Special needs children/ Hackettstown school district

I have a child who is on the Autism spectrum in the Hackettstown school district. I haven't been happy with the programs that are being offered to my child. And honestly I feel my child is being neglected and pushed aside. I had conversations with the teachers and the schools social worker. I have gotten nowhere. All they seem to do is praise the Teachers and care nothing about my concerns. Are there any other parents out there who have had the same problems? Can anyone offer advice as to what my next steps should be? Thank you!

Rosie Arthur
Jan '14

I am not only a certified special education teacher, consultant, and administrator; I am also the parent of two special needs children whom I have had to fight for in order to get the free and appropriate education to which they are entitled. I would love to discuss your options with you and help you advocate for your child.

Diane Diane
Jan '14

Rosie,

You are not alone in your journey. You can contact me directly later today. We have 3 special needs children. My wife and I can share our experiences.

Joe C Joe C
Jan '14

Hi Rosie, I am also a parent of a 5 year old Autistic child not in the same district. Although I am happy with the services I receive I am prepared to say I had to fight for everyone of those services. You receive a EIP explaining your goals and the schools goals of your child. Once you sign that document they are by law suppose to give those services to your child. If they are not then you must demand them to or you have every right to find an out of district school that will provide them and Hackettstown will need to pay for that child's education if they cannot provide those services in house. My suggestions to you is to first contact your case social worker assigned (not at the school) but from Warren County. She will have suggestions and also come to the school to address your concerns. I would also set some meetings/tours with out of district schools like P.G Chambers, ect. They will also help you if they think your child needs more. You need to be your child's advocate and speak up. It is more affordable for local districts to start providing services in house that is why you see the increase in special education services. However, it is important to evaluate the professional background of the employees they are hiring and to how many hours they are hiring them for. If your child receives ABA therapy well you do not want 5 different ABA therapist working with your child. It makes ABA counter-productive since ABA is repetition and that can be kind of hard when 5 staff members are trying to follow each other.

Last thing, ask for a very detailed daily communication log of what your child works on and with on a daily basis. You need to know this so you can follow through at home. If your child is learning animal sounds that day in school then you can help your child by imitating those sounds at night. (Just an example)
Please feel free to contact me with any questions.

SummerNic SummerNic
Jan '14

You've gotten some wonderful advice and offers of help - I am so glad to see that... another resource is C.H.A.D.D. - a parent/professional support/education group - this can help you understand what your rights are, what your child might benefit from and how to go about making sure that he/she receives the best possible educational experiences - and I do strongly recommend that you work with a student advocacy group - and let the district know that you intend to closely monitor/evaluate the services offered.

pmnsk pmnsk
Jan '14

Rosie, I have a child with autism in the Hackettstown school system and for the most part I feel he did receive the services he required. There was one very bad year when a new young teacher was hired and had a high rate of absenteeism.. but for the other years we had truly wonderful teachers working with him. I'll call out Mrs Hendrickson, Mr Emr, and Mrs Tintle as examples of outstanding educators who truly went above and beyond while teaching my son.

You do need to advocate and push for what you think is needed with your child's case manager.. if you are told that a certain therapy 2 times per week is recommended, you can say you want that therapy 3 or even 4 times per week if you think it necessary. If you want your child to be mainstreamed for a certain subject, but in a special ed classroom for another subject, you can insist upon that. If your child requires an aid in the classroom to keep focused and organized, you can insist upon that. You have the option to ask someone from the State Dept of Developmental Disabilities to come to the school and assess your child's program, if you feel that the IEP is not accurate or is not being followed.

My son is in high school now and he goes to Warren Tech. At HHS he would have spent most of his time in a resource room. At Tech the school is smaller, the Special Services program is fairly new and they are doing an outstanding job, he is very happy there, and learning job skills along with his academics.

Best of Luck to you!

hktownie hktownie
Jan '14

hktownie,
That is great news the Warren Tech is doing that program. I am very happy your son loves it there.

Summernic Summernic
Jan '14

What options are there other than private schools for special needs kids if not the hackettstown school district? I'm in the same boat and don't know what other public schools they would pay for a child to go? Would love to follow this thread or have someone msg me. Thanks!

Lovebeingamommy Lovebeingamommy
Jan '14

You can go to www.asah.org for a list of private special education schools.

hopeful hopeful
Jan '14

I'm just outside the Hackettstown line for the school district and am in Long Valley's. I've been informed that I do not want to move out of this district while my child who is Autistic too is still going to school because the district has the best record in the state for schooling special needs children.

If it's feesable you might want to look into moving across the line.

Sirya Sirya
Jan '14

As a retired teacher - I can tell you that parents have a great deal more power than many know. Whereas some districts put obstacles in front of those trying to meet special needs - a parent's written request/demand has the most clout. You have every right to demand the appropriate education for your child. However, from the teacher side, not all parents fully understand what is appropriate for their child. Someone recommended the parent advocacy group. That is a great resource. In addition, if necessary, there are lawyers who specialize in these areas. I wish you all the best for your children. There are some fabulous special needs teachers in the system. I wish one of them for your child.

5catmom 5catmom
Jan '14

Since you have concerns, I would recommend putting your concerns in writing and requesting an IEP meeting. At the meeting, you can over your concerns and each issue must be responded to. Look through the Parents Rights in Special Education booklet, which the district can provide to you if you don't have a copy. You can call the warren county office of education and ask for the special education county supervisor. You can also call SPAN which is the NJ statewide parent advocacy group. Remember that you are part of team that makes the decision. You can ask for mediation after an IEP meeting if you do agree. Instructions are in PRISE. First, I would try working with case manager, teachers, principal, and child study team director. You can also reach out to the superintendent. If it comes to looking at out of district placements, there are programs available in other public schools and in private schools. I work in the field. Before you go to any meetings, write down what you want to talk about

Bobbie Bobbie
Jan '14

bobbie's advice is great... also know that if you work with a student advocacy group, an advocate will come to these meetings with you and help you voice your concerns and present what is needed... can be very helpful

pmnsk pmnsk
Jan '14

"If it is feasible, you might want to look into moving across the line."

When reasonable people start posting things like that, it is time for the Hackettstown school officials to really take a serious look at what they are doing, or not doing, and do some soul searching.

Andy Loigu Andy Loigu
Jan '14

yes, fight for your childs rights, don;t let the school run roughshod over you or you children,

it's always shocking and amazing to me how often school staffs try and bully parents and kids who need extra help.

you have a lot of power in this situation, get some support from the resources listed above,

BrotherDog BrotherDog
Jan '14

Celebrate The Children is a great special needs school. It is now located in Denville NJ.

Dianne
Jan '14

Do we have a autism support group in hackettstown/mansfield twp. I really could use advice. My son is in manfield twp school he's 3....I want more for him but I don't know what to do...he's high functioning in some aspects but I believe he needs more intensive treatment. I contacted SPAN and so far its been endless phone tag...I could use some advice before his IEP review next week...


If you want you can private message me. I work at a private special education school :) I might be able to offer advice

Firstworldproblems Firstworldproblems
Jan '15

Fight for your child! I have witnessed Hackettstown SPED teacher coming out of an IEP meeting, saying, "Wow, I thought his mom would insist on having a personal aid (for her son with Downs Syndrome). She caved. We just saved 20 grand!" READ the book regarding your rights, and don't let the teachers talk you out of them.

fussylady fussylady
Jan '15

Are there places out side of the public school system that can help these children

Caged Animal Caged Animal
Jan '15

Most school districts, you will need to fight tooth and nail for your kid. It seems awful, like why would I have to do that? It just is what it is. School districts are looking to save money, and will go out of compliance if they think no one will notice. Just fight for your child, and keep active and you'll be fine in just about any district.

School district superintendents and board members forget easily that the money in the bank accounts is not actually theirs. It was collected from the people, to be used to provide a specific service. They use the money for asinine pet projects that can cost upwards of a million dollars (ie mt olive middle school artificial turf field), but when a child in their district needs something, they can be slow to provide it.

Don't be a doormat, and you'll be ok.

PuppyDad PuppyDad
Jan '15

Read your parents rights in special education pamphlet before your next iep meeting. If you don't have a copy, call the school's child study team and ask them to send you one. If your home districk can not provide a free and appropriate educational program and services, then you can look at programs both in other public schools and private schools. There are so many rights you have and child study team members / case managers become puppets of the superintendent, board of eds, and their other supervisors. There are some quality programs and staff out there, but obviously not all. Reach out to the resources available to you. If your child has been diagnosed with autism, contact DDD (department of developmental disabilities) regarding a case worker.
You have the right to record iep and other meetings and discussions, as long as you notify the staff, usually case manager, in advance of the meeting. Trinity Church on Main Street used to have a parent group. If they no longer have the group, there are many patents and school staff that will talk to you if you reach out to them. Remember that educating your child takes a team, of which you are a main part. Feel free to ask for a complete set of evaluations, including a thorough assessment of behavior by a certified BCBA. Make your requests in writing.

if I only knew then if I only knew then
Jan '15

If you google wrightslaw, you can access a newsletter that provides advocacy and resources. I recommend signing up for their free emails

if I only knew then if I only knew then
Feb '15

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