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Disability rights is the next frontier in civil rights. We believe education is the key to building an inclusive society and ensuring that all students are given an equal opportunity. The Inclusive Education Project Podcast, hosted by Special Education and Civil Rights attorneys, Amanda Selogie and Vickie Brett, offers a fresh, smart perspective on what it takes to truly make our educational systems and communities inclusive. Tune in each week as Amanda and Vickie share insight on topics ran ...
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Are you paying attention to the calendar? As we find ourselves in the last few weeks of the school year, this is your friendly reminder to act fast for the annual transition IEP meetings that should be happening. In today’s episode, we are discussing the power of “stay put” as it applies to keeping things the same in IEP accommodations and services…
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Today's show is a replay of a very popular and informative episode that we hope you'll enjoy. Today’s topic has popped up recently in some of our cases, and it’s an important one to cover because it is under-supported and often overlooked in the IEP world. We are discussing the ELL designation, which stands for “English Language Learner.” Join us t…
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Tackling Brain Health: Amanda and Vickie make a guest appearance on the Neurologics podcast hosted by Karen Odell-Barber
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Welcome to a very special episode! Karen Odell-Barber with Neurologics was a recent guest on our show, so we returned the favor by appearing on her podcast, Tackling Brain Health. We are excited to share that episode today. You’ll learn more about our journeys, the origins of our law firm and podcast, and the important work that calls to us on beha…
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We are in the season of Spring Break and Easter, which means transition IEP meetings should be happening. If you have procrastinated, it’s not too late! If your child is transitioning from preschool to kindergarten, from sixth grade to middle school, from middle school to high school, or even beyond high school into a vocational program, you’ll lea…
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We are learning more and more all the time about how our brains function and what it means to be neurodiverse. In this episode, we explore cutting-edge technologies in the field of brain optimization, which has huge implications in special education. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Karen Odell-Barber, the founder and CEO of Neurologics, a t…
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Today’s topic has popped up recently in some of our cases, and it’s an important one to cover because it is under-supported and often overlooked in the IEP world. We are discussing the ELL designation, which stands for “English Language Learner.” Join us to learn when a child should be designated as an ELL, how things should progress from there, an…
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On our very first episode of 2024, we were joined by Dan Jordan to discuss the transition to college and accommodations for students with IEPs and 504 Plans. Dan joins us for Part 2 to that conversation to educate us on the student’s responsibility. We are taking a close look at the actual steps students need to take as they transition past high sc…
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Today’s topic is interesting and timely as California joins 22 other states in requiring public schools to teach cursive writing. This has been a hotly debated issue, and today’s guest has a lot to share about the benefits of cursive writing. Dr. Christina Bretz is an Occupational Therapist from Lexington, KY, who is passionate about how handwritin…
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In this episode, we delve into the details of a landmark settlement in California, where a $2 billion fund has been allocated to address the learning loss experienced by students during the COVID-19 pandemic. This historic agreement, known as the Kala J. settlement, aims not only to recoup the losses suffered by students but also to narrow the oppo…
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We are excited to celebrate this 300th episode! It’s been a long time coming! What a great time it is to reflect back on the start of this podcast and why we wanted to have this avenue to start—and change—the conversation about education, civil rights, and disability rights. Today’s guest is the epitome of someone who wants to change the way we app…
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Today’s episode is a replay of Lynzy Coughlin’s podcast, Motherhood Meets Medicine, where Vickie recently appeared as a recent guest. She provided a lot of helpful information for parents about a 504 plan or when an IEP is in place. You will learn what rights parents have in these cases, along with what a parent can ask and advocate for in their ch…
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Here we are, well into January and the second half of the school year. As we often do, we like to remind you not to let deadlines pass concerning transitions, charter school lotteries, special program enrollments, and IEP meetings. Don’t let the time get away from you if your child is ready for one of these changes. In today’s solo episode, we are …
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The New Year is always a great time for a fresh start, especially as we get back into the swing of the school year after the holiday break. It’s a time to set intentions and make a plan for the second half of the school year, and we are here to remind you to think about scheduling those transition meetings now before the second semester gets away. …
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There are so many misconceptions about special education that we hear frequently. In today’s show, we address those, along with understanding how behavioral tools are used in the classroom. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Hayley Montelongo, a Behavior Interventionist for a public school district with a career history in early childhood educ…
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Happy New Year! Whether your kiddos are already back to school or they have a few more days of Christmas Break, we all need to get ready for the second half of the school year. If you have a junior, senior, or even a student in junior high, it is never too early to start planning for the transition to college. Today’s guest knows the ins and outs o…
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During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Our series on eligibility continues as we are joined by Melissa Brady Petrillo, who came up with a unique idea for children with special needs. She is a teacher in New Jersey who is passio…
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During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. 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…
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During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. We are in a new era regarding the perception of private schools, mostly due to the new perspective we have because of the COVID implications on learning. For most students, distance learni…
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During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Today’s encore edition covers important information for parents who are gearing up for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. Join us as we break down some of those little details that are mo…
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If you have an older student, you might already be thinking about post-high school transitions, so we are excited to dive into the topic of programs for students outside the school setting. Join us to learn more! Robert Freiri is the Executive Director of Gateway Center in Monterey County, CA. Most of his career has been spent in the nonprofit spac…
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Wherever you are listening from, your area of the country is probably in full back-to-school mode. We love to bring you helpful information to ensure that your school year is off to a great start, whatever the situation for you and your kiddos. We want to educate parents and school personnel about how we can work together to make safer and more inc…
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We see many clients in the transitional time of life after finishing high school and wondering what comes next. Today’s show focuses on a wonderful program that meets specific needs in multiple ways, alleviating the worries of many parents of neurodiverse young adults. Join us to learn more! Dr. Michael Held is the Executive Director of The Village…
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You have heard us often discuss the shortcomings of standardized assessments in accurately determining the best ways to meet a child’s needs in the classroom. Standardized assessments are a tool, but they are not the best tool to use for every student. Today we dive into “learning stories,” observations that tell a story recognizing a child’s every…
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Here we are at the end of October already! If you haven’t met with your IEP teams, we remind you to schedule those meetings and do a check-in, even if it’s not quite time for your yearly meeting. Today’s episode takes a new, more holistic approach to neurodivergence as we focus on neurodivergent-affirming care in the IEP process. Join us to learn m…
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As we find ourselves here at the end of October, we are in the thick of the first semester. The holidays will be here before you know it, so this is your friendly reminder to schedule those IEP meetings with your school team if you have been procrastinating. Today’s topic is how schools and teachers can be more supportive in providing appropriate g…
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Today’s episode finishes out this brief series on the four low incidences eligibility categories. We covered blindness, deafness, hearing impairment, and now, visual impairment. “Visual impairment” is an umbrella term that includes an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term incl…
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In this series about the four low-incidence eligibility categories, we are giving examples of different accommodation services we have advocated for in serving students. Next up in today’s episode is low incidences of hearing impairment. This is defined as “an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s…
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As we continue with our series on the eligibility categories of the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), we present another brief episode on the second of the four categories that can be summarized within the law as “low incidence disabilities.” Join us for a closer look at low-incidence deafness in today’s episode. To clarify, the d…
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We are returning to our series on the eligibility categories with four brief episodes on the categories that can be summarized within the law as “low incidence disabilities.” This section of the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) is an umbrella of four sub-categories, so let’s take a closer look at low incidence deaf-blindness in to…
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Navigating Special Education with Effective Communication with Peggy S. Bud, MS, and Tamara L. Jacobson, MS, EdD candidate
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It’s the perfect time to give parents tips and best practices in navigating IEP meetings and working in collaboration with your school team. THE most important aspect of that collaboration is effective communication, and we have not one, but two communication experts joining us for today’s episode. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Peggy S. B…
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We are excited to follow up Episode 274 (Understanding the Enigma: Autism in Girls) with a Part 2 discussion with Melody Abbene. There are so many nuances of autism that we can understand better through the lens of Melody’s expertise. As most of the US is a few weeks into a new school year, this is the perfect time to have these helpful conversatio…
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Here in mid-September, we are well into a new school year around the country. This is your friendly reminder to get ahead of any developing issues and schedule those IEP meetings now. Make those contacts with your school personnel in the spirit of collaboration and cooperation for the good of your student. The focus of this episode is on the design…
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As we are off and running into the new school year, we are sending out good vibes and best wishes to all parents and educators that 2023-2024 will be the best one yet! We always strive to bring you relevant information about topics that can help the students in your life get the very most out of their educational experience. Today’s show focuses on…
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Wherever you are listening from, your area of the country is probably in full back-to-school mode. We love to bring you helpful information to ensure that your school year is off to a great start, whatever the situation for you and your kiddos. We want to educate parents and school personnel about how we can work together to make safer and more inc…
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A new school year is always ripe with hope and anticipation that this one will be better than the last. We can all learn from our past mistakes AND successes to enter the 2023-2024 school year on a hopeful note. On today’s show, we talk with a guest who works every day as a fierce advocate to empower parents, grandparents, foster parents, education…
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Today’s topic is one that many people don’t recognize or acknowledge: autism in girls. Autism seems to present differently and to be much more commonly diagnosed in boys, so let’s learn more with today’s guest. Dr. Melody Abbene is a clinical psychologist with a specialty in working with neurodivergent people, most of whom are autistic. She does th…
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Things are always changing in the field of education, and sometimes even new legislation and policies are like a whirlwind. Today’s episode takes a look at some exciting steps forward in inclusive education practices in California. Join us for more! Arielle Starkman is an Inclusive Education Consultant originally from New Jersey, and she now lives …
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As always, it seems like the summer flew by, and now we find ourselves jumping into another school year already. One question that comes up frequently in IEP meetings is why schools use standardized testing for kids with learning differences. Specifically, why do many school districts hold standardized test scores as the gold standard, when we know…
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For our July shows, we are featuring a few of our most helpful episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Today’s encore edition is the second part of last week’s episode, where we take a closer look at what the law says about IEP eligibility. This part focuses on the “other health impairments” (OHI) category. As a reminder, t…
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During our summer break for July, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Today’s encore edition covers a disturbing trend we’ve seen about eligibility for IEPs in which children who need services are being denied for a variety of reasons. The best way to be a prepared parent is to…
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For many, the intricacies of IEPs can be overwhelming, and often, essential details in the plan may be crucial to a child’s educational success. In today’s show, we are replaying a previous episode where we break down some of those little details most often overlooked in IEPs. Join us to learn more! Show Highlights: What to consider in state testin…
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During our summer break for the month of July, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Today’s encore edition covers important information for parents who are gearing up for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. Join us as we break down some of those little details that are most ofte…
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Today’s episode is Part 2 of our conversation with Jack Robinson, a partner and co-founder of the law firm Spies, Powers, and Robinson, in Denver, CO. In last week’s episode, he highlighted his landmark case, Endrew F v. Douglas County School District, and we discussed its impact for students with disabilities across the nation. Our focus today is …
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We are so honored to have today’s guest with us for an inside look at a groundbreaking case in the field of special education litigation. Jack Robinson is a partner and co-founder of Spies, Powers, and Robinson, a law firm located in Denver, Colorado. He took one of the biggest cases in special education all the way to the US Supreme Court in 2017.…
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Summer can be hectic for families, and we hope you have a plan to manage your parental sanity and have time to make great memories with your kids! As always, we will be here with podcast episodes full of helpful information and insights. We have a great conversation today about social workers on school campuses that have access to your child. Join …
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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-contai…
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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 …
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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 t…
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If you're a parent or caregiver of a child with neurodevelopmental differences, you know how important it is to have a clear understanding of your child's eligibility for educational and treatment plans. With so many questions surrounding eligibility evaluations, it can be overwhelming to navigate the process. As we continue with our series of show…
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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…
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