Menu of Services and Fees
Free 15 minute phone conference Please contact me using the Contact tab above and I will e-mail you to schedule a free evaluation to see how I can help you.
Initial Consultation and Advice We will have a face to face meeting to discuss your child's educational performance, and the history that you have had with the school regarding your concerns. Please note that educational performance is not only the grades, but also information as to how he/she is able to function throughout the school day. Each consultation will vary depending upon the child's disability and related needs. In preparation for the meeting, you will need to complete a questionnaire which I will e-mail to you to enable me to do some background research in preparation for our meeting and to maximize our time together. If it is clear that we will need more than 2 hours together to fully address your child's needs, we can schedule a follow-up meeting at an affordable rate.
Background Support If you choose to meet with the school alone with the information that you have gleaned from our meeting and the navigation chart we have designed for you to advocate for your child, I can be available by phone to consult with you during the course of the meeting.
To Contact the School If we agree that a letter needs to be sent from my office outlining the issue(s) that we have identified on behalf of your child, I will do this and include legal memorandum to support our position if we agree that this is necessary and beneficial. If it is clear that an upcoming meeting is required, we will request in writing the current level of performance of your child, and the data used to measure that performance. From this information, we can map out our next step.
To Attend a Meeting with the School If a letter does not resolve the issue, and you would like me to attend a meeting with you, I may be able to do so. I find that it is best if the parent requests the meeting and takes the lead, while I assist as needed. Often schools become defensive when an attorney/advocate is present, but I strive to build a positive working relationship with the school personnel. This is in the child's best interest for these are the professionals that interface with your child throughout the day and they should bring expertise to the table on how to enable your child to learn.
To Request and Attend Mediation If there is a conflict that remains with the school as to what is an appropriate FAPE for your child, we can bring in a neutral 3rd party to mediate our dispute with the school. A mediation agreement is a contract, binding schools and parents.
Hearings If there is no resolution to a complaint regarding identification, evaluation, educational placement of your child, or any matter relating to an appropriate education for the student, I will advise you as to a formal course of action that can be taken. This could be filing a formal complaint with the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) which will launch an investigation into the matter and once found to be valid the MDE will direct the local district to take corrective action. The other avenue is a due process hearing which is an appeal from the recommendation of the IEP team. The changes made to the due process provisions by the 2004 IDEA Amendments have made the due process hearing system even more difficult for parents to navigate without the assistance of licensed legal counsel. There are sensitive time limits to both of these formal complaint processes and specific burdens of proof that have to be met in order to prevail. I can help you navigate both.
I will also do disciplinary hearings such as expulsion hearings for children/youth with disabilities either identified or unidentified.
Initial Consultation and Advice We will have a face to face meeting to discuss your child's educational performance, and the history that you have had with the school regarding your concerns. Please note that educational performance is not only the grades, but also information as to how he/she is able to function throughout the school day. Each consultation will vary depending upon the child's disability and related needs. In preparation for the meeting, you will need to complete a questionnaire which I will e-mail to you to enable me to do some background research in preparation for our meeting and to maximize our time together. If it is clear that we will need more than 2 hours together to fully address your child's needs, we can schedule a follow-up meeting at an affordable rate.
Background Support If you choose to meet with the school alone with the information that you have gleaned from our meeting and the navigation chart we have designed for you to advocate for your child, I can be available by phone to consult with you during the course of the meeting.
To Contact the School If we agree that a letter needs to be sent from my office outlining the issue(s) that we have identified on behalf of your child, I will do this and include legal memorandum to support our position if we agree that this is necessary and beneficial. If it is clear that an upcoming meeting is required, we will request in writing the current level of performance of your child, and the data used to measure that performance. From this information, we can map out our next step.
To Attend a Meeting with the School If a letter does not resolve the issue, and you would like me to attend a meeting with you, I may be able to do so. I find that it is best if the parent requests the meeting and takes the lead, while I assist as needed. Often schools become defensive when an attorney/advocate is present, but I strive to build a positive working relationship with the school personnel. This is in the child's best interest for these are the professionals that interface with your child throughout the day and they should bring expertise to the table on how to enable your child to learn.
To Request and Attend Mediation If there is a conflict that remains with the school as to what is an appropriate FAPE for your child, we can bring in a neutral 3rd party to mediate our dispute with the school. A mediation agreement is a contract, binding schools and parents.
Hearings If there is no resolution to a complaint regarding identification, evaluation, educational placement of your child, or any matter relating to an appropriate education for the student, I will advise you as to a formal course of action that can be taken. This could be filing a formal complaint with the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) which will launch an investigation into the matter and once found to be valid the MDE will direct the local district to take corrective action. The other avenue is a due process hearing which is an appeal from the recommendation of the IEP team. The changes made to the due process provisions by the 2004 IDEA Amendments have made the due process hearing system even more difficult for parents to navigate without the assistance of licensed legal counsel. There are sensitive time limits to both of these formal complaint processes and specific burdens of proof that have to be met in order to prevail. I can help you navigate both.
I will also do disciplinary hearings such as expulsion hearings for children/youth with disabilities either identified or unidentified.
