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Kimberly writes: The disability community is currently digesting the decision that the NY State Board of Regents made this week which scales back speech service requirements. The Board released school districts from longstanding policies that they must give certain levels of speech services to students with autism and other disabilities. The decision by the Board of Regents sets back disability rights policy in New York about 20 years. (20 more years, and they can put students with disabilities back in Willowbrook Institution, while they are at it.)
There is background on this story about the Board of Regents vote at onthewilderside: here.
Please think about what you can do to reverse this horrible decision, which will make life more difficult for thousands of students with disabilities and their parents. If you have ever been through the frustration of a CSE/Committee on Special Education meeting, begging for services for your child, you will understand some of what was taken away from these children and their parents.
An e-mail update and alert from someone at Autism Action:
Dear All:
I attended the Meeting of the Board of Regents today in Albany with Mike Smith from the Foundation for Autism Information and Research.
Despite acknowledging hundreds of phone calls, emails, letters of opposition from various organizations from our community, the Regents voted the Article 200 regulations into extinction – some actually chuckled while doing so. These regulations offered at least some protections for our children for speech services and class size and gave parents at least some degree of support in Committee on Special Education meetings.
These regulations are now gone, dismissed with a wave of Regent Chancellor Merryl Tisch’s hands. Read more »
Filed under: Action Alert!, activism, children, Education, new york, New York State Politics, News, politics, progressive politics, rants | Tagged: Anthony Bottar, autism advocacy, Betty Rosa, Board of Regents, Chacellor Tisch, Charles Bendit, Christine Cea, Committee on Special Education, CSE, David Steiner, disability rights, Geraldine Chapey, Harry Phillips, III, impartial hearing, James Dawson, James Tallon, Jim Dawson, Karen Brooks Hopkins, Karen Hopkins, Lester Young, Merryl H Tisch, Merryl Tisch, Milton Cofield, New York State, New York State Education Department, NY school districts, NY State Board of Regents, NY State Budget, NY State economy, NY State special education, NYS Education Department, Robert Bennett, Robert M Bennett, Roger Tilles, Special Education, special education services, speech services, students with autism, Wade Norwood | Leave a Comment »
Layah Jane
