***TODAY: Montgomery County Senators Blocking Legislation for Children with Disabilities @CherylKagan @BrianJFeldman

We need your help to push HB294 County Boards of Education - Due Process Proceedings for Children With Disabilities - Burden of Proof and HB1237 Special Education - Judicial Actions - Attorney's Fees and Related Costs over the finish line in Annapolis TODAY! 

These bills will help level the playing field for parents or guardians in due process proceedings. HB294 shifts the burden of proof to the local education authority (LEA) to prove that they are delivering an appropriate education to students. This is important because LEAs have many more resources than the family in a hearing, causing a "David and Goliath" situation. HB1237 would cover attorney fees AND expert witness fees if a family wins their case. Again, the school system has access to experts, but a family must be able to pay for witness fees. This creates inequities. Unless these bills pass, families with means will continue to have a better chance at obtaining a free and appropriate education. Both bills passed the House of Delegates without opposition and passed 135-0! Both have stalled in the Education, Energy, and the Environment committee.

 https://www.votervoice.net/mobile/FSPTA/Campaigns/103595/Respond?vvsn=BP8EAgyLBCrSZAIB2vb7BAA

ACLU of Virginia: We've reached a settlement in our case about peer masking in Virginia public schools affirming that masking is a reasonable modification for students with disabilities that put them at severe risk if they contract COVID.

 In February of last year, 12 parents of students with disabilities filed a lawsuit against Governor Youngkin's Executive Order 2 & Senate Bill 739.

These directives restricted schools from requiring community masking to combat COVID spread & keep kids with disabilities safe. 

In March, a court preliminarily granted these parents the ability to request & receive community masking accommodations.

The parties have reached a settlement that we are waiting for the court to accept that will ensure kids with disabilities can be accommodated at school. 

Under federal disability law, schools MUST make accommodations if a child with a disability requires peer & teacher masking, regardless of the requirements of Executive Order 2 & Senate Bill 739.

Kids with disabilities deserve the same access to education as their peers. 

We are glad to be working with @BrownGoldLevy, @disAbilityLawVA, @arnoldporter, & @WashLaw4CR to move this case forward.

Read more about this lawsuit and its settlement:

Parents and State Settle Lawsuit on School Masking Accommodations for Students with Disabilitieshttps://www.acluva.org/en/press-releases/parents-and-state-settle-lawsuit-school-masking-ac

Thread by @ACLUVA on Thread Reader App – Thread Reader App

Arnie Duncan: We Must Provide Equal Opportunity in Sports to Students with Disabilities

From U.S. Secretary of Education Duncan, Jan 25, 2013.  To read and post comments, go here.  ED's Guidance is here.

Playing sports at any level—club, intramural, or interscholastic—can be a key part of the school experience and have an immense and lasting impact on a student’s life. Among its many benefits, participation in extracurricular athletic activities promotes socialization, the development of leadership skills, focus, and, of course, physical fitness. It’s no secret that sports helped to shape my life. From a very early age, playing basketball taught me valuable lessons about grit, discipline, and teamwork that are still with me to this day.

Students with disabilities are no different – like their peers without disabilities, these students benefit from participating in sports. But unfortunately, we know that students with disabilities are all too often denied the chance to participate and with it, the respect that comes with inclusion. This is simply wrong. While it’s the coach’s job to pick the best team, students with disabilities must be judged based on their individual abilities, and not excluded because of generalizations, assumptions, prejudices, or stereotypes.  Knowledgeable adults create the possibilities of participation among children and youth both with and without disabilities.

Today, ED’s Office for Civil Rights has released guidance that clarifies existing legal obligations of schools to provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate alongside their peers in after-school athletics and clubs. We make clear that schools may not exclude students who have an intellectual, developmental, physical, or any other disability from trying out and playing on a team, if they are otherwise qualified. This guidance builds on a resource document the Department issued in 2011 that provides important information on improving opportunities for children and youth with disabilities to access PE and athletics.

Federal civil rights laws require schools to provide equal opportunities, not give anyone an unfair head start. So schools don’t have to change the essential rules of the game, and they don’t have to do anything that would provide a student with a disability an unfair competitive advantage. But they do need to make reasonable modifications (such as using a laser instead of a starter pistol to start a race so a deaf runner can compete) to ensure that students with disabilities get the very same opportunity to play as everyone else. The guidance issued today will help schools meet this obligation and will allow increasing numbers of kids with disabilities the chance to benefit from playing sports.

Arne Duncan is U.S. Secretary of Education

Devastation to Disability Community

BUDGET CUTS DESTROYING THE HEART OF THE Developmental Disabilities COMMUNITY
Statement by the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Coalition Regarding Maryland State Budget Cuts

For Immediate Release: August 26, 2009
Governor O'Malley's budget cuts may result in short-sighted savings but will have a long term devastating impact economically and on the lives of people with developmental disabilities, their families, and their low-wage staff. Adults and children with disabilities such as Autism, Down syndrome and Cerebral Palsy will suffer as a result of these cuts.

The Governor has announced approximately $24 Million in cuts to services that will impact directly upon thousands of people with developmental disabilities and their families. Among the cuts:

10% Cut to family support stipends and grants ($1 Million)
2% Cut in funding for Community Services Programs ($15 Million)
15% Cut to Service Coordination (approximately $5 Million)

The Coalition recognizes the current economic climate crisis in Maryland and nationally. However, the public and state officials must understand that these cuts disproportionally impact upon one of Maryland's most vulnerable populations.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Heather Ford, Media Liaison, 410-598-8256 OR Heather21228@msn.com
Laura Howell, Executive Director, Maryland Association of Community Services, 443-848-1384
Steve Pyles, President, The Arc of Maryland, (301) 643-4524 (cell)
Carol Beatty, Executive Director, The Arc of Howard County, 410-730-0638
Brian Cox, Executive Director - Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council, 410-446-6025
Cristine Marchand, Executive Director, The Arc of Maryland, 410-991-9309 (cell)
Ken Capone, People on the Go of Maryland, 410-974-6139
*********************************
Family Support Grants (Rolling Access Funds) - $1 Million
The Governor's budget cuts include a 10% reduction to a state funding program for people with developmental disabilities (called Rolling Access Funds) that provides grants for desperately needed relief and assistance. These grants pay for emergency respite care when a parent is hospitalized, in-home assistance, special diets, diapers for teens, home modifications to keep a child at home instead of an institution and they enable families to continue providing care. These grants ultimately save the State money by enabling people with disabilities to remain at home with their families, rather than going into a high-cost state institution. "As a single parent whose 15-year old daughter has been on the DDA Waiting List for ten years, we are distressed to hear about these cuts," says Beth Munro of Rockville. "Due to a change in insurance, we were counting on Rolling Access funds to help pay for surgery scheduled in October related to Caroline's cerebral palsy. Our insurance through MHIP will only cover 40 percent of the usual and customary charges. A cut to Rolling Access funds will significantly impact our ability to pay for this needed surgery."

"These grants are the life line for families waiting for services," according to The Arc of Maryland Executive Director Cristine Marchand. "These families are caught up in the economic downturn plus the extra expenses and stress of caring for a family member with developmental disabilities. The Governor's cut to this program will impact over 1,000 families who struggle to care for their child at home."

2% Cut in Funding for Community Services - $15 Million

Budget cuts also include a 2% cut in funding for services to over 22,000 adults and children, in a system that is already facing a financial crisis. In Maryland, services for people with developmental disabilities are generally provided by non-profit organizations licensed by the State, and they have suffered years of inadequate funding.
With one in three DD Community service providers running a deficit; the announced cut of 2% will force agencies to reduce staffing levels, eliminate positions, and consider discharging people with higher needs due to the increase in uncompensated care. According to Laura Howell, Executive Director of the Maryland Association of Community Services, "These budget cuts represent the second cut to services for people with developmental disabilities in as many months. The safety net of services for many of our most vulnerable citizens is in jeopardy as a result."

This cut to existing services will negatively impact both people with disabilities, their families and their direct support staff they rely upon.

For example, many people with Down syndrome prematurely develop Alzheimer's disease, generally in their 40s or 50s. Older individuals with Down syndrome require an escalating cost of care as their needs become more significant. Often, the State funds do not cover this cost of care. As a result of the budget cuts, people with higher levels of need may face discharge, or may not be able to find quality community providers willing or able to meet their needs. Family caregivers in their 70s and 80s will suffer as well.

Low-wage workers provide daily assistance to people with disabilities, helping with everything from basic needs like bathing, grooming and eating, to job coaching and residential support. They are often responsible for ensuring that medications are taken properly, and are largely responsible for the safety and quality of life of people on a day-to-day basis. Direct support staff often work with people with complex medical and behavioral issues, and earn on average $10-$11, significantly below the starting wage of direct support staff in state institutions as well as direct care staff in other health care settings. The budget cuts will threaten the access these low-wage workers and their children have to employer-sponsored health insurance. Community providers facing sky-rocketing costs of health insurance benefits are considering cutting back or eliminating insurance coverage. This could force children of low-wage workers on to the Children's Health Insurance Program, at a far greater cost to state coffers.

Case Management/Service Coordination - Approximately $5 Million

Further cuts include a 15% reduction to case management services for people with developmental disabilities and layoffs for these staff. Case managers, known as resource coordinators, help people with developmental disabilities access services, act as ombudsmen to help ensure their safety and quality of life, and have been continuously monitoring people who recently transitioned from the now-closed Rosewood Center to community programs - a promise the Administration made to families as recently as three months ago when Rosewood was closed.
"Many people have no family member to help them negotiate the system and rely on experienced case managers to advocate for the specialized services they need, " says Nancy Pineles, Managing Attorney for Developmental Disabilities at Maryland Disability Law Center, adding, "Cuts to this service will increase the risk of harm to individuals who require skilled coordination of services." Pineles explains that DDA serves people with a wide range of abilities and very diverse and challenging disabilities that require individualized care. For example, DDA supports a young woman who was a child when she lost her parents in a car accident and was severely injured herself. Paralyzed from the neck down, she relies on a ventilator to breathe and staff to assist her with all daily tasks. She needs a case manager who understands how to plan and coordinate her needs.


For More Information on the End The Wait Now Campaign:

Michele Hill, Statewide Coordinator
End The Wait Now! Campaign
Be Aware. Find Out More. Get Involved
www.endthewaitnow.com
410-974-6895, x 109


The ETWN Campaign is coordinated by The Arc of Maryland
in collaboration with Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council

Berthiaume: "I'm sorry...had I known...I would have sat stone faced."

Statement of MCPS Board of Education member Laura Berthiaume on February 9, 2009, during Board of Education discussion of resolution to vote on MCPS FY10 Operating Budget
(transcribed from webcast at 1:25:57)

Once I pass my vote on this proposed budget, the budget will move forward and I will support it as it will be the decision of the whole board, which I will be obliged to support. To be on the team means to support the team position, and I will. But I do not believe that to be a team player means to sit mute when the play is being called, or to fail to vote in good conscience yea or nay, or to fail to explain my vote on how the play should be executed and so I am going to do that now.

First, I want to say that I am disappointed that the Board was unable to have the benefit of the evaluation of the Learning Center transition before acting today. The resolution before us specifically approves the 2010 Special Education staff plan as proposed. I don't know how the Board can effectively provide oversight on, or input into, a special education staffing plan when it is missing vital information on whether or not one of the major moves in how we provide special education services over the last two years has in fact worked for the special education students receiving those services. This is the equivalent of buying a "pig in a poke".

Second, I do not agree with the Board's current approach to the budget. As this stands, it does appear that a majority of the Board is committed to passing the Superintendent's budget without change. Apparently on the theory that the federal, state and county numbers at this time are uncertain and furthermore that to change anything at all is to somehow invite the County Council to change the numbers in the eleven categories as set forth in the resolution. The uncertainty as to the federal and state numbers can be rectified, as I believe we are going to entertain a motion to amend, to take up those considerations in April, rather than in June. At that time those state and federal numbers will be certain. I hope and encourage the Board to support that motion.

The uncertainty as to the county number is present every single year. To take the position that the Board will always support the Superintendent's Budget in February, without change or until it comes back from the County Council, lest the Council interfere with the budget, effectively means that every February the Board will always accept the Superintendent's recommended funding. By taking this position the Board is agreeing to basically limit its role to behind the scenes advocacy for priorities that may, or may not ever receive public exposure. And furthermore, is largely agreeing to limit its role to that of cheerleader for the budget. What is left to be decided in June is solely whether anything will be restored, not whether anything that perhaps should have been cut was not in fact cut.

Keep in mind that our inaction now does in my opinion effectively doom the Middle School Magnet Consortium and the Reading and Staff development positions, because teachers will need to commit to positions for the next school year and many will chose to take new positions or leave the system, rather than bet on an uncertain restoration of the cuts.

It seems to me moreover that a failure by the Board to actually evaluate and make appropriate changes to the proposed budget now is in fact itself an invitation to the County Council to meddle. If the Board will not do its own business as a body that is supposed to oversee the school system budget, and do so in a representative fashion for the best interests of the students, taking into account public testimony, then I see no reason why the County Council should hesitate to do our business for us. Beyond this it seems to me that to take this approach to the Budget wastes an awful lot of time and effort, both by the Board and by the community at large.

If it is the Board's intent to always support the proposed Budget in February, as is, with no changes, and then to make changes around the edges only in June after the County Council has adopted its budget, then perhaps we should just have the Superintendent present the budget to the County Council directly in February. Let our PTA's and parent's advocate directly to the Council. For it is clear we'll take no action right now as a result of the public's advocacy. And perhaps not very much action at a later time. After all, it will always be true that the school system as a whole will have moved ahead by June on the assumption that 99% of the Budget is a done deal. It seems to me to be inefficient and unseemly to sit in front of a crowded room in January full of people who think that their pleas will result in action now, if we know that no changes will be made. To raise hopes and expectations when the reality is that there is no hope is unfair.

As I left one Budget hearing I heard one parent say to another that the Board seemed to be moved by the stories that we heard of the children in the MPAC program. And there was real excitement in that parent's voice. I was the Board member who responded so enthusiastically. To that parent, I'm sorry. Sorry I responded so positively to your story. Had I known how misleading my reaction was, I would have sat stone faced.

In sum, if the Board will not do its job, then I will cast my vote against the budget because I believe we have a job to do. After I cast my vote, as I said, I will support it once it passes. But I encourage the Board to take this up again in April and to do its job now. Thank you.