Michigan’s Troy Public Schools’ Kathy Jagels is just an especially, special director of special education, Kathy would provide FAPE to every child if she had the ultimate control, as would her predecessor Linda Hannon. Directors like this are few and very far between MI school districts. When you have a director such as this in […]
Aspergers
Opt Out of Michigan’s “Misstep”
Okay, I may take some heat for this but what’s new. I am not against state assessments for students in grades 3-8 and frankly, I would probably expand them to include 10th and 12th grade. My issue with current state assessments and not just in MI is that they are not designed to allow EVERY […]
Some Michigan Special Education History: A Lesson for All States
Michigan once had a proud heritage of believing in the educational rights of our students with disabilities. But what has transpired over the past 39 years is not worthy of our history books or a wondrous fairy tale of children’s dreams come true. For Michigan’s 200,000 students with Individualized Education Programs (IEP), it has been […]
Only 17.8-% of MI students deemed “college ready;” Mediocre or Failing?
News Flash! Only 17.8-% of MI students deemed college ready. Some are cailing this “mediocre.” I call it “failing.” The MDE finally released the embargoed MME-ACT scores for the 2013-14 juniors. And with the scores released it is no wonder the MDE wanted to hide the data as long as possible. When only 60% of […]
Inaction is not an option; the silence is not working
On August 28, 2012 I ignited the conversation about children with Asperger’s Syndrome, PDD-NOS, Non-Verbal Learning Disability, Central Auditory Processing Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and how these children are egregiously underserved in MI and across the U.S. I spoke to how the IDEA does not recognize them and neither do a majority of states. How too many […]