For the first half of this episode, we’re joined by Vickie’s cousin, Kenneth Rubi. Ken is an adult living with Autism and he joins us to share a little bit of his experience as a child and then as an adult living with a disability. After the interview, Vickie and I chat about the importance of student involvement in IEP planning meetings and explore situations where they shouldn’t be there. We also dive into who else can be present at IEP meetings and why they belong there.

For the full transcript of the show, visit our site here.

What We Cover in this Episode:

What school was like for Ken when he was growing up, before political correctness became a thing

How teachers responded to having Ken in their classrooms

What it was like for Ken to be part of the IEP team when he was a student

Getting passed over for a promotion and how that felt for Ken

Why person-first language is the appropriate language to use

Why it’s important for the student to be involved in the IEP planning meeting (and when they shouldn’t be there!)

Who else should be present at IEP meetings?

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Thank you for listening!

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