Today’s topic is a new one for the podcast, and it may be something new for our listeners. We are learning about an immersion school, how it functions, and why this education model works well for many students and families. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Maria Ventura and Jasmine Allen-Matora. Maria is a special ed teacher in a self-contained classroom of kids from TK- 5th grade. She has two master’s degrees in multicultural education and special education. Jasmine is the Prevention Intervention Support Services Coordinator and the EL designee at a local school here in California.&nbs ..read more

Our heads are spinning as we rapidly approach the end of the school year. Fresh off the first couple of post-COVID years, it is important to change things in education and revamp what’s not working well. Today’s guest helps us gain a fresh perspective on our kids as individuals, neurodiversity, and inclusive education. Join us! Dr. Rina Bliss is a genetics expert, sociologist, and the author of three books. She is also the mom of three kids under 7 years of age. A former teacher in the Oakland Unified School District, she also taught as a long-term substitute in San Francisco during her grad s ..read more

The end is near! We are SO close to summer break, even though schools everywhere are finishing up at different times over the next couple of weeks. It is a busy, busy time for everyone involved in education. We need to continue to push for change, which is one thing we hope to accomplish by going through the eligibility categories. We didn’t want to let May (Mental Health Awareness Month) end without touching on the emotional disturbance category, so that’s the focus of today’s show. The category name itself carries a lot of stigmas as it relates to a lot of children’s mental health experience ..read more

If you are anything like us, you are feeling the chaos of the mad scramble to the end of the school year. We always know that May feels like this, but April seems like a blur that zoomed by, and now we find ourselves trying to get those IEP meetings  and transition meetings done. Our guest knows exactly what IEP chaos looks and feels like as the mom of a special needs child. She is on a mission to help other parents and families deal with diagnoses and advocate for inclusion. Join us to learn more! Beth Leipholtz is the author of The ABCs of Inclusion, a nonfiction book for parents to rea ..read more

As a much-needed tangent from our eligibility series, today’s topic is manifestation determination meetings. We have mentioned it in previous episodes in passing, but we will take a closer look in today’s episode. We will discuss what it is, how it relates to eligibility, and what it means for schools and parents. Join us to learn more! Show Highlights: What the law says about misbehavior and manifestation determination of a student with an IEP Why a manifestation determination meeting is essentially another kind of IEP meeting Why an assessment should be done prior to a manifestation determi ..read more

As we fight and advocate daily for equity and inclusivity in education for ALL children, we can’t overlook the needs of those with physical disabilities. What could be more important than making disability-competent healthcare accessible to everyone? Our guest, Chanda Hinton, joins us today to discuss the importance of medical rights and how ONE person can make a difference and effect change. Join us to learn more! Chanda Hinton is a disability advocate and the founder of the Chanda Center for Health in Denver, CO. Their mission is to deliver, advocate, and educate for integrative therapy and ..read more

This is your friendly reminder (again) that the school year is winding down, so make those appointments for IEP meetings and such before the time passes. In today’s show, we are joined by AJ Crabill to discuss why school boards exist and what their purpose is. He has written a book about school boards and how we can make them better. This is a fundamental topic that affects the education of our children. Join us to learn more! AJ Crabill works with schools across the country to help deploy student-led restorative practices. He invites schools to rethink how behavior is addressed and taught, an ..read more

This is your friendly reminder (again) that the school year is winding down, so make those appointments for IEP meetings and such before the time passes. In today’s show, we are joined by AJ Crabhill to discuss why school boards exist and what their purpose is. He has written a book about school boards and how we can make them better. This is a fundamental topic that affects the education of our children. Join us to learn more! AJ Crabhill works with schools across the country to help deploy student-led restorative practices. He invites schools to rethink how behavior is addressed and taught ..read more

We are in the final stretch of the 2022-2023 school year as most schools have had Spring Break at this point and are on the final push to the end. If there are things you need to cover with your IEP team, our advice is to get it done now! Don’t wait! In today’s episode, we are returning to our series on IEP eligibility categories; this topic is more extensive and is taking more episodes than we originally thought, but we want to take the time to cover the 13 categories with proper attention and information. Today’s category is autism, sometimes previously referred to as “autism-like.” Contrary ..read more

Innovation in school districts comes from leadership. We often see school districts, administrators, and teachers who are hesitant to embrace change and innovation. Just because it’s always been done a certain way doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for new ideas and techniques. Today’s guest has served in various capacities in special education, and he’s here to share his experience with us. Join us to learn more! Jaime Sowers is the Advisory Team Director at BlazerWorks, an organization that helps school districts across the country with their special education staffing needs.   As ..read more