A Special Education Teacher, Administrator and Lawyer walk into a bar....all you ever wanted to know about special education

We're just getting back into the swing of things so join us as we preview some upcoming topics and catch up. Hope everyone's school year is off to a great start! 

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We're interrupting our summer to record our response to a June 2024, 1st Circuit court decision regarding the case: L.M. v. Town of Middleborough that affirms a Massachusetts school’s decision to forbid a middle school student from wearing two T-shirts to school that say, “There are only two genders” and “There are [censored] genders."  We hope you enjoy it!

Here is a link to the full case document.

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Can you believe we've uploaded 100 episodes?! We're ending Season 4 celebrating our 100th episode and choosing our favs from each season. Please go back and listen to those if you started mid-way through our show. Here is a list of the top 20 downloads if you want listener favorites. We've already planning for season 5- be back soon! Thank you listening- Robin/Abby/Angela 

S1 Ep. 1. With Friends Like These: Intro Pod

S3 Ep. 6  The 1,2,3s of IEPs (meetings, that is!)

S2 Ep. 26 Final Episode of Season 2! AKA Robin's Had It!

S3 Ep. 25 Season 3 is a wrap!

S2 Ep .11 What's so special about specialized instruction?

S3 Ep. 8 Please stop saying that!

S1 Trailer

S4 Ep. 13 20 Questions

S1 Ep. 10 What is the "Least Restrictive Environment" and Why Do We Keep Talking About It?

S2 Ep. 22 Administration Consideration

S3 Ep. 12 Inclusive Fitness: Interview w/Greg Austin

S3 Ep. 22 We've Got Mail 2nd Edition

S2 Ep. 7 Interview with Laura Gillis (parent side attorney)

S2 Ep. 4 Discipline Deep Dive... Part 1

S2 Ep. 2: Behavior IS Communication - Interview with Kristin Pas, BCBA

S3 Ep. 5 There's something SPECIAL going on.....

S4 Ep. 3 Top 10 Common Logical Fallacies

S3 Ep. 1 What happens if there are no teachers?

S3 Ep. 13 What do you do when things don't go the way one would expect?

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James Lange is a CPA/Attorney and the author of 10 best selling financial books that help IRA and retirement plan owners get the most of what they've got. The Wall Street Journal has endorsed Jim's tax and estate planning strategies 36 times!

Jim's daughter, Erica, has a disability. Jim's expertise with Roth IRA conversions and the impact of the SECURE Act on IRAs, disability planning, and legacy planning was critical in developing a long-term plan to secure his daughter's financial future and improve his family's quality of life.  

Using his family's journey as the base, Jim authored a new book, Retire Secure for Parents of a Child with a Disability, with two experts in the disability field. Jim and his co-authors believe the book is the best comprehensive financial resource for parents of a child with a disability.

You can get your free  book at https://DisabledChildPlanning.com/Podcast

We are also hosting a 3-day virtual summit titled Financial and Life Planning

Summit…for Parents of a Child with a Disability from June 18 to June 20. Tatyana

McFadden, one of the top paralympic athletes in the world will be our celebrity

speaker. The three co-authors and a host of other experts will be offering

educational talks over the three-day period.

Participants can choose which of the sessions they would like to attend. Many will

also be followed with Q&A sessions. And best of all, everyone can enjoy the talks

from the comfort of their own living room.

To receive updates on our June 18 th – 20 th Financial and Life Planning Summit, go

to https://DisabledChildPlanning.com/June

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Listen in on the debate about the uses and misuses of IQ testing for students with disabilities and students of color. Robin, Angela and Abby dissect a recent article from the Hechinger report which can be found HERE titled: 

School psychologists are relying less on testing — but the change is too slow for some"
by Sarah Carr and published on March 28, 2024.

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Many of you have seen the ad #Assume I Can (and Maybe I Will)  created by the organization CoorDown.  Robin, Abby and Angela talk about the power of this campaign on the social inclusion movement. Check out some of the previous campaigns created by this organization (Esp. The Hiring Chain). 

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In this (almost) solo episode, Abby analyzes a new article that was published on March 6, 2024: 

A Perspective From Today's ABA- Dr. Hanley

BCBA Ethics code

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Join Robin, Abby and Angela as they review the TV show Love On the Spectrum (Season 2 - Netflix)

Tait's Take (youtube)
The Color of Autism Foundation (mentioned on Tait's Take) Important because people of color tend to be diagnosed later in life due to stigma, biased testing protocols, medical racism etc.) 

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Listen in on the discussion with Elizabeth C. Hamblet the author of  7 Steps to College Success: A Pathway for Students with Disabilities.

7 Steps is a well regarded book in its third edition that provides important common sense advice for adult students and their family supporters as they navigate through the college application and admission process. Once they are at college, the fun really begins and Ms. Hamblet provides important legal and regulatory information to support adult students with disabilities as they navigate the college landscape.
 
Anyone who wants a discount on her book can get 20% off if they order directly from the publisher. The code and link, plus other purchase options are at bit.lyECHbook

Also, Elizabeth created a 20% discount for our listeners for her on-demand webinars. They can enter SpEdPodcast at checkout for her overview webinar or her webinar focused on academic accommodations that are and aren’t commonly approved: https://bit.ly/ECHNZ1

Resources from the book:

The Importance of Transparency in College Preparation for Students with Disabilities: https://bit.ly/LDblog154x

 How to Find College Disability Documentation Requirements - https://bit.ly/LDblog109x

 Myths About Disability Documentation for College Accommodations - https://bit.ly/LDblog150x

 College Disability Accommodations Request Preparation Form (to see how much students know) - https://bit.ly/LDAF2x

 Here's how to reach out to Ms. Hamblet if you want to access her expertise on this important topic:

 Instagram - ld_advisory (https://www.instagram.com/ld_advisory/)

 Twitter (X) - @echamblet

 Facebook - Elizabeth C. Hamblet, LD Advisory (https://www.facebook.com/LDadvisory/)

 LinkedIn - Elizabeth C Hamblet https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-c-hamblet

 Threads – ld_advisory

 Bluesky - @echamblet.bsky.social

 Youtube - https://bit.ly/LDadvisoryCTPlaylist

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Listen in as Angela, Robin and Abby discuss a recent request from several members of the Brockton School Committee for the Governor of Massachusetts to send the National Guard to Brockton High School. As you can imagine this has attracted a LOT of attention.
Here are some articles related to the request and how the Governor responded:

Here is an article about the original request from the Business Insider
Here is a link to the actual letter from the Brockton School Committee
Here is a summary of the Governor's Response (she declined)
And finally, Angela was right AGAIN! - the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)'s response is here.
Here is a great resource about the Spectrum of Attention Moves from the Skillful Teacher by Jon Saphier that is a classic reference in the field of management.
And finally here is the graphic of the five pronged test of if you management philosophy is "effective" according to the work of Leiber.

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