Mediation!!!

Mediation!!! How many have attended one? If it's pertaining to your own Child it gets you to the CORE of your being! If you are attending to be supportive and be someone else's ADVOCATE it still gets to the CORE of your being...especially if you are FIGHTING FOR THE BASIC RIGHTS to have someone INCLUDED in what is everyone's basic right...to be ACCEPTED & INCLUDED into whatever and everything! THE LAW IS THE LAW...yet school after school, IEP 'team' after IEP 'team', PRINCIPAL after PRINCIPAL run their schools the way THEY WANT to run their schools and believe you me...there really are still so many more that DON'T believe or understand what INCLUSION really is, even today with so much technology available with YouTube, PowerPointPresentations, online web conferences etc...to help EDUCATE THE EDUCATORS and ADMINISTRATORS!

I do believe that MOST of our school districts today are run by HIGH PAYING 'Specialists' that are truly only specialized in keeping the doors shut on our kiddo's to benefit from being fully included into their classroom 'societies'...where in the real world...is there a 'special' or intensive or varying exceptionality PLACE ANYWHERE ELSE in our society today? Is there a SEGREGATED side of the lobby of the Bank that only certain people can go...how about a Special Wal-Mart or a Special Target? I don't get this OUT-DATED mind-set anymore..there is no excuse for it to still be common place and encouraged to be allowed anymore!

Mediation...is the beginning steps to a DUE PROCESS when we don't AGREE to what is being proposed at our Child's IEP meeting! Something that does have benefit! For one its a great place to lay your cards on the table and see how individuals really feel about 'those kids' and why....omg...you wouldn't believe the nonsense that is still going on in peoples minds!

Somehow...there has to be a way to EDUCATE those that run our districts DUE PROCESS departments...to educate the ones that ATTEND IEP's...teachers, Principals and just about all those that GET PAID from the money OUR KIDDO's BRING into their schools! Parents need to stand firm in their beliefs of what they KNOW TO BE BEST for their Children! Not enough will go to Due Process and stand firm in their beliefs...!

I am fired up and disgusted at how so many PRINCIPALS...because they are the ones that RUN THE SCHOOLS and for so long have been able to get away with spending our Children's GREEN MONEY the way they want...they have gotten so used to doing things the way they have always done...they aren't going to budge!

Mediation is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if you just want to see how far you can get with a bigger opportunity to have a place where you can actually have a good COLLABORATION meeting to really lay every one's cards on the table and have a State Mediator facilitate...ALWAYS check off that you want STATE MEDIATION not the LOCAL CONFLICT resolution as the person that will be facilitating then would be a district paid employee!

Thank you for allowing me to help you with the good fight of FULL INCLUSION and looking forward to seeing things move forward into a more positive direction for you and especially for your little one!

Yahooo.....that meeting is over with!! What a ROLLER-COASTER RIDE of EMOTIONS!