Concerned Parent Group of Colchester

Parent Statement #9



By second grade it was apparent our child could not read at
grade level and had trouble with spelling and writing as well. We requested in
writing on 2/12/12 to have him tested for any learning disabilities. At the
initial meeting we were told that although he had been in reading and math lab
and was not making any progress  and was
well behind his peers, maybe it would be better if we waited for him to mature
and test him in 3rd grade. We insisted he be tested as he had been in intensive
reading and math lab and was still only reading at Kindergarten level.

After he was tested, on April 19, 2012 we had another
meeting. We were told that he was well below in all his tests for reading and
writing but that his IQ was very high. The director of Special services said
several times in the meeting that since his IQ was so high he really should not
need services. As an educator myself I had recently had training that IQ was no
longer being used to determine if students would receive services. Having a
high IQ means nothing if you have a learning disability. In fact the fact that
he had a high IQ and such low scores meant something was wrong. The director of
special services did not know I was an educator and that I understood the new
laws. When I brought this up at the PPT that I knew the laws and that he
definitely needed more services than he was getting she seemed angry and said
she still felt he did not need any services.
As the meeting progressed it was stated that he had a
processing disorder and would continue to receive reading and math lab for the
remainder of 2nd grade. We were given copies of the test results from Ms. Shaughnesseyand
the school psychologist but were never sent his actual IEP. At the meeting it
was stated to us that the JJIS staff would be sent his records and a plan and
that he would be placed with an appropriate teacher and start the year in
intensive reading lab, where he would do all his reading and writing outside
the regular classroom. We were also told we would be sent a copy of his IEP
over the summer.  I trusted that this was
being done and did not check with JJIS over the summer. I did receive a packet
but it only contained his test results and no IEP.
As 3rd grade started his teacher asked to meet with us in
October 2012. She was very concerned about his reading and writing skills and
asked if it was okay if we had him tested for a learning disability. We
explained to her that we had him tested; he had an IEP and was supposed to be
in reading lab right from the first day of school. She had no idea; he was not
even in reading or math lab. The teacher then went and checked the office for
his file. There was no file on record. She called CES they also did not have
his file. The teacher called Ms. Shaughnessey directly and she said there
was no file. My son had been tested by Ms. Shaughnessey herself 6 months
prior and she was claiming she did not know anything about this. At this point
we went over to find her in her office so we could find out what happened to
his file from CES to JJIS. Upon arriving at WJJMS where her office is, we asked
to be connected to her room by phone. The vice principal called her and she
said to tell us she was not there. The WJJMS vice principal told us we needed
to write a note that stated we wanted a PPT to be held immediately to be held
which we did. The Vice Principal stated that she would personally deliver the
note and if we did not receive a PPT invite in the next 2 weeks to contact our
school principal.
The PPT was held 11/5/12, at the PPT Ms. Shaughnesseyapologized
for losing his paperwork, claiming she did not know what happened but his file
was missing including his test results . She brought an IEP that we had never
seen with a date of 4/19/12.The document stated that he was not eligible for
services and did not have a learning disability (which was against what we had
been told in April at the first PPT meeting). The JJIS vice principal had Ms. Shaughnessey
go over his test results from April 2012 (which suddenly she could find in her
computer) -  she and the reading teacher
both immediately said this child should be receiving services based solely on his test results, and recommended
more testing than what has initially been done. My child finally got reading and writing help but not until 11/15/12.
As an educator I am disappointed that my child was denied
services he qualified for and had to wait 6 months to receive them.  The lack of communication between schools, the
loss of paperwork  and file, The refusal
of the director to answer my phone calls or meet with my husband and I when we
found out his files had been mishandled, and the falsifying of a IEP cannot be
ignored. I have concerns about future children and their ability to receive
services they need.


 


 


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