Let's be honest: the world isn't built for disabled children. If you're the parent of a disabled child, you know that you sometimes have to fight to get them the resources and services they need and deserve. You shouldn't have to, but you do.
There's one place, though, where disabled kids—where all kids—should have a level playing field, where they should feel like they belong, and where their needs should always be met: school. Every child in this country is entitled to a quality public education. Every child.
Luckily, there are laws in place to make sure they all get that education. For students with disabilities, both the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) put important guarantees in place, guarantees that ensure your child gets the same level of education as their non-disabled peers. If you live in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission region of Texas, you're further entitled to protections under state law and Texas Education Agency (TEA) policy.
Unfortunately, not everyone out there follows the law as they should. Sometimes that's deliberate: there are school districts out there who prefer to drag their feet rather than spend money on necessary materials. More commonly, though, educators just don't have enough awareness about how they should treat disabled students. They just don't know enough to respond to your child's needs the way they should.
You have enough on your plate. You spend your time fighting for your child's rights in so many different areas of life. You shouldn't have to fight a battle with their school district as well. And you don't have to. The Lento Law Firm is dedicated to helping students get fair treatment from their teachers, their schools, and their districts. We know the law. We know the Texas education system. And we're part of the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission community. Any time you suspect your child isn't getting the education they deserve, the education they have a right to, contact the Lento Law Firm immediately. Call
888-535-3686 or use our automated online form.
K-12 Education in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission Area
The McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro area is a vibrant region of the state of Texas. Located in the Southern part of Texas, near the Mexico border, these cities are home to a diverse population. That diversity is reflected in the many K-12 schools, such as
- Valley View Elementary
- Gonzalez Elementary
- Harry Shimotsu Elementary
- Canterbury Elementary
- Trevino Elementary
- Ruben Hinojosa Elementary
- Jefferson Elementary
- Wilbur E. Lucas Elementary
- Mims Elementary
- Milam Elementary
- Freddy Gonzalez Elementary
- Cathey Middle
- Morris Middle
- South Middle
- Central Middle
- Beatriz G. Garza Middle
- Mary Hoge Middle
- Sharyland North Junior High
- B.L. Gray Junior High
- Valley View Junior High
- Mission Junior High
- Memorial High
- Edinburg North High
- Rowe High
- McAllen High
- Weslaco High
- Veterans Memorial High
- Lyford High
- Edinburg High
- Weslaco East High
- Mission High
No two schools do things the same way. B.L. Gray Junior High is very different from Trevino Elementary, which is very different from Edinburg High. They all have at least one thing in common though: they are all responsible for following state and federal disability laws. Any time a school or an individual isn't doing that, you have the right, under the law, to hold them accountable.
How do you do that? Well, another thing these schools—and all the schools in the metro area—have in common is that the Lento Law Firm is here to serve them. If you need someone in your corner, someone to help you protect your child's rights, we're always just a phone call away at 888-535-3686.
Colleges and Universities in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Area
The Lento Law Firm doesn't just help K-12 students. We're here to support the rights of college and university students as well.
The colleges and universities in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas area include
- University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley
- South Texas College
- The College of Health Care Professions, McAllen
Of course, colleges and universities don't have quite as many federal and state regulations as K-12 schools. Professors aren't required to develop “Individual Education Plans” (IEPs) for their students with disabilities. Schools don't have to perform “Manifest Determinations” before they discipline their disabled students. However, no school is allowed to discriminate against persons with disabilities in their admissions processes. And students are entitled to classroom accommodations, like extra time to complete assignments, if they need them as a result of a disability.
Again, you can count on the Lento Law Firm to fight for your rights. We have the background and experience to help you deal with any issue you might be having as a college or university student. We've helped hundreds of students to succeed, and we can help you as well.
The Fundamental Right to Education
Educational rights begin at the federal level. In fact, the right to a free public education is enshrined in the US Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and a number of additional Constitutional amendments. Specifically, the law requires that any time the government provides education—something we as a society have agreed all children under the age of 18 need—it must provide an equal education to all persons. That requirement applies to all children, regardless of race, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, and disability status.
In addition, there are a number of laws specifically designed to protect the rights of disabled students. These include the ADA, IDEA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. These laws go further than just requiring states to give disabled students an equal education. They outline a set of specific responsibilities and obligations that states and school districts must adhere to.
Finally, you should know that these laws don't just protect certain types of disabilities. Almost everyone knows that schools—and other public buildings—must be accessible to those with physical disabilities. We know about wheelchair ramps. We've all pressed those red buttons that open doors automatically. The law applies to all disabled conditions, though, including so-called “hidden” disabilities like ADD, disabilities that others might not be aware your child has. The full list of federally-recognized 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
In addition to installing ramps for those students who need them, schools must also provide a wide range of accommodations for disabled students. They must purchase technology if your child needs that technology to get an equal education. They must make curriculum modifications if necessary and utilize fair assessment techniques.
Never allow your district to deny your child the materials and services they need and deserve, no matter what kind of disability they may have.
The Principles Within the Law
The law lays the foundation for disability rights in education, but as education has evolved over the last several decades, a number of additional principles have sprung up that work to define how disabled students should be treated in the classroom.
- Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): The first of these principles is the right of all children to a “Free Appropriate Public Education” (FAPE). Again, this right originates with the Constitution. The “Appropriate” aspect of FAPE, though, helps to reinforce the idea that schools and districts must be responsive to individual children's needs. It is a recognition that education is not a one-size-fits-all exercise. In order to provide an “equal” education to everyone, educators must offer alternative instruction in order to meet disabled students' needs.
- Reasonable Accommodations: This idea makes clear exactly what “appropriate” means in the context of disabilities. Specifically, it requires that schools and districts make “accommodations” for students with disabilities. If a student needs a special desk, the school district must provide it. If they need a speech-language pathologist, the district must provide it. And importantly, the “Free” part of FAPE, guarantees that your family doesn't have to pay for these accommodations.
- Individual Education Programs (IEP): Recent decades have seen the development of an important tool used to help disabled students get the reasonable accommodations they need: the Individual Education Plan, or IEP. An IEP describes a disabled student's educational goals and outlines a plan for helping them reach those goals. If your child has a disability, they are entitled to an IEP that guarantees them appropriate accommodations. As the parent, you always have the right to participate in the development of this IEP and to offer suggestions about how it might be modified to better fit your child's needs.
- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): Finally, US education has also come to recognize that students learn best when they are placed in the “least restrictive environment” (LRE) possible. In simple terms, this means that disabled children have a right to remain in mainstream classrooms and to learn right alongside their peers. Your district cannot place your child in a separate classroom or an “alternative” school except in extraordinary circumstances, and you always have the right to challenge such decisions.
The law protects your child and their right to an education. The field of education not only recognizes the law, but it has further evolved to understand and respond to the unique challenges students with disabilities sometimes face. However, these laws and principles are only useful if those who are tasked with implementing them actually do so. If you encounter anyone who isn't doing their job, you have a right and a responsibility to demand change. And if you should encounter resistance, you have the right to fight for change.
We can help. The attorneys at the Lento Law Firm are skilled negotiators. We know how to gently remind school districts of their responsibilities. We can also be tenacious, though, if you need to battle your district. We know the law, and we know how to force educators to honor it.
Texas Law and Texas Education Agency Policies
While the rights of disabled students to an equal education are enshrined in federal law, it is up to the states to come up with laws and policies to implement these rights.
You have tools, then, at the Texas state level to further protect your child.
For example, Texas SB1153 requires districts provide materials to all parents in the district outlining disabled students' rights and describing the services it has in place to respond to these students' needs.
In addition, the TEA's Office of Special Education provides numerous resources to help improve education for disabled students. It offers descriptions of the law to help parents make better decisions for their kids; it conducts regular professional development seminars for teachers; it offers a collection of training videos on its website.
Manifest Determinations
Discipline is a particularly thorny topic in education. That's especially true when it comes to discipline for students with disabilities.
In recent years, educators have come to question the use of what's known as “exclusionary” discipline: the removal of children from educational environments as a form of punishment. Most educators now agree that suspension, expulsion, and placement in “alternative schools” undermines a child's ability to learn. It isn't just that children can't learn when they are removed from the least restrictive learning environment. Studies have consistently shown that students also suffer serious psychological and emotional trauma when they're subjected to the shame and humiliation of being removed from the classroom.
Students with disabilities are particularly susceptible to this type of trauma. Many of them already deal with feelings of exclusion as a result of their disability, and this type of discipline can exacerbate these feelings.
Additionally, Texas recognizes that what can sometimes look like a disciplinary problem can be the result of a disability. As a result, schools are barred from disciplining disabled children without first performing what is known as a “Manifest Determination.” Basically, a team must determine whether a student's misconduct might be an outgrowth, or manifestation, of their disability. Students should never be disciplined for behavior they cannot control or for behavior that could have been prevented by simply following the conditions of their IEP.
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 Lento Law Firm will be a tremendous help. The attorneys at the Lento 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 Lento 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.
