December 2022 E-Newsletter |
This E-newsletter is devoted to sharing information about special education, disability rights, mental health and human services law, political policy and research that is of importance to people with disabilities, their families, and the professionals that work with them. It also includes updates and news about our firm and its activities. We hope you find it helpful and welcome your comments and suggestions. — Matt Cohen
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Matt Cohen and Associates wishes all of our clients, colleagues and friends a happy holiday season and a healthy, happy and better new year!
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New federal guidelines issued to protect special ed students when they move to a new school district |
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The U.S. The Department of Education has issued new guidance instructing schools to ensure students with disabilities who move to a new school district continue to receive the services to which they are entitled under IDEA. For example, the guidance says schools should provide “timely and expedited evaluations and eligibility determinations.”
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Schools face shortage of mental health staff even as students need record level of support
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Despite the well-documented mental health challenges students face post-COVID, school districts across the country employed fewer counselors or psychologists than they did in 2019, pushing the professionals who provide those services to the breaking point. Many districts blame a hiring shortage but many also are funding other priorities.
“Here’s this conundrum that we’re in,” says one advocate. “It’s like we are trying to put a Band-Aid on something that needs a more comprehensive and integrated approach.” Read more from Chalkbeat.
Matt Cohen notes that our office has been receiving more referrals of families in acute mental health crisis than at any time in the firm’s history. Matt commented: “The stress of the pandemic and remote learning has wreaked havoc on family supports, school supports and mental health supports. More kids have more mental health problems, the problems are more severe and are occurring from early ages on. Sadly, at the same time the need has exploded,
the availability of appropriate mental health interventions in schools and the communities has been depleted, with families often facing waiting lists or outright denial of service. We are working with many families to help them to overcome these barriers, but it is challenging for each family going through this crisis.”
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Early childhood funding, pay needs boost, advocates say
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Advocates are urging Illinois elected officials to revamp how the state funds early childhood education and boost pay for educators who work in the field after a new study found that Chicago early childhood educators are paid $18,000 less than elementary school teachers even though they have the same degree.
Even more striking, Head Start lead teachers earn $16 to $25, while the same teachers in CPS earn almost $35. In private industry, Uber and Lyft drivers start at $19 and Amazon pays $18 to $24 per hour. Read more from Chalkbeat.
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Social and Emotional Learning under attack despite its well-known benefits |
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The positive outcomes of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL), which has been taught in schools across the country for decades, are well documented. But that hasn't stopped the far right from dubbing the curriculum as indoctrination and launching a misinformation campaign against it.
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New data show thousands of homeless students slipping through the cracks
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A new study concludes that school districts across the nation — from the wealthiest to the poorest — are undercounting the number of homeless students they serve. A new analysis by the Center for Public Integrity identified roughly 300,000 homeless students, in some 2,400 school districts, who are not receiving the federal supports to which they are entitled.
“It’s a largely invisible population,” says one advocate. “The national conversation on homelessness is focused on single adults who are very visible in large urban areas. It is not focused on children, youth and families. It is not focused on education.” Read more from Chalkbeat.
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St. Louis teacher wonders what could have prevented school shooting |
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A St. Louis teacher wrote a heartbreaking letter after the October school shooting that killed a student and a teacher. The shooter had been one of her students. “What if, when Orlando was my student, I had said just one more kind word to him?” she writes. “Could all of this have been avoided if someone like me had just done one nicer thing or reached out one more time?”
But, she also writes, the real blame lies with the politicians who “think it okay for a 19-year-old to own an AR-15-style rifle and a trove of 30-clip magazines,” a weapon whose sole purpose is to kill people. Read more in the St. Louis Post Dispatch
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Investigation finds school children as young as four hauled away in handcuffs |
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A CBS News investigation found that, nationally, school children as young as four are often referred to police, taken away, crying in handcuffs for minor disciplinary infractions. Such harsh punishment runs rampant in CPS, the investigation found. CPS enrolls 19 percent of the state’s elementary school students, but accounts for 80 percent of all police referrals.
"It was painful — mentally, emotionally, physically," says one CPS high school student who was dragged down the stairs by police. Read more from CBS News.
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Registration open for 2023 COPAA SEAT trainings |
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Registration is now open for a new version of the COPAA Special Education Advocate Training (SEAT) 1.0, a hybrid training that features weekly on-demand (self-study) recorded content and a live weekly group discussion session for Q&A and interactive activities.
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Upcoming webinars and presentations
Matt Cohen will present at the Dec. 7 Illinois Institute for Continuing Education 6th Annual Special Needs Institute. He will speak on "What an Estate Planning Attorney Should Know About Special Education Law."
Bullying: When Your Child/Student is Being Bullied (and When They Are the Bully)
Thursday, Dec. 15
Noon - 1 p.m.
Matt Cohen and Anna Eisner Seder will provide practical and legal tips for protecting your child from on campus and off campus bullying.
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- Obtained district reimbursement for tuition at a private non-ISBE approved school for a high school student with severe anxiety and school refusal.
- Assisted family in obtaining broader IEP and more effective interventions in a therapeutic setting.
- Secured placement in therapeutic day school and school district commitment to fund placement for one year plus two summers of extended school year services and transportation.
- Convinced IEP team to change student’s placement to a therapeutic day school where student will have access to much needed support for dyslexia and other specific learning disabilities.
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Matt Cohen has been ranked as one of America’s Most Honored Lawyers, in the top 1 percent, by the American Registry.
Matt Cohen again has been selected a 2022 Illinois Super Lawyer, a distinction he has held since 2007.
Matt also has once again been selected an Illinois Leading Lawyer for 2022, a distinction earned by fewer than 5 percent of all lawyers licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Matt also has been named an Avvo top lawyer for 2022.
Matt once again is a contributing author for the K and W Guide to Colleges for Students with Learning Disabilities, published by Penguin Random House. His article, "10 Things College Students with Disabilities Need to Know About their Rights," appears in the 15th edition of the guide.
Matt Cohen & Associates was selected the Best Local Business for the 2021 Best of Chicago Awards. The award recognizes the firm's commitment to community service.
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Is your child's IEP giving them all they need? Does it have the right goals, objectives and evaluation procedures? Do the services and accommodations provide all they are entitled to? Click here for further details.
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BROCHURES AVAILABLE
We offer several different brochures related to the following topics, available by calling the office:
- Introduction to College Accommodations
- IEPs and 504 Plans - Navigating the Maze
- Tips for Obtaining Accommodations for the ACT, SAT and other Placement Exams
- Obtaining an Independent Educational Evaluation
- Tips for Obtaining Appropriate Services for Your Child With Autism
- Classroom Observation
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ABOUT US
Matt Cohen is the founder of the Chicago law firm Matt Cohen & Associates LLC.
The practice is concentrated in representation of children and families in special education and discipline disputes with public schools, disability rights advocacy, including advocacy for accommodations in admissions and licensing tests and in colleges and graduate schools and legal assistance to mental health and human services professionals and the organizations they work for.
For more information about Matt Cohen and the staff and to view this email in your browser, please visit our website.
If you have any questions, please contact his assistant, Tami Kuipers at 866-787-9270 or tami.kuipers@gmail.com.
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Matt Cohen CHADD Membership Support Fund |
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A Guide to Special Education Advocacy -
What Parents, Clinicians and Advocates
Need to Know
written by Matt Cohen
published in 2009
$20 plus $4.95
shipping
to order, call Tami
at 866-787-9270 or
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Disclaimer:
The material in this enews has been prepared by Matt Cohen & staff for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. We assume no responsibility for the accuracy or timeliness of any information provided herein. Internet subscribers and online readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.
We would be pleased to communicate with you via email. However, if you communicate with us through the Web site regarding a matter for which we do not already represent you, your communication may not be treated as privileged and confidential. Do not send us confidential, proprietary or other sensitive information until you speak with one of our attorneys and receive authorization to send that information. Matt Cohen is providing this enews, the information, listings, and links contained herein only as a convenience to you.
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