Photo Essay on the Success of the NJ
Student Advocacy Union, Standing up for the Rights of Children with Disabilities
in front of the Department of Education on May 17!
Audubon, NJ: Don't Scapegoat Our Kids!
Stop the Torture
of Autistic Kids - Franklin Must Go! (Cherry Hill, NJ)
Arrested / Suspended for
T-Shirt Slogan!
Autism Related Novel Attacked in
Bernards Twp, NJ
SELC: Ensuring the Participation
of Critical IEP Team Members
NEW: Able News July
Issue Report on May 17 Demonstration
Bergen Record Report on
May 17
Report:
June 19, 2006, Piscataway Steps Toward Unity
Piscataway Organizing Flyer and Petition (MS
WORD)
Student Advocacy Union
Co-Founder Responds to Upper Freehold Scapegoating of Special Education Students
Action Alert Stay Put and Manifest
Determination Still on Chopping Block
Action
Alert: Write to Shift Proof Burden Back to Districts (Where it Belongs)
June 8 Report on
Demonstration Against Flat Fund
Flat Fund / Stay Put / Manifest Determination Sample
Letter
NJ: Short Term Objectives to Stay!!
Testimony at State Board Hearing
of 12/21/2005, 1/18/2006
Off the Presses: NJ Student Advocate - A
Tool For Parental Empowerment
Spring Issue of Available of NJ Student Advocate
Newspaper (PDF)
NJ Student Advocate
On-Line Version - Fall 2005
Announcing:
The NJ Student Advocacy Union
Printable:
Founding Statement /
FAQ: What We Need
Printable Alerts: Call On Corzine to
Accept Petition /
IDEIA 2004 Petition
Governor Corzine: Accept the
Petition!
Mansfield Parents Continue to Stand for
Our Children
Join
Over 2000 NJ Residents!
Sign the Petition to Defend Strong NJ Special
Education Law
MS 2000 Version of Petition to
Print w/ Signature Block / MS2000 Petition
Announcement for Posting
IDEIA 2004 Press
Release / Press Work Volunteers Needed /
Haddonfield Area Press Release
MS2000 Peticion en Espanol!
NJ Special Education Loses $30
Million - to Laziness?
Get Your Letter Out!
On-line / Phone / E-mail / In Person by Appointment Written Comment Clinic
Printable Letter
Writing Worksheet for Comments Workshops
We Need Hard Copy of Petitions!
Toolbox forWriting Your Own Letter to Promote
Strong IDEA in NJ
Partial History of
NJ Struggle for a Better IDEIA 2004
What is the Student Advocate Web Site?
The mission of this website is to provide support and advocacy for parents and students with the goal of providing the best possible education for every student. Specifically, this website aims to advocate for the needs of all students who face particular challenges in their education due to disabilities or for other reasons. While serving the “special needs” students of our districts and their families is the top goal of this site, information provided here will also address related issues for students who might be facing challenges in education other than those presented by ha+ving a disability.
Navigating the complicated process of defining an educational plan for children with disabilities is an effort often fraught with frustrations, confusion, highly charged emotional situations and disappointments. Parents often find themselves at odds and even in dire straits in advocating for the best possible educational plan for our children.
Sleepless nights, reviewing IEP draft after IEP draft, finding that services are inadvertently missing from one draft to the next, being intimidated and outnumbered at IEP meetings heavily staffed with district personnel, sometimes hitting what seems like a brick wall – are all experiences of special needs parents in our districts. It does not need to be that way.
This website will provide a means for we as parents and supporters of children who face challenges because of disabilities and other reasons to begin to address these issues in an organized way.
Immediate goals of this website are to provide the following:
Resources :
Links to organizations and other resources who can help us with our efforts.
Organization:
This website and its
related newspaper and other infrastructure seeks to organize parents, guardians
and other supporters of students facing adversity due to disability, racial
disparity and economic inequity into a convergent and unified force to
strengthen our hand be it at the district, state or federal level.
Discussion:
The “Ask the Student Advocate” page will provide an opportunity to share your questions with other parents and supporters. Names and details need not be provided to maintain family privacy. We have also set up a yahoogroups discussion group:
To subscribe, send a
message to:
NJStrongIDEA-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
The e-discussion will allow for multiparty e-mail dialogue around the questions we are facing around the implementation of IDEIA 2004 in NJ and how we can best organize for the strongest possible implementation and to prevent the weakening of NJ special education law.
Analysis
Critical analysis of issues we face and what we need to be doing about it will be provided.
Advocacy
This website will
stake out a position advocating for the best possible education for children
with challenges in our districts. We will raise concerns, make recommendations
and otherwise support advocacy around the issues parents of special needs
students are facing.
Ask the Advocate
NJ Complaint Form (MS Word)
(PDF)
On Line Public Hearing on IDEIA 2004
Survey on NJ OSEP Complaint
Process
Past Activities
IEP Wkshp
Rec. Programs for
those w/ Disabilities
An Evening of Educational Advocacy
September 8, 2005 Edison, NJ
What The Student Advocate Has Done for Our Children
Lately . . .
NJ IDEIA 2004 Organizing Committee
Minutes of IDEIA 2004 meeting on Thu., May
26
Student Rights Radio
Discussion, October 31
Effort to
Reach Gubernatorial Hopefuls and Acting Governor / Candidates
IDEA: An Update
Dec. 5, 2005
Middletown
January 18,
2006: Hold a Candle Light for Our Children's Rights
50 Strong For Our
Children
No. Jersey Radio Interview Aired, 1/22
Petitioning for Rights Children: Legal in Princeton
Interview on NJ IDEIA Rights
- Racial Disparities in Sp-Ed
Call
is Heard in Montgomery Twp: Inclusive Recreation
NJSAU Minutes 2/18/2006
Playing and Singing for
Our Rights, 4/1/6
Better IDEA Laws for Special Education
Students?
Better IEPs? Anything is Possible!
April
1 Report: Student Advocacy Union - Fundraising Concert
Mobilization for Rights
of Our Children, May 17, 2006, Trenton
Nationwide Internet Radio Rally for Sp-Ed Parent Rights
9pm EST, Sat. May 20
Parents’ Rally @ Statehouse in Trenton Thursday, June 8, 2006
Piscataway Parents Mtg, June 19, 2006