Shannon Mitchell tells us of her years-long journey in fighting with the Philadelphia School District for a Free and Appropriate Public Education for her children. She reports procuring the services of an attorney with other parents in her district and winning “out-of-district placement” for her child back in the spring. Yet, her pleas to the district to send referral paperwork for this placement, and even calls to her attorney’s office, are met with silence. The fact that the new school year starts next month is not lost on her. What is she to do?
For the Mitchell family, rather than enjoy their summer and find time to relax, Shannon finds herself making call after call, continuing the fight for her child for next school year despite a favorable, attorney-facilitated agreement.
Every day, Shannon rises at 4:30 a.m. to particularly care for Brianna, a first grader who is very high on the autism spectrum. Due to Brianna’s behaviors, Shannon admits she can be challenging. But Shannon has found methods to reach Brianna; to get her to sit, listen, learn, and even dance with her older sister, Morgan. Despite Shannon’s pleas of the school environment to follow her successful lead, troubling times while at school are met with placing Brianna in the center of the room with toys. As a matter of fact, the behavioral therapist who has observed Brianna in the school environment reports she simply plays with toys for much of the school day.
Out of district placement may not even be necessary if the Philadelphia School District had simply allowed the Mitchell children to attend John Hancock, a blue-ribbon district school for children on the spectrum, for which they are not zoned. Rather than allow cross-district enrollment, the Mitchell family was forced to enroll Brianna in Thomas Holme instead. Her children are reported, by behavioral and speech therapists, to be behind in many areas – suspected to be due to lack of FAPE.
The Mitchell family has repeatedly requested one-on-one attention but has been turned down. They even asked to provide it via their own private insurance, at their expense for Brianna, and again their request has been denied.
Last summer, with the help of one of their many specialty doctors, Brianna was provided with one-on-one assistance at home. Two therapists came to the house, Monday through Thursday, to work with Brianna. She was able to say 17 words (up from 5 during the school year) and was partially potty trained, marking significant progress made at home. But again, Shannon was frustrated that the school district environment refused to follow her lead.
This all came to a head with the Mitchell family and other parents in the district formally procuring the services of an attorney – the result of which granted out of district placement for Brianna. While this may seem like a “win” for the family, it has been met with almost complete silence from the school district in terms of referral paperwork and planning.
Shannon has begged for help, saying she is waiting on the district to finalize and support Brianna’s needs, asking what she can do to speed it up, and begging for them to “support her needs…she deserves an education…please I just want her to get help.” The response three weeks later? “Thank you for returning my call. As stated, I will send your concern over to the OOD team. In service.” And this is after attorney representation and favorable result. Can you imagine the story of those families who need to give up, who cannot afford an attorney, or no attorney will take their case?
The Mitchell family contacted the Office for Dispute Resolution at the Pennsylvania Department of Education back on June 17. According to the PDE’s “Special Education Compliance” page, “The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) is responsible for developing and maintaining a system that ensures that each child with a disability receives a free appropriate public education (FAPE) and that each family has access to a system of procedural safeguards.”
Shannon was told by a PDE Policy Advisor via email that an advisor in her area would “make contact” to discuss concerns. No one has reached out. What good is a Consult Line that is supposed to help parents, or a Dispute Resolution process that does not follow up?
The Mitchell family is simply trying to survive while caring for their three children. Shannon rises at 4:30 every morning to care for her most profoundly affected child and frequently doesn’t get to bed until almost midnight. Her husband’s salary as a police office, combined with the children’s needs, don’t allow them to own their own home, and they live with Shannon’s parents. They have jumped through every hoop. They have fought the best way they know how – and “won” – months ago. Yet, are still begging for the district to do their part.
Once this challenge on behalf of Brianna is resolved, Shannon’s attention will then turn to her 4th grade son, Caleb, who is also on the spectrum. How long will it take for the district to provide him with the services and placement that he needs, and at what price – his education or speech skills? Will he slip further behind? What are his prospects as he enters middle school?
Parents (rightly or not) trust schools to help them navigate the complicated process in Special Education – the Individualized Education Plan meetings, the therapy appointments, the back-and-forth negotiations, what the school says it “can” or “can’t” do on behalf of the child – the issues are endless. And while the Mitchell family is well-versed in Special Education policy, they had to seek legal help for the desired end-result, about which they are still waiting for the district to do their part months later.
As Shannon said in her testimony to the GOP Policy Committee last September, “My mom always says it takes a village to raise a child. Well, it takes more than that when a child is on the spectrum.”
The system is broken. These families are out on their own. Children are being left behind. Pennsylvania must do far better for these children and families.
Please follow DVJournal on social media: Twitter@DVJournal or Facebook.com/DelawareValleyJournal
