMING STUDENTS?

      You could be more prejudiced against students you don't know, but I don't know how.

      What on earth do parent volunteers have to do with this?

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    2. http://silverchips.mbhs.edu/story/8289

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    3. With respect, the letter did say that the students "have a history of aggressive, self-injurious, destructive, or disruptive behaviors." As a parent of a child at that school outside the Extensions program, if I read that, I would want to know more. If I were the parent of one of the Extension children, I would absolutely want to know more about how my child would be helped by this program, how my children would be integrated and supported, and I'd be annoyed at best by that characterization of my kids. I'd be concerned for both the incoming kids AND the ones already there.

      But the principal is the one who brought up the aggressive behavior - didn't say outright, but the "history of....." is cause for concern. Not necessarily alarm, but concern.

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    4. And what if the students don't have a history of these behaviors...then what?

      Have you met these students?

      What is your opinion of these students now after reading the letter?

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    5. I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other after reading the letter; it was you who asked who said the students were aggressive, and I pointed out that the principal did. I don't know if they heard it from anyone else, but that wasn't really addressed in this post. But if, as a parent, I got a letter like this out of the blue from my kids' school principal, I would certainly have questions I would want answers to, whether it's about the kids, the program, the principal's reason for his choice of words, whatever.

      If it turns out there do not have a history of any such behavior while the principal maintains otherwise, I'd have even more questions.

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    6. Deb said, "If it turns out there do not have a history of any such behavior while the principal maintains otherwise, I'd have even more questions."

      And that is where we are now. A principal with a fixed mindset has prejudiced an entire community against these children before they ever arrive. How would you feel if this was your child?

      Will there be an apology? Will the Superintendent who claims he was a special education teacher (more on that soon) make a public statement to support these students?

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    7. I've already answered how I'd feel if it were my child in my first post above: "If I were the parent of one of the Extension children, I would absolutely want to know more about how my child would be helped by this program, how my children would be integrated and supported, and I'd be annoyed at best by that characterization of my kids."

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  6. Alan, if people have "concerns", unfounded though they may be, the appropriate thing to do is ask them directly of the principal. It is NOT appropriate for a principal to post a blanket statement on the school's website implying that each of these kids is so dangerous that they are required to be contained into only two rooms within the school. When African Americans were permitted to go to school with white kids, racist parents had "concerns." Those racist "concerns" were similarly unfounded. Did you know that this population of kids routinely (more than once a week) goes out in to the community for community jobsites? What's next, Fernandez issuing a press release to local employers? To Wheaton Plaza? The principal was wrong, MCPS admitted he screwed up, and now MCPS is in "damage containment" mode.

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  7. The letter implies that parents did contact the principal -- enough of them that he felt a response to the community was called for. The word "aggressive" was part of the technical description of this population (with the word "or"), which the principal merely quoted. He did not make up this language, and it is public language.

    He is getting flayed for behaving reasonably. It is a shame.

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    1. Nope. You have missed this issue completely. But, that's the whole problem with the letter. People like you have no clue. That's the whole problem.

      So, the Maryland Disability Law Center has asked Superintendent Joshua Starr for a meeting to discuss the mindset of an institution that would put out such a letter.

      http://parentscoalitionmc.blogspot.com/2013/05/breaking-news-md-disability-law-center.html

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  8. Please say what the "issue" is that I missed. You began with an attack on the principal because of his letter. So try to state "the issue" in a way that refers only to his letter and attributes to him only words he wrote. You have failed to do that to date.

    I insist that this is no more than political correctness manifesting as a witch hunt. I am disappointed to see this happen in my community.

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    1. I am disappointed that you live in my community.

      The title of this blog post was words directly out of the principal's letter.

      "there is no cause for alarm"

      How dare anyone - anyone - use those words to describe innocent children!

      Shall we use those words to describe you? There is no cause for alarm that Mr. Isaac is coming to our building?

      Until you can figure out that this letter is written about beautiful, wonderful innocent human beings you are part of the problem. You have a fixed mindset (as Super Starr would like to say) that is fixed on an extreme prejudice toward anyone with a disability.

      If there's is a witch hunt it is in citizens who are going after innocent children.

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  9. Alan, he wrote these words: " Although it is sad that these students do not have the same capacity and abilities and be able to totally participate in Einstein life". (1) Those students have the same rights to participate in Einstein "life", to eat in the cafeteria and to use the bathrooms, to walk in the hallways, to go to sports games and concerts as any other student. He is here indicating his willingness to violate both IDEA and the ADA. And he has already violated Section 504 of the Rehab Act by holding the children out out as so disabled that they can't do these things.

    (2)And while he may not have written the technical description of the program himself, he made a judgment when he left out the rest of the "technical description" of the program talking about community and vocational access. He only put in the inflammatory parts.

    (3) Luckily, the lawyers from the Maryland Disability Law Center and the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education realize that this issue is not just "political correctness" run amok, and are urging Starr to remedy the situation, which is "more" than just the posting on a website. I know it is hard for folks who don't have any knowledge or experience with individuals with severe disabilities to "get" it, but just imagine the outcry if the principal had said "minority" students are coming to Einstein, on their own bus, will not eat in the cafeteria, will not use the "regular" bathrooms, and pose no danger to the rest of us. Just because the principal repeated the phrase "history of aggressive behaviors" doesn't mean that the kids in the program are not capable NOW of participating in school activities.

    Good grief. Why are people making excuses for this guy Fernandez?

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  10. The Prinicipal has broken two laws:
    One - The Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act, by disclosing the challenges that these students are confronting. That is private information.

    Two - The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act which mandates that student be educated in the least restrictive environment. He has already said they will be isolated. Sorry, that doesn't fly under either Federal or Maryland law.

    This Loser needs to be fired. He is not capable of doing his job as prinicipal if he has no understanding of the basics of education law.

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