Two more quick questions -
Homebound students - Different from homeschooling? Does the school district provide a tutor?
Nathan Walters - Did he have a 504? Our SD is telling us that they won't implement a policy because if they accidentally violate their policy, they have no chance in court (if something were to happen and we chose to sue them). My argument to that is, "Choosing to do nothing will save you in court?" That's why I was wondering about the Walters family.

Hi Drew's Mom,
Don't apologize. All well-intended producutive questions and comments are welcome.
Homebound v. Home School.
MB did not incorrectly speak. She did mean homebound. I discussed home schooled.
Homebound students = students who receive instruction at home, paid for a provided by the school, from designated school personnel due to the child's the inability to attend school as a result of a specific health need (for example).
Home schooled students = students who are educated primary outside of private / public educational institutions by the person of the parents' choosing. This method of schooling is the right of every parent in the U.S. (Some districts allow parents to enroll their children in certain activities - academic and non- academic - when they choose to home school.) It is usually the parents themselves who do the primary educating. Ps. Home schooling is also a misnomer because many home schoolers educate their children via activities and opportunities that exist outside of the home - the world is their classroom.

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[This message has been edited by Rhonda RS (edited August 05, 2004).]

Hi Synthia,
Taping: You do not have to provide notice under Section 504, though it would be smart to do so because you want to give the SD the opportunity to set up their tape recorder too. You want to extend courtesies to the district that you hope they would extend to you. Generally speaking, if you want to tape a meeting, tell the 504 Coordinator or person running the meeting that you are going to do so. Do not ask - tell. If the SD tells you that you cannot, ask the SD to show you in writing the district policy that states parents are not allowed to tape 504 Meetings.
Rhonda
[This message has been edited by Rhonda RS (edited August 03, 2004).]

Quote:Originally posted by Rhonda RS:
[b]Have you ever asked for a formal 504 Meeting from the 504 Coordinator for your child to discuss assigning him/her a disability designation?[/b]
No, when I mentioned it over the phone, I was told by Asst. SI, that it didn't apply to us because they (SD) weren't hindering his education. They acted surprised and dumbfounded that I even mentioned 504. I have asked around and have NO idea who the 504 Coordinator is.
Quote:[b] What do you have in writing regarding what you want to see happen and what the SD is willing to do?[/b]
We have copies of our emails asking them to replace pb with SunButter, but SunButter isn't available to Missouri schools yet. Then we asked them to remove peanut products from the tray, and we received a written response that they won't do that until it has been banned by the federal govt. There was also a paragraph in that response that indicated they aren't willing to put much in writing because if it is writing then it is more binding. "Should we agree not to serve, and then do so by human error, misinformation, etc., we have violated our own policy and thus there is no remedy for the action. The courts have consistently held that failure to follow your own policy is inexcusable."
Quote:[b]Is the district willing to put in writing that they think you should home school? For them to suggest that simply because your child has anaphylactic food allergy is ridiculous and discriminatory.[/b]
No. I did get an email response to my "What accommodations are you willing to make?" letter, and I was anticipating them carefully wording their suggesting for me to homeschool, but it simply asked for me to call and schedule an appointment to come in and discuss the situation in person. I feel like we are now in a place where the SD is going to have to make some decisions and they don't want to put anything more in writing.
Quote:[b]I've outlined quite clearly the straightest path for obtaining the 504 designation throughout this tread.
[/b]
Thank you!! I am reading, researching, printing and highlighting as fast as I can....trying to keep up with you and MommaBear! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img] I appreciate you help!!

Rhonda RS - I was reading the 504vIDEA article again...
If the only "reasonable accommodations" the school is willing to make to keep Drew safe on the days when peanut products are served is for Drew to stay home on those days - approx. 4 days each month - could that qualify for IDEA, since missing that much school could interfer with his learning?
I'm grasping here, I know, but I don't see the school making many accommodations without something in return (ie funding). If that is what they suggest, can I/should I request for a homebound tutor? Is a homebound tutor something every school district has? Is that something a school would do for "just" a once a week absence?
I'm usually pretty optomistic, but now I'm just trying to be prepared for whatever they throw my way. If they catch me offguard and come back with something outstanding, I will either jump for joy or pass out in disbelief!

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[This message has been edited by Rhonda RS (edited August 05, 2004).]

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[This message has been edited by Rhonda RS (edited August 05, 2004).]

Rhonda - Thank you. I am running out of energy - it's times like this that PA consumes me. But then I get on here and catch my second wind and feel like I can take them on. If we aren't fighting for Drew, then no one is.
I will print off these documents and provide them to the SD. I will call tomorrow and schedule a meeting with them.
I will also check out Reed Martin's website.
To answer a few of your questions - homeschooling isn't something I want to do (NOTHING against those who homeschool), but as a last resort to keep my child safe, I will.
The homebound tutor - again, not the best solution, but I don't want to roll over and let the SD call all the shots. I feel that Drew has a lot to learn and missing an average of one day per week is a lot (not including all the absences due to asthma flareups and illnesses).
I guess my main beef with the SD is that there are many, many "special needs" student in the district who receive accommodations, and even though I don't particularly like my child to be labelled, he does have "special needs" that I feel they aren't even trying to meet.
Who knows! Maybe I have things backwards, and they will shock me at the meeting with awesome ideas and suggestions. We will see.
Thanks again! Your help has been invaluable!

Drew's Mom,
In addition to Rhonda's [i]wonderful[/i] advice, given the horrendous behaviour of your district, you may also consider whether you want to include a copy of the document listed below. Some others on this board have used this document to help a district to understand that allergies (including food allergies) can be covered under Section 504; we've had other members verify this with OCR.
Link to the Dept. of Education, Office of Civil Rights (OCR). Title of document is The Civil Rights of Students with Hidden Disabilities Under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
[url="http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/hq5269.html"]http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/hq5269.html[/url]
I haven't had a chance to follow your case too closely (been finishing my son's 504), but also make sure that you have positioned yourself by obtaining very solid Dr.'s documentation establshing the situation, indicating the major life systems affected (this is 504/ADA terminology), and that strict avoidance is paramount.
If you do a search in the Schools thread under my username (Nutternomore), you'll see a bunch of posts that documented my process of obtaining a 504 plan for my child last year (who was entering Kindergarten at the time). We also fought w/the school and district into the summer, and literally completed the plan just prior to Labor Day weekend...
[This message has been edited by Nutternomore (edited August 04, 2004).]