Those seeking the best possible education for their student deserve all of the rights and accommodations afforded by law, even out in Big Sky Country. Whether your student has a learning disability, physical disability, behavioral disturbance, or any other condition protected by state and federal statutes, your student must receive the full measure of resources.
Unfortunately, administrators and educators approach special needs on a case-by-case basis. Some go above and beyond to ensure a student receives fair, compassionate treatment and all of the accommodations they require. Other authorities are less attentive or compassionate to the needs of students with disabilities, and that's what you may be encountering.
The Lento Law Firm ensures that students and their guardians (or others in a position of responsibility) can exercise the rights afforded by Montana law and multiple federal statutes. We will become intimately familiar with your student's circumstances and the shortcomings that have impeded their education. Our team will then develop a plan for rectifying the problem(s) and placing your student in a position for success.
Call the Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team today at 888.535.3686 to discuss how we can assist you and your student. You can also tell us about your situation on our website.
What Special Education Means for Those in Montana
The United States Department of Education clearly defines special education as:
- Specialized instruction
- Coming at no cost to the guardian or parent
- Designed to accommodate the unique needs of the student
- Encompassing the classroom, home, medical facilities, and professional locales
- Including (but not limited to) speech and language pathology, education, vocational training, and travel training
This is a broad standard that ensures any student with a disability is entitled to all reasonable accommodations.
Disabled Students in Montana Have Rights Under Federal Law
Before parsing the details of Montana law, let's establish that federal law protects disabled K-12 students. In fact, federal statutes like the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Americans with Disabilities Act) go further than protection, providing for proactive accommodations aimed specifically at disabled learners.
The IDEA is the law our attorneys most often cite when seeking fair treatment and accommodation for students with disabilities. This Act provides accommodations in many aspects of your student's learning experience, including:
- Providing early learning services for students who need a head start
- Ensuring that every student is able to physically access classrooms, gyms, and other facilities related to their education
- Detailing the alternate assessment methods often required for students with disabilities
- Detailing how educators should deal with bullying of disabled students, who are disproportionately targets of ill-treatment from peers and superiors
- Providing a consistent, detailed framework for resolving disputes that involve students with disabilities (this may be especially relevant to your circumstances)
- Outlining many other rights and protocols specific to students with disabilities
The IDEA is a federal law, meaning its mandates include students and educators in Montana. It, along with 29 USC § 3001 (Assistive Technology Act of 1998) and other federal statutes, will be among the resources we can cite as we build your student's case.
Our Education Law Team has an intimate familiarity with the IDEA and all other federal statutes that relate to your student, and we will leverage our knowledge as we seek a resolution to the issues your student faces.
Montana Statutes and Programs Also Protect Students with Disabilities
Montana's state laws provide added protection for students with disabilities, augmenting the federal statutes that already ensure your student's rights. Disability Rights Montana details many of the programs available to disabled individuals, including:
- Protection & Advocacy to receive Assistive Technology (PAAT)
- Protection & Advocacy for individuals with Developmental Disabilities (PADD)
- Protection & Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI)
- Protection & Advocacy for Individual Rights (PAIR)
- Protection & Advocacy for individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury (PATBI)
Montana's state statutes also reflect the rights and protocols detailed in the IDEA. This means that your student is not only afforded accommodations under the IDEA but also state laws. This strong legal basis will be critical to our case, as there is no justification for educators to deprive students of rights enshrined in legal statutes.
Clearing Up Common Special Education Terminology
Our team prides itself on understanding the terminology that will be used during our clients' cases. Some of the phrases you may encounter when seeking fair treatment of your student include:
- Free appropriate public education (FAPE): Every student with disabilities has the right to a free public education in an environment of their peers. This environment should be as free of restriction and limitation as possible, affording your student the right to both learn and socialize. We refer to this sort of education as FAPE.
- Accommodations: Though the term "accommodation" encompasses a wide range of specific measures, it generally refers to the conditions your student needs to achieve their personal, academic, and physical goals. These accommodations must not be an undue burden on a school or school district, but there are many reasonable measures educators can take to foster a disabled student's success.
- Individualized education plan: Known as an IEP for short, individualized education plans are personalized plans detailing the accommodations, learning conditions, evaluation metrics, and goals for a student with a disability. These plans are one of the fundamental rights afforded by the IDEA. Your student is entitled to not only a comprehensive IEP but also educators who adhere to these plans and collaborate with guardians to revise and update the plan as necessary.
- Supplementary aids and services: These are resources that can be necessary to allow your student to learn in an environment of their peers.
These are just a few of the many unique terms we encounter when discussing and representing students with disabilities. You may encounter other terms that you are unfamiliar with, and that is where the Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team can be of further assistance to you.
Who Is Entitled to Special Education Accommodations in Montana?
The spectrum of disabilities seems to grow with each passing decade, and Montana's educational framework is designed to account for the needs of students with:
- An intellectual disability
- Autism
- Speech or language impairment
- Orthopedic impairment
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Hearing impairment, including but not limited to deafness
- Visual impairment, including but not limited to blindness
- Emotional disability or disturbance
- Any other disability that impedes one physically, cognitively, or emotionally
We know that two students with the same diagnosed condition—autism, for instance—can have starkly different symptoms and needs. The inability to describe a student's disability in a single phrase is one reason why we represent so many students in Montana. It is vital that your student receives accommodations specific to their unique needs, and we'll work to ensure they receive all the resources they need.
Common Accommodations and Rights for Students with Disabilities
From special attention in the classroom to physical access to facilities, there are basic accommodations that every student with a disability is entitled to. These accommodations can also include:
Alternate Assessments
Educators in your state use the Montana Comprehensive Assessment System (MontCAS) program as a framework for evaluating students. This framework calls for:
- Educating and evaluating students in a manner that is consistent with their unique learning styles and limitations
- Availability of assistive technology when warranted (such as written testing materials for students with visual impairment)
- Alternate assessments for students whose disabilities prevent them from completing standard assessments
If you believe your child is being educated or evaluated in a manner inconsistent with their disabilities, we will work to facilitate alternate assessment methods.
Individualized Education Plans (IEPs)
Your student is entitled to an IEP. These plans are essential features of special education, as they:
- Set clear and binding expectations for your student's education, treatment, evaluation, accommodations, and discipline
- Should reflect a collaborative discussion between guardians, educators, and (to whatever degree possible) the student
- Can be the document of record if there are ever disagreements about the treatment of the student
- Can be altered to reflect the changing needs of a student with disabilities
If necessary, our team will ensure that educators allow you to participate in your student's IEP. We will also work to make any necessary changes in the details and adherence to your student's IEP.
Fair Testing Conditions
Even if your student participates in alternate assessment formats, they have the right to test in an environment that:
- Is reasonably free of distraction
- Reflects any particular sensitivities they have (to sound, for instance)
- Includes any accommodations they require (such as an aide who can answer their questions)
- Places your student in the greatest reasonable circumstance for success
Even students with relatively low-grade disabilities are entitled to fair testing conditions.
Access to the Latest in Educational Technology
One of the most valuable benefits of technological improvement is greater assistance for students with disabilities. The range of assistive technologies for students in Montana is vast and includes:
- Alternative keyboards
- Audiobooks
- Electronic worksheets
- Graphic organizers
- Optical character recognition technology, which can help scan printed materials for a student to use on a personal device
- Personal listening systems
- Speech-recognition programs
We will work with professionals in the educational tech space to determine the resources your student should have access to. We will work with your student's school to ensure all reasonable technological resources are available to your student.
Educators Have a Responsibility to Assist Your Student, Not Just Offer Resources
Students with disabilities and their guardians do not know what they do not know. Many of those we represent are not aware of exactly what accommodations should be available to their student—they just recognize their student is not being placed in a position to succeed.
We implore the educators and administrators we deal with to go a step beyond having resources as we encourage them to:
- Recognize the specific temperament, limitations, and needs of the student they are dealing with
- Know precisely which resources and accommodations are helpful to that unique student
- Be proactive in notifying the student and their guardians of resources that could be beneficial (as, again, you may not even know certain resources are available)
- Ensure the student receives access to all beneficial resources at all times
We take a collaborative tack with those from whom we are seeking accommodation or better teaching approaches. Our goal is not just to secure the immediate resolution your student requires but to implement a long-term framework for success.
Reasons to Hire the Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team
Guardians of disabled students are no strangers to challenges. However, if you are at the stage where you believe formal action is necessary to help your student, you deserve help from an experienced, compassionate legal team.
There are many reasons to hire the Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team to assist you, including:
- Our passion for (and experience with) assisting students with disabilities: Our firm prides itself on helping those most in need, and students with disabilities are high on our priority list. While the laws are in place to protect your student, reality does not always reflect the statutes. Our firm will work to ensure your student ensures all the resources the law entitles them to.
- Our experience dealing with educators in Montana: We have helped other students in Montana, so we are familiar with the state's laws, school districts, and many of the authorities who oversee disabled students' rights.
- Our familiarity with the statutes governing disabled students' rights: Our attorneys have a working knowledge of the IDEA, ADA, and state-specific statutes guaranteeing the rights of disabled learners. This knowledge will certainly be helpful as we work on your student's behalf.
- Our determination to resolve your student's issue as soon as possible: We bring a necessary urgency to each case we handle, knowing that you want to move past whatever roadblock your student faces as soon as possible.
Our compassionate approach is just what you and your student deserve from their attorneys.
Call the Lento Law Firm Today to Discuss How We Can Help Your Student
Call the Lento Law Firm's Education Law Team today at 888.535.3686 to discuss how we can assist you and your student, or reach out online.
