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Individualized Education Plans (hereinafter IEPs) are critical for the educational progress of children with disabilities. An IEP as defined under 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1) is a “written statement for each child with a disability” that includes information regarding the child’s current education level and performance, annual goals, progress reports on the child’s ability to meet those goals, lists of services and resources in place to be provided to the child, and a description of the extent the child will participate with nondisabled students in classes and activities.

The Supreme Court case, Endrew v. Douglas County School District, decided earlier this year should have had parents dancing in the streets. It held that to meet the obligations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), IEPs should be created with the goal of educational progress for a child with a disability in mind. The broad focus of IEPs encourages children with disabilities to become thriving students by increasing access to resources and educational goals. However, the Endrew case, while well-intentioned, did nothing to help parents and guardians of those children with disabilities understand the IEP so that they may ensure that their children are getting access to the resources needed for them to thrive.

IEPs are written in highly technical language, making it difficult for the average parent to understand. As a result, the fiercest advocates for these children are potentially excluded from doing so, simply because they cannot understand the document. Moreover, these parents are forced to spend hundreds of dollars to hire an advocate to navigate them through the IEP process. When it comes to one’s child, most parents are willing to do anything for them and may be prohibited when crucial documents are drafted with such highfalutin and technical language that they cannot fully comprehend.

A parent or guardian knows their child better than anyone. They know what will allow their child to succeed. They have probably been to every doctor and therapy appointment. They have probably researched their child’s particular disability in depth. They have spent years developing strategies and learning what steps to take in order for their child to succeed, but are precluded from advocating for their child simply because of a piece of paper they cannot understand. This piece of paper has such power. It determines a child’s access to resources over the course of the school year.

One concerned parent of a child with autism noted:
They are written in legal language and terminology that most parents do
not understand. Parents tend to assume that the school automatically
knows what the children need and just sign off on the IEPs due to the
language. Additionally, if parents have questions regarding the
document, the school tends to send the message that it’s inconvenient to
take time to over things in a broken down or simplified way. Frankly,
many parents put too much trust in the education administration because
of the jargon used. And not to say that all school systems fall into the
category of doing what’s best for their bottom line, but that’s been our
experience.
-Brittney Effler

Brittney Effler is a mother to a three-year-old boy on the autism spectrum with childhood apraxia of speech about to begin pre-school. He may be on the spectrum, but he is capable of doing just about anything when given the correct resources. A parent knows best, but without being able to assess what an IEP is actually providing for a child, how can a parent advocate zealously for a child? For a child on the spectrum, every resource counts. It could mean the difference between verbal and non-verbal, socializing and making friends, or even gaining a level of independence that every child is entitled to no matter what disability they may have.

The spirit of the Endrew case cannot be achieved for as long as IEPs remain inaccessible to the majority of parents and guardians. The responsibility is on the parents and guardians to advocate for their child to ensure their child makes progress and does not plateau, but they cannot do so if they do not understand the document that states how the school system plans on achieving success for each and every child.

On October 2, 2017, the New Bedford Whaling Museum hosted “Finding Solutions: a Community Opioid Forum.” The forum was intended to provide an opportunity for law enforcement officials, medical workers, and community members to converse about the problem of opioid addiction in Massachusetts. The keynote speaker, Mr. Michael Botticelli, is the current Executive Director of the new Grayken Center for Addiction Medicine at Boston Medical Center. As a person who struggled with addiction himself, Mr. Botticelli talked about significant challenges to recovery, and stated that the ultimate cure to the addiction crisis is community. He identified multiple factors which helped create the problem of opioid addiction, and ways that the same entities who helped create the problem can help solve it.

One of the sources of the problem which may also provide solution is healthcare workers. Mr. Botticelli described the impact of the prescription drug market on today’s opioid crisis with a stark statistic: in 2012, enough opioid-based pain medications were prescribed to provide every American with a bottle. Today, however, safe prescribing practices and use of non-addictive alternative pain management methods have significantly cut down the amount of opioid medications being prescribed. Aside from these safer prescription practices, Mr. Botticelli advocated for earlier intervention at hospitals and by healthcare providers when it becomes apparent that a patient has a drug or alcohol addiction disorder. He stated that the idea of reaching “rock bottom” before treatment can begin is part of the problem. Healthcare workers should strive to identify problems before there is an overdose to provide more effective treatment and potentially diversion from the criminal justice system. Mr. Botticelli said that a person with hypertension is not told to wait for treatment until she has a heart attack, so waiting for people with drug addiction disorders to reach their most severe state prior to treatment is hypocritical.

The failure of the criminal justice system to provide treatment options in lieu of incarceration has also exacerbated the opioid crisis, but Mr. Botticelli stated that the criminal justice system is also the most common source of referrals for the treatment of drug addiction disorders. Although the New Bedford Opioid forum focused largely on the diligent work of local law enforcement and healthcare workers, it is critical for legal minds to remember that they can make a difference too. Many of the issues faced by people with addiction disorders are the everyday issues of marginalized populations, but exacerbated by a chemical dependence. As zealous advocates, lawyers should remember that beyond preventing their clients from succumbing to eviction, criminal liability, and other legal maladies, they are also in a unique position to be able to determine whether their client has a drug or alcohol problem. Zealous advocacy is not merely solving a client’s discrete legal problem, but helping the client find solutions to remain out of trouble.

In sum, Mr. Botticelli is one hundred percent on point in emphasizing community. Drug addiction disorders have impacted New England for long enough. Every person in nearly every profession can find a way to make a positive change, even if it’s only in their attitude.