Disabled children are just like any other children. They like to play. They get in trouble sometimes. They're smart and capable of doing anything they set their minds to. They do sometimes need a helping hand, but that's to level the playing field so they have fair opportunities.
The federal government has made great strides in the last fifty years toward giving disabled persons that level playing field, particularly when it comes to education. Both the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) contain important protections for children with disabilities, including a guarantee that they receive the same quality education as their non-disabled peers. The states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania have done their parts as well, enacting important laws and shaping Department of Education policies that further protect your child in the classroom.
That doesn't mean things are always the way they should be. There are plenty of educators and school districts out there who either don't do all that's required under the law or actively work to undermine disability rights.
You haven't got time for people or institutions like that. Your goal is to get your child the education they need, the education they deserve, and you can't let anyone stand in the way of that. The LLF Law Firm can be a powerful ally in that cause. We know the law, both as it applies to education and to disability rights. We've represented hundreds of students in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and we know the educational systems in these states inside and out.
So the moment you feel like your school or district isn't doing all it can to support your child, don't wait. Call the LLF Law Firm at 888-535-3686 or tell us about your case online, and find out what we can do to help.
K-12 Education in the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Area
Lehigh Valley covers a large geographic area and is home to several individual school districts, including
- Allentown School District
- Bethlehem Area School District
- Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit 21
- Catasauqua School District
- East Penn School District
- Northern Lehigh School District
- Northwestern Lehigh School District
- Parkland School District
- Salisbury School District
- Southern Lehigh School District
- Whitehall-Coplay School District
Of course, there are dozens of primary, middle, and high schools in these districts, and all of them have their own personalities and atmospheres. No two are just alike. One of the things they should have in common, though, is a dedication to disability rights. It isn't just the right thing; it's the law.
The attorneys at the LLF Law Firm work with students who attend all schools in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, including those in Lehigh Valley. It doesn't matter if your child attends Parkland High School or Salisbury Elementary School; we're here to help. And we're just a phone call away at 888-535-3686.
Colleges and Universities in the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Area
College and university students with disabilities don't need the same protections as elementary and high school students. They don't need IEPs (Individual Education Programs), for instance. That doesn't mean they don't have rights as students with disabilities. The ADA and IDEA, for example, prohibit schools from discriminating against disabled persons in their admissions policy. All schools have a Disability Services office that works to ensure students have the resources and materials they need. And if your disabled child needs classroom accommodations, like extra time to complete assignments, instructors are required to provide them.
The law applies to all universities and colleges in the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton metro area, including
- Cedar Crest College
- Lehigh University
- Muhlenberg College
- DeSales University
- Lafayette College
- Moravian University
- Kutztown University of Pennsylvania
- Delaware Valley University
- University of Valley Forge
- Gwynned Mercy University
- Ursinus College
- Albright College
- Alvernia University
And you can count on the attorneys at the LLF Law Firm to fight for your child's rights, even if they're college students. The attorneys at the LLF Law Firm are dedicated to the proposition that all students deserve fair treatment and a chance to earn an education. And we're willing to fight to defend that proposition.
The Fundamental Right to Education
It's fine to say your child has educational rights. Just what are those rights, though, and where do they come from?
As a starting point, all children in the US have a fundamental right to an education, and an education that is equal to that of their non-disabled peers. That right isn't just a matter of local statute or state provision. It's enshrined in the US Constitution. The Bill of Rights and several individual amendments make clear that states must treat all citizens equally. If a state takes on the responsibility of educating children—and all fifty states have—they must provide all children with an equal education.
Of course, the Constitution doesn't make specific mention of disabled persons. Other federal laws do, though, including the ADA, IDEA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Among these laws' many provisions, they protect the rights of disabled students to an equal education, and they outline exactly how states and districts must go about providing that education.
These laws aren't narrowly constructed. That is, they don't just protect one type of disability. The full list of federally recognized and protected disabilities includes
- Autism
- Deaf-blindness
- Deafness
- Developmental delay
- Emotional disturbance
- Hearing impairment
- Intellectual disability
- Multiple disabilities
- Orthopedic impairment
- Other health impairment (OHI)
- Preschool severe delay
- Specific learning disability (SLD)
- Speech or language impairment (SLI)
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Visual impairment
You're familiar with many of the ways schools and other public facilities have been modified and constructed to make them accessible to those with physical disabilities. You know, for instance, about wheelchair ramps. Students with ADD, ADHD, and autism spectrum disorders are just as entitled to accommodations, though, even if their disabilities aren't as apparent. Your school must provide technology if your child needs it; it must hire personnel if necessary; it must make modifications to its curriculum and to its assessment instruments.
Whether you're fighting your district to get it to install elevators or you're fighting a teacher to get them to change their teaching approaches, the LLF Law Firm is on your side. We're skilled negotiators if that's what is called for, but we can also be fierce if it's a matter of demanding your family's rights.
The Principles Within the Law
To be fair, most educators do follow the law. In fact, education has evolved over the last half-century to include several important principles that protect all children, but especially disabled children.
- Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): First, the fundamental right to a public education has been encoded in FAPE—the right to a “Free Appropriate Public Education.” “Appropriate” in this context means education must be shaped to meet the specific needs of each individual child. The word “free” is important as well since it ensures that you and your family don't have to pay for special services or materials.
- Reasonable Accommodations: To further specify how public education must be “appropriate” to each child, the field of education has developed the phrase “reasonable accommodations.” In simple terms, teachers, schools, and districts must be willing to make changes in order to accommodate your child's learning needs. Of course, such changes must be “reasonable.” Here again, though, they must be provided at no cost to you.
- Individual Education Programs (IEP): In the last three decades, educators have developed an important tool for use in helping students with disabilities get the accommodations they deserve: Individual Education Programs, or IEPs. An IEP lists the “appropriate” goals for your child's education and describes the “accommodations” schools and instructors will make to help them reach those goals. Keep in mind that this isn't simply a plan that's imposed on your child. You and your child have the right to help shape this plan and to suggest modifications when you think they are appropriate.
- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): Finally, educators have recognized that students learn best when they are in an environment with the least possible restrictions. In the context of disability rights, this principle protects your child's right to attend mainstream classes alongside their peers. Except in extraordinary circumstances, they should never be sent to so-called “alternative schools,” and your district has no right to demand that you remove them from school simply because of their disability.
For the most part, the field of education has embraced the many legal requirements that it takes special measures to educate students with disabilities. Again, though, the “field of education” doesn't include all educators. Parents do encounter stubborn school districts and intractable teachers. You don't have to put up with this kind of treatment. Taking on a school district that refuses to recognize your child's rights can be a daunting task. You're not alone, though. The law is on your side. So is the LLF Law Firm.
New Jersey and Pennsylvania State Law and Department of Education Policy
Federal law lays the important groundwork for your child's rights as a disabled student. However, both Pennsylvania and New Jersey have enacted important state laws that describe how these states will implement the law. Further, the departments of education in both states maintain important policies designed to help students with disabilities get the materials and services they need.
For example, New Jersey has a Special Education Ombudsman whose specific duties include keeping parents informed about their rights and all the resources they are entitled to.
Likewise, Pennsylvania law requires districts identify all children in the district with special needs, including children who aren't yet old enough to attend school.
The LLF Law Firm has a national reputation for defending student rights. And the firm's attorneys are highly experienced when it comes to federal law. However, the firm knows how the state education departments work in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania. We're also familiar with the many school districts in the Lehigh Valley area. We know how to use the law, and we know how to work within the system to get your child whatever they need to be successful.
Manifest Determinations
The field of education has undergone a revolution in the past twenty years in terms of its thinking about discipline. In particular, many educators have raised serious questions about the effectiveness and appropriateness of traditional disciplinary techniques like suspension, expulsion, and the placement of students in “alternative” schools. A number of studies have shown that such “exclusionary” discipline tactics can have lasting harm on students' learning as well as their psychological and emotional development.
Like many changes in education, this one has an important relationship to disability rights. The fact is disabled students are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of exclusionary discipline. Many of these students already suffer from feelings of exclusion as a result of their differences. Removing them from the classroom—from the Least Restrictive Environment—can exacerbate these feelings.
As a result, both New Jersey and Pennsylvania have developed a process known as a “Manifest Determination Review” to make sure disabled students aren't mistreated by a school's disciplinary system. Any time your child is accused of misconduct, a team of education professionals must undertake a full evaluation of the situation. They must, for instance, determine whether the alleged misconduct might be an outgrowth of the disability itself.
No child should ever suffer punishment for a condition they cannot control. State law in this region exists to make sure they don't. As with all else related to disability rights, though, individuals and institutions sometimes need to be reminded of their responsibilities. The LLF Law Firm was founded to help students. The firm's attorneys are here whenever you need them.
Protect Your Student's Right to an Education
Disability law can be complicated, particularly when it's applied to education. As a result, it's not unusual to come into contact with educators, even seasoned educators, who either don't know the law or don't know how to implement it properly. This doesn't necessarily mean they don't want to help. They may genuinely have your and your child's best interests at heart but still get things wrong.
In those situations, the LLF Law Firm will be a tremendous help. The attorneys at the LLF Law Firm know the law, and they know how to help others better understand the law. They know how to talk with school officials and work out resolutions. They also know how to be tough when they must and how to fight to ensure your child is treated fairly and given every chance to succeed.
To find out more about what the LLF Law Firm's Education Law Team can do for you and your family, contact us today at 888-535-3686 or use our automated online form.
