Blair High School: Hundreds of documents related to disability accommodations were available to all pupils, staff

MCPS investigating possible federal student privacy violations at Montgomery Blair High 

Documents detailing accommodations for hundreds of students with disabilities at Montgomery Blair High School were recently released on the Silver Spring school’s counseling web page, potentially giving all students and staff members access to the documents, according to screenshots of the incident provided to Bethesda Today on June 5. 

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) spokesperson Liliana López said in a Monday emailed statement to Bethesda Today that the district was aware of “a possible release of data” and was “proceeding in accordance with legal requirements.” 

“This includes conducting a comprehensive investigation, submitting required reports to the state’s Attorney General, and providing notification to those impacted and to the wider community,” López said...

 https://bethesdamagazine.com/2025/06/13/mcps-student-privacy-montgomery-blair/

The tragic death of a special needs student in 2019 was supposed to prompt meaningful change in Anne Arundel County Public Schools.

Annapolis, Md. (WBFF) — The tragic death of a special needs student in 2019 was supposed to prompt meaningful change in Anne Arundel County Public Schools. But now, the family of Bowen Levy tells Project Baltimore, promises made to keep special needs students safe are not being fulfilled.

“Tell me about your son,” Project Baltimore’s Chris Papst asked Bryan Levy, Bowen Levy’s father.

“Super, super kid,” replied Levy. “So many people would be intimidated by him. But once they got to know him, all of them would come in and hug and kiss him.”

On November 18, 2019, Bowen Levy would have turned 18. But he never made it - because his own school system failed to keep him safe...

https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/after-student-death-family-says-anne-arundel-county-failing-to-uphold-safety-promise-bowen-levy-central-special-bryan-levy-individualized-education-program-mark-bedell

Students with disabilities win dispute over masks in Va. public schools

Parents of students with disabilities in Virginia public schools have won a major legal dispute, winning the right to require mask-wearing by teachers and students to help protect their children against COVID-19.

One of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s first acts was to stop mandatory mask wearing in public schools, signing executive order number two in January that left the decision of masking in the hands of parents...

Students with disabilities win dispute over masks in Va. public schools - WTOP News

Big Win in Dyslexia Case! Court Orders District to Reimburse Parents $456,990.60

 

by Peter W.D. Wright & Pamela Wright

Wrightslaw.com

In O.R. v. Clark County Schools, a federal judge determined that the school district violated the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Section 504 of the Rehabiliation Act, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and ordered Clark County School District to reimburse the parents $456,990.60.

O.R. is a child with dyslexia and other learning disabilities. Fifteen to twenty percent of all school children have dyslexia. Dyslexia is the most common cause of reading, writing and spelling difficulties. [What is Dyslexia?]

Although dyslexia makes learning to read more difficult, children with dyslexia can learn to read if they have the right instruction. Parents of children with dyslexia who seek the "right instruction" in public school programs are often stunned when they encounter major obstacles to their reasonable requests that the school teach their children to read.

Few parents know that many teachers, including special education teachers, were not trained to teach children, including children with dyslexia, to read. Few parents are aware that many programs used by public schools to teach children to read are not effective or research-based.

This case is noteworthy in several respects. The Court held that:..

https://www.wrightslaw.com/law/art/nv.or.clark.county.dyslexia.htm?fbclid=IwAR3AaCgdySyr2tKdPPSf_n0Hu2iRiEyhsbKJY9reT5J6uLMPmoJQhDXqAjs

US GAO REPORT: DISTANCE LEARNING: Challenges Providing Services to K-12 English Learners and Students with Disabilities during COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to rapidly shift to distance learning. This presented logistical and instructional challenges, especially for English learners and students with disabilities—both of whom have persistent achievement gaps compared to other student subgroups.

Some English learners couldn't fully participate in distance learning due to language barriers and limited access to technology (e.g., computers and the internet). Special education services for students with disabilities—including related services like occupational, physical, or speech therapy—were particularly difficult to deliver remotely...

 https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-21-43

Special Education students are being left behind | READER COMMENTARY

I’m the mother of a 14 year old son with non-verbal, regressive autism. He has epilepsy, PANDAS and other co-existing conditions. Nothing about this life is easy. Every day is an uphill battle. I’ve spent the last 14 years of my life advocating for the best, supportive services to help my son learn, develop and empower him with tools to function in this chaotic, overstimulating world. 1 in 34 boys in MD have an autism diagnosis. This is NOT going away. Stats go up consistently every year. Guess who is failing our kids during COVID? The state if MD. FAPE isn’t being delivered. IEP’s are out of compliance. They have zero contingency plans. Families have been patient, cooperative and compliant for seven months stepping up into a special educator/therapist role. Virtual is not a long-term solution and not sustainable. I’ve been advocating for six weeks for an in-home therapist.

Upon contacting CCPS Special Ed administration the response I received was: There is no procedure for requesting therapy in homes...

https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/readers-respond/bs-ed-rr-special-ed-fall-schools-letter-20200824-qv7jy6ausrgvfm746mknvacbju-story.html?fbclid=IwAR0fDvQh6VWLF1-v5rgSzA8wqLvPo8Mg7Q8T5EW_o5aFLE2XiCUCqehcbJk

Important Update for Parents/Guardians of Students with Individualized Education Programs or Section 504 Plans

Dear Montgomery County Public Schools Families,

On March 22, 2020, Superintendent Jack Smith announced that beginning on March 30, 2020, MCPS will launch the first phase of a continuity of learning (distance/remote learning) system so that all students can begin to have structured school experiences. Monday, March 30 will be the first day our teachers and 10-month support staff members will be back at work. They are excited and eager to reconnect with their students.

We know that families of students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) have many questions. Throughout the last few weeks, the Office of Special Education, the Resolution and Compliance Unit, and the Office of the General Counsel have been collaborating with local and state education agencies to determine a thoughtful, measured approach to implement the continuity of learning. As the instructional environment shifts from in-person to online, students and teachers will need time to adjust.

As a result, all IEP and Section 504 meetings that were postponed while schools were closed from March 16 to March 27, 2020, will be rescheduled. All IEP and Section 504 meetings scheduled for March 30 through April 3, 2020, are postponed and will be rescheduled.

Beginning Monday, March 30, students and families will have the opportunity to take tutorials and lessons to practice interacting with the online tools. Staff will be participating in professional development on a variety of topics, including the use of new and familiar technology tools to support student learning and setting up their myMCPS classrooms. We are working diligently to ensure these virtual tools allow access to learning for all students, including students with disabilities.

Elementary school staff will be engaged in professional learning on Monday through Wednesday (March 30–April 1). They will begin to reconnect with students on Wednesday, April 1 and begin learning experiences with students on Thursday, April 2.

Secondary school staff will take part in professional learning on Monday and Tuesday (March 30-31). They will reconnect with students beginning Wednesday, April 1and begin to close out the third marking period.

For students with IEPs or Section 504 Plans, we will work with families to maximize their individualized specially designed instruction or to implement their Section 504 accommodations to the fullest extent possible. Beginning Wednesday, April 1, we will reconnect with you to discuss individualized supports. More information on our processes beginning next week is below. As additional information and guidance is provided by the federal, state and local educational and health departments, we will keep you informed.

Virtual IEP and Section 504 Meetings

·        Our staff will be working to schedule virtual IEP and Section 504 meetings with critical team members to implement continuity of learning.

·    Meetings will be held via conference call or through Google Meet or Google Hangouts. 

·        Case managers will contact you during the week of March 30 to discuss your child’s individualized plan for continuity of learning.

·        Documents will be sent to you before and after meetings. If you do not have access to a computer and need hard copies of documents, please let your child’s case manager know when they contact you.

·        You will receive instructions for how to participate in the virtual meeting along with all documents to be discussed at the meeting. 

Academic Supports for Students

Case Management

·        Your child’s case manager will contact you next week to discuss and assess the individualized supports and strategies necessary for your child to access the continuity of learning plan required to implement IEP goals or 504 Plan accommodations. 

·        Through this initial contact, a schedule of ongoing check-ins, provision of resources, and expectations for parent communication will be established.

Accessibility Features

·        Content for students is being developed with accessibility standards.  Students with disabilities will be able to access assistive technology outlined in their IEPs or Section 504 Plans through the MCPS-provided Chromebooks, with such accessibility features such as Google Read & Write, EquatlO for math and other embedded features within the Google Suite. 

·        IEP and Section 504 teams will work with families to provision additional assistive technologies if needed during this time period.

Special Education Teacher/Paraeducator Supports

Special education teachers will co-plan with general education teachers and co-teach when applicable. Special education teachers will collaborate with special education paraeducators to determine what supports the paraeducator will provide to your child.

 Academic support for students working towards alternative learning outcomes will include a modified schedule and materials. To support the alternative education framework for students working towards a certificate of completion, the Office of Special Education has customized a schedule and accompanying curriculum materials to meet their needs. Your child’s case manager will provide a brief overview of this modified schedule. There are time frames built in for supporting students so that special education teachers in programs such as School Community-based, Autism and Learning for Independence will be able to reinforce, reteach and provide modified lessons. 

Interventions  

Access to computer-based academic interventions, including, but not limited to, i-Ready Math, Systems 44 and Math 180 will be available.

Section 504 Accommodations

During the continuity of learning, teachers will implement the accommodations on your child’s Section 504 Plan to the maximum extent appropriate to ensure access to this modified curriculum.

Assessments and Evaluation

·        If your student is currently in the process of initial eligibility or reevaluation, it may become necessary to adjust the original timelines for completion of assessments. 

·        Evaluators may contact you to explain the formal assessments that can be done virtually and/or to gather information for the evaluation, such as parent and student interviews.  

·       Evaluations that require an in-person assessment will be postponed and rescheduled once schools reopen.

·        Please work with your child’s case manager if you have individual questions around evaluation.  

Related Service Provision

·        Related service providers may include occupational therapists, physical therapists, school counselors, school psychologists, social workers and speech language pathologists. 

·        Depending on the current related services on your child’s IEP,  the applicable related service provider(s) will contact you in the upcoming weeks to discuss individual supports for those related service(s). 

·        Some hands-on related services may be unsafe to deliver during the continuity of the learning plan.

·        Parents/guardians of students with related services on their IEPs should expect one or more of the following: individually modified direct services to students, consultative services to the IEP team; strategies for a family coaching model; and/or tele-visits.

·        Depending on the current consultative related services on your child’s Section 504 Plan, the applicable related service provider(s) will contact you in the upcoming weeks to discuss the individual supports for the related consultative service(s) on your child’s current Section 504 Plan.  

·        Related service providers will be available to support students and families by responding to questions and reaching out to students by phone, text or email. 

Transition Activities

·        Transition services are to be completed annually for students with IEPs beginning at age 14 (or age 13 if turning 14 in the IEP year). 

·        For high school students, transition support teachers will contact you in the upcoming weeks to discuss individual supports for the transition activities in your child’s current IEP. 

·        For middle school students, special education resource teachers will contact you in the upcoming weeks to discuss individual supports for the transition activities in your child’s current IEP. 

·     MCPS staff will explain how employment skills for transition activities related to employment or community-based instruction will be addressed as a result of the business restrictions  mandated by Governor Larry Hogan.

Thank you for your understanding and ongoing commitment to making the safety of our students, staff and school communities a priority.

Regular updates will be shared with families on the MCPS Coronavirus Continuity of Learning webpage. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Education and the Maryland State Department of Education have developed specific guidance for special education to support school teams. 

"School leaders determined the teen was so prone to acting out that he needed to be kept in class until the end of each passing period." [But was allowed to be unsupervised after school and on the football team.]

ROCKVILLE, Md. (ABC7) — The juvenile suspect — also known as the so-called ringleader in the Damascus High School locker room sexual assaults — will be tried as a juvenile due, in large part, to ADHD.

Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Steven Salant issued his controversial ruling Thursday morning following nearly seven hours of court proceedings Tuesday. Those proceedings ran like a full-blown trial, during which, attorney Dan Wright crafted a defense grounded in his teenage client’s “extreme ADHD.”..

...“This was a premeditated, planned attack,” Woodward added. “And this wasn’t the first time The evidence shows the defendant was part of a similar attack earlier in the year.”

In fact, during a summer football practice — only a few months before the rape case — the suspect allegedly tried to “broom” a different teammate, but that player managed to break away. The revelation added fuel to the notion that hazing and “brooming” are tradition within Damascus’ revered football program.

Prosecutors also took time to highlight the suspect's “atrocious” school and juvenile criminal records...

...The suspect's Montgomery County Public Schools Record:

In the fall of 2014, he enrolled as a sixth grader at Rocky Hill Middle School in Clarksburg. Almost immediately, the then 11-year-old began to misbehave. By the time police arrested him in the pending broomstick case — some four years later — MCPS had given the suspect 11 suspensions, 61 disciplinary referrals and sent 141 communications home regarding poor conduct. The transgressions included sexual comments, inappropriate touching, threatening remarks, fights, and chronic class cutting...

...In fact, MCPS conducted multiple Functional Behavior Assessments (FBA) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIP) for the suspect's benefit. School leaders determined the teen was so prone to acting out that he needed to be kept in class until the end of each passing period. That helped limit the number of hallway distractions. An adult escort was also recommended as an alternative option for the suspect to safely move from class to class...

...Judge Salant also took shots at MCPS for attempting to control the suspect's numerous symptoms, but not seeking to excavate the root cause of that disruptive behavior.

"They wanted him to follow the student code of conduct, but he can't do it... There's clearly a lack of impulse control."..

Fighting Words From the Father of One Victim:

...Following repeated requests, the victim's father says he is scheduled to meet with MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith on the afternoon Friday, March 29. The victim's father explained the meeting will be 45 minutes long. No attorneys are allowed to attend, and the discussion cannot delve into topics of negligence, liability or responsibility...

...The victim's father further shared that two of the four victims are the sons of Montgomery County Police officers, one having recently retired from the force. He believes the suspects — the suspect in particular — hand picked the victims due to their law enforcement ties.

For example, weeks before the locker room attacks, the suspect reportedly stole a gold chain from the son of one officer. Damascus head football coach Eric Wallich threatened to call the police if the chain was not returned. In another instance, the suspect demanded that same boy stop wearing a police department Maryland Special Olympics t-shirt.

"Take the fu----- shirt off! Fu-- the police! Fu-- Montgomery County," the suspect allegedly shouted during the heated ordeal.

“There’s no doubt that two of the victims were targeted because they’re sons of law enforcement...The act of inserting a broom in another man’s rectum is done to degrade and demoralize, retaliate, to injure, to destroy their self-esteem.”..

Prosecuting Judge Salant's Ruling:

...Maryland law prohibits prosecutors from appealing Judge Salant's ruling. Instead, McCarthy expects the juvenile court to sentence the suspect to less than one year. The types of discipline can include a detention center, house arrest, community service, among others.

“I challenge you to call the Department of Corrections to find out how many kids are incarcerated — or being detained in any juvenile facility in the state — who are 19, 20 or 21 years old. I’m going tell you, I think it’s going to be less than five.”

https://wjla.com/news/local/so-called-ringleader-in-damascus-hs-rapes-to-be-tried-as-juvenile-victims-outraged

Chicago Schools Lose Millions For Allegedly Not Shielding Students From Sexual Abuse

Chicago Public Schools will lose millions of dollars in grant money for what federal officials say is a failure to protect students from sexual abuse.

The Department of Education is withholding $4 million, asserting that the school district wasn't complying with investigations or addressing disturbing trends, according to the Chicago Tribune. The funding is part of a $14.9 million Magnet Schools Assistance grant which was awarded to Chicago schools in 2017 and is supposed to be dispersed over a five-year period.

The Tribune reported on sexual violence within the public school system this summer: One teacher allegedly gave a student sangria before sexually assaulting her in his car. He had been the subject of other complaints at the school prior to the incident. Another student, then a sophomore, said she was punched and forced into an empty building by a group of boys who made her perform oral sex, the paper reported. None of the suspects were disciplined, her complaint reportedly stated...

https://www.npr.org/2018/09/28/652802708/chicago-schools-lose-millions-for-allegedly-not-shielding-students-from-sexual-a?utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social

Disability Rights Maryland Legislative Report

DRM 2017 Legislative Report

During the 2017 General Assembly (GA) session, DRM followed about 140 bills on a range of topics. We focused substantial energy on a package of bills aimed at improving outcomes for young people with disabilities, and are very pleased to report that ALL of the bills have passed! Gubernatorial action is pending, and the bills are listed below. A hearty thanks to DRM's allies and supporters, legislators and other who helped achieve progress for people with disabilities in the 2017 session. HB 425/SB 651 Strictly limits out of school suspension for children pre-K through 2nd grade, requires positive interventions and supports, and authorizes restorative practices. HB 331/SB 786 Creates a task force to review and revise state regulations governing use of seclusion and restraint in schools. HB 174/SB 710 Requires parental consent for specific Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team proposals (e.g. including restraint or seclusion on IEP, removing a student from diploma track) effectively shifting the due process burden of proof. HB 287 Establishes the Commission on the School-to-Prison pipeline and restorative practices. HB 456/SB 943 Mandates the State Department of Education to develop a dispute resolution process for families of children with disabilities and child care providers. HB 279/SB 272 Grants continuing jurisdiction to the juvenile court in guardianship and child welfare cases involving foster youth with developmental disabilities transitioning to adult services at age 21, to ensure provision of ongoing supports. Our  2017 General Assembly Report and complete list of bills DRM supported, opposed, followed or worked on can be found on DRM's Public Policy page.

How can a special education student fail finals yet pass? Sadly, it’s easy. @mocoboe @mcps #specialeducation

Oliver Hirschfeld’s daughter is a senior at Montgomery County’s Walt Whitman High School, one of the best-performing public schools in the country. But in Hirschfeld’s view, Whitman is failing to serve his child and is resisting common-sense alternatives.

He is impressed with the school’s Advanced Placement courses, in more than 30 subjects, but his daughter has learning disabilities, and, he says, she needs self-contained special education classes so that she can master the English and math basics that will get her into a community college. Such classes were provided when she was in the ninth and 10th grades, but there are none any more at Whitman for special education students with individualized education plans (IEPs).

In the 20 academic classes that Hirschfeld’s daughter has taken at Whitman so far, “she’s failed 60 percent of the final exams,” he told me. “She’s failed two of the three of the High School Assessment tests” that Maryland requires.
Yet the school told him: “At this time, the Whitman IEP team believes that the current IEP is appropriate and that [your daughter] is making progress with her IEP goals and her academic program.”
The clash between school and parent at Whitman resembles attempts at Virginia public high schools to let struggling students proceed to graduation despite failing final exams. Those schools said essentially the same thing that Whitman said to the Hirschfelds, roughly translated: Your child is learning and completing courses, so chill out...

...In ninth and 10th grades, she said, she was helped by six self-contained classes with fewer than 15 students each. Whitman administrators said the school has no such classes now, not because of any policy change but because it no longer has any special education students who need them. The school did not explain why the need for them evaporated...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/how-can-a-special-education-student-fail-nals-yet-pass-sadly-its-easy/2015/10/11/0654bf18-6e14-11e5-9bfe-e59f5e244f92_story.html

Schools Warned On Pushing Families Into Due Process

Federal education officials are warning school districts to think twice before forcing parents into potentially long and costly due process proceedings.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, families may pursue due process or file a state complaint if they don’t believe their child has been provided appropriate school services.
However, in a “Dear Colleague” letter to education leaders across the country, officials at the U.S. Department of Education said this month that they are concerned that some school districts are moving to file for due process over issues that parents have already chosen to address via state complaints.
Such circumstances can put parents in a tough spot, the guidance notes, because states are required to wait for a due process hearing to conclude before they can take up any portion of a state complaint that is also the subject of a due process proceeding.
“It appears that in some instances, public agencies may have filed due process complaints against parents in an effort to prevent the state complaint process from moving forward,” reads the letter from Sue Swenson, acting assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative services, and Melody Musgrove, director of the Office of Special Education Programs.
“This type of action … may unreasonably limit parents’ dispute resolution options, and force parents either to participate in a potentially more adversarial, lengthy and costly due process complaint and hearing, or to fail to participate in the due process complaint and hearing and thereby risk the hearing official’s ruling in favor of the public agency,” the guidance states.
The Education Department told stakeholders that it “strongly believes” that it’s best for school districts to honor the choices of parents in selecting a forum for resolving special education disputes.
Pushing parents who have already filed a state complaint into due process harms the “cooperative process” and is “contrary to congressional intent,” according to the letter from Swenson and Musgrove which urges schools to pursue mediation or other informal steps of resolving issues before turning to due process....

 http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2015/04/23/schools-warned-due-process/20238/

@MCPS Releases Transition Work Group Report - Fallout from #RockTerrace Financial Mismanagement

When the Rock Terrace Scandal began to unfold, MCPS administrators fell all over themselves trying to explain that the purpose of paying the students was only for the purpose of teaching the "work-pay connection." The Board of Education even hired a multi-national law firm to write a memo (to the tune of $72,000) propounding that the money the students earned wasn't really "pay," and that the purpose of any money was only to teach the "work-pay connection."

There were, of course, many problems with this "explanation." First and foremost, the students at Rock Terrace School are smarter than both MCPS and their counsel give them credit for. These students are able to understand the "work-pay connection" without too much explanation. What is harder for MCPS to explain is just exactly how they were teaching the "work-pay connection" when (a) the students never actually saw the money, (b) never actually received any bank statements, and (c) the money that they did earn was stolen from them!

In light of what happened with the money the Rock Terrace students earned, MCPS convened a workgroup to evaluate the teaching of the "work-pay connection." Unsurprisingly, the recommendation is to disband the program where students earn money through work experiences and instead use those funds to help in school start-up businesses, like coffee shops, etc.

To date, the Board of Education has not discussed the memo (below) nor its recommendations. Why not? Perhaps because the State's Attorney for Montgomery County is still investigating whether anyone bears criminal liability for what happened at Rock Terrace. An announcement of the results of the State's Attorney's investigation is expected shortly.

   Transition Report Final by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland

BOE Opposes bill placing law enforcement officers in all MD public schools

Montgomery school board supports bill requiring IEP translation services

Guest Post: The Blurred IEP Role of the School Health Nurse

by Steve Zepnick

During the IEP (Individualized Education Plan/Program) process, parents are rarely informed of the specific nature of the role of the school health nurse. There is enough vagueness to the role that MCPS can use the opinions of the nurse to counteract the recommendations of a child’s physician. 

According to the County Government Administration, School Health nurses are employees of the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services but acting “under the direction” of the MCPS IEP team when they participate in the IEP process. During this process, the County Government Administration states that they have no authority to direct the actions of school health staff in the IEP proceedings.

The school health assessments are designed to be narrowly focused on whether or not health care needs can be met in the school setting and what level of nursing support is available by School Health Services. The nurse is not supposed to make recommendations on program or school placements for students. Furthermore, the County Government states that the school health nurse should not be relied on to provide “expert” opinions on the student’s overall medical condition.

So, who is it that ensures that appropriate limits are maintained by the nurses during a disputed IEP process, especially when MCPS disagrees with the recommendations of a child’s physician? The use of a School Health Nurse as a MCPS expert witness in a due process procedure, guided by the MCPS attorney, seems to blur the role and causes confusion for the parents and the administrative law judge. Clarification of the role conflict is definitely needed. In my grandson’s due process hearing, the nurse, in my opinion, was inappropriately allowed to challenge the recommendations of a minimum of three, attending, pediatric specialists.