A meticulas parent

[Guest guest]

The following was sent to me from a newspaper article.

I definatly makes you think, if nothing else! I am

interested in everyones view on this. Kristy

This was on another list--thought it was interesting.

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fresnoBee.com

It's parent's right to be meticulous

By Kennedy

The Fresno Bee

Fresno Unified School District officials say they are

merely trying to

solve

a hard-to-please parent's problems with her son's

special education.

But

to Brown it feels like punishment, like she's

wearing a big D on

her forehead for " difficult. "

She has been assigned a district handler. All her

communication with

teachers must go through Fresno Unified's parent

ombudsman, Ivan

.

All

classroom visits must be cleared first by , who

also must

accompany

her.

Brown is the only one getting such treatment, Deputy

Superintendent

Carol

Bloesser says.

Brown's crime? She sends letters on nearly every

request. She asks

teachers

and aides to document what they teach her son and has

set up a special

journal for the teacher to check off each day on goals

his teachers and

she

agreed on. She asks to see regular examples of his

work so she can go

over

the lessons at home. And she wants the teacher to give

weekly quizzes

to

see

whether the 9-year-old grasps his lessons.

She has even sat in the back of his classroom and

quietly taken notes,

in an

attempt, Brown says, to mimic what works and see what

doesn't for a

child

with Down syndrome. (The teachers' union has

complained about this,

school

administrators say, even though she got the

principal's permission.)

For this, it seems, she received a letter confining

all her contacts to

and saying that district staffers also have

been similarly

constrained. The letter came the week after Brown

complained to Fresno

Unified trustees about nine teacher switches in 18

days of her son's

summer

school.

Sure, Brown asks for more than most parents, say those

on the Community

Advisory Council for special education. But it's

Brown's right, they

add.

Supporters and critics alike say Brown is persistent

and meticulous,

occasionally brusque. " At worst, she's an obnoxious

jerk, " a CAC member

says. " But that's her right. "

Bloesser defends the district's edict about Brown's

behavior:

" Extremely

disruptive isn't quite the word. It's been persistent.

It's been

ongoing.

.... I don't think we have anyone in that ballpark in

the amount of

paperwork. "

Former Special Education Director Marilyn Shepherd,

who helped develop

the

policy, adds, " We have union problems because of her.

.... We've had

people

say they can't work with her, and we've had to

reassign people. "

Tough. Parents don't get paid to be courteous and

professional. School

officials do. And they get paid with our tax dollars.

We expect a lot more from the people who have the

awesome duty of

caring

for

and educating our children six hours a day. We expect

more than whining

about difficult, demanding parents.

Brown says she'll go away, be just another PTA mom, if

the district

will

just follow the education plan everyone signed. While

Bloesser and

Shepherd

feel free to talk about how difficult Brown is, they

won't say whether

they're complying with her son's education plan --

even though Brown

has

given them written permission to do so.

This new " communication protocol " smacks of prior

restraint without due

process, CAC complained to Bloesser.

It sends a chilling message to other parents, as well.

If Brown is as disruptive as Fresno Unified officials

say, call the

police.

Go to court. Get a restraining order.

Or maybe this is just intimidation.

The columnist can be reached at ekennedy@...

or 441-6197.

C 2001 , The Fresno Bee

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