April 2023 Special Needs Living Akron/Canton

AUTISM AWARENESS AND ACCEPTANCE MONTH

BY TERRY FRANK, CO-FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE GOLDEN KEY CENTER FOR EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN, INC.

April is Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month!! This month reminds us to work together to empower everyone to increase the support and services needed for all, when they need it, and how they need it. A favorite quote from Helen Keller says it all: “Alone we can do so little; Together we can do so much.”

One of the main difficulties we see from parents at The Golden Key is their lack of guidance and information on understanding the process necessary to receive services educationally for their child. This can be such a confusing path! Let me see if I can help with that.

Having a medical diagnosis of Autism does not mean that a child will receive the educational services needed. The process of receiving the eligibility for special education services is different from receiving a medical diagnosis. Unfortunately, the medical diagnosis and the educational eligibility are separate entities, yet both are important to receiving support in different ways.

Educationally, a child has to be deemed “eligible” to receive special education services. To receive an eligibility determination, the school district of residence does an Evaluation Team Report (ETR). The ETR is guided by the school psychologist and includes input from parents, therapy staff, and educators. Through that evaluation, the team determines if a child meets the eligibility requirements to receive specially designed instruction, and under what category the child is eligible to receive those services. This process is extensive but an ETR, done well, provides a lot of information on the strengths and weaknesses that child has, and recommendations for supports and services to provide the assistance needed.

The district of residence must complete the initial evaluation within 60 calendar days once the district has gotten parent or guardian permission in writing. After an initial ETR the evaluation is completed every three years.

There are many safeguards in place to dispute an evaluation, or services provided. The best resource for all parents is A Guide to Parent Rights in Special Education. This procedural document is easily found under the Ohio Department of Education website.

The ETR is the precursor to the development of the IEP- the Individualized Education Plan, an annual document. Within the IEP, information on current levels of academic, behavior, and social-emotional functioning are provided. This is the legal document that guides the therapeutic and educational services the child will receive based upon the ETR.

One of the great things about residing in the state of Ohio is the School Choice options we have available here. Ohio provides two scholarship programs for our special needs population; the Autism Scholarship Program and the Jon Peterson Scholarship Program. These programs provide a choice for families to send their child to a special education program other than the one operated by the school district of residence. Any student who has been identified by their district as a child with autism and for whom the district has created an individualized education plan (IEP) qualifies for the Autism Scholarship program. A child is eligible to apply to participate in the program when the child turns three. The Jon Peterson Special Needs (JPSN) Scholarship Program provides scholarships to students who are eligible to attend kindergarten through 12th grade and have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) from their district.

School choice should be for all! Hopefully, this information is helpful to anyone needing clarification as they are pursuing supports for their child.

Terry Frank, Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Golden Key Center for Exceptional Children, Inc., has been in the special needs education field for over 40 years. She began her career as an Intervention Specialist at the Stark County Board of DD. Autism specialization developed with collaboration with The Cleveland Clinic Center for Autism, and certification in RDI- Relationship Development Intervention. In 2008, she cofounded The Golden Key Center for Exceptional Children. The Golden Key has become essential in the area providing services as a nonpublic charter school and preschool program for the Autism Scholarship Program and The Jon Peterson Scholarship Program.