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This week we bring you warm wishes for the holidays and a cool  success story from a mom who became a mighty advocate.
Susan contacted us in 2006. She sent an email in which she ranted (her words) about her children's school system.
When she received our auto-response, she replied with "thanks for another door slammed in the face of my child."
Then Susan received a personal reply from Pam Wright. Pam suggested that she stop playing the victim and do what was necessary to be an effective advocate for her children.
And that's exactly what she did! Susan is now the Region 3 Regional Education Coordinator for PRO-Parents of South Carolina, Inc.
In this holiday issue of the Special Ed Advocate, we share Susan's powerful success story with you.
Once you read her story, you'll want to share it with others. Don't hesitate to forward this success story to a friend or colleague.
Sign up free today! l Read previous issues |
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| Why Can't My Children Read? |
"I would cry oceans of tears for my children before I began a path of discovery that would forever change my life."
In From Victim to a Mighty Force, Susan agonizes over the fact that her children couldn't read, yet she was told by school officials they didn't qualify for special education services.
Susan did not know that her children were dyslexic. She didn't know what dyslexia was. This was about to change. Don't miss her story about how she turned things around.
With help from her friends, Wrightslaw, and her Parent Training and Information Center, Susan learn to do research, attended training, and started on her journey. |
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| Special Education 101 |
In Susan's story, she describes what she decided she had to do.
- Get independent evaluations
- Become an expert on IDEA and her children's disabilities
- Document everything
- Learn about special education law and advocacy
 "After reading the first chapter of Wrightslaw: From Emotions To Advocacy, I got angry and put the book down. I ranted about what I considered the school's blatant disregard for the law. I sent an email to the Wrights.
Pam Wright's response surprised me. 'I can see you know what you're doing, but you are going about it the wrong way. Stop playing the victim and being the emotional parent,' she said.
I picked the book back up, finished it, and followed this advice. I learned how the system worked.
It changed my life forever."
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From Anger to Advocacy - How I Turned Things Around |
In From Victim to a Mighty Force, Susan explains how she:
- got documentation together
- made graphs of every assessment
- made Power Point charts to chart progress or regression
"I no longer felt angry or intimidated, but informed. There is only one word to describe how I felt - empowered."
To learn how Susan built a healthy working relationship with her school district and became a respected member of the IEP team, read Success Story: From Victim to a Mighty Force by Susan Bruce. You'll also learn the strategies Susan used to gain and maintain credibility.
Susan is now the Region 3 Regional Education Coordinator for her Parent Training and Information Center, PRO-Parents of South Carolina, Inc.
Does Susan's story feel familiar? What can you do to turn things around?
Plan now to attend a Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy Training Program. Schedule of Programs.
If you can't attend a live program, order the multimedia Special Education Law and Advocacy Training Program - it's available as a download and on a CD-ROM. The multimedia program allows you to learn at your own pace. Learn more.
PRO-Parents of South Carolina is sponsoring a Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy Training on February 27, 2008. |
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| Do You Have a Success Story to Share? |
Do you have a success story or advocacy strategy to share?
We are collecting stories about successful advocacy from parents and other advocates. These stories will be published on Fetaweb.com, the parent advocacy site and in the Special Ed Advocate newsletter. Read more Success Stories.
If you are interested in submitting a success story or strategy, please send an email to: success | at | wrightslaw.comNote: Replace the |at| with
@.
In the Subject line of your email, type SUCCESS STORY in all caps. You will receive an auto responder email that contains details about our submissions policy.
Please read and review the Submissions Policy before submitting your story.
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