Special Ed, medical care, land, newer builds (home, high school)

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by seasallyttle

Unless the school district is mismanaging their funds, this is not what should be happening. Special Ed funds for kids with IEPs is supposed to come from federal fund pools specifically designated solely to fulfill the needs of IEPs since that is a federal legal document.

Federal mandates for special education have no funds associated with them. They are continuous and rising. Districts can deal with their pension issues because they know what they are. One never knows from one year to the next as to what new un-funded federal mandate is coming out.

Having spend 40 years in education and 33 years in public education, in close contact with a very very well managed school district, any federal fund pools that you talk about, if they exist(and I never heard of such a thing) are very small, and do not have any where near the cost that it takes to manage special ed. Dealing with an autistic child in a public setting requires the minimum of an aide for every two children which amounts to at least an additional $20,000 for a salary and double that for benefits. This doesn't even include all the additional training the teachers and aides need to be getting, or the equipment that is needed.

In Southwest Harbor(I live on MDI), the school department is so strapped for funds that School Board is attempting to tell the Feds to take a hike, but of course, the Feds will come in and do terrible things to them if an audit shows that they didn't provide the service specified---the Feds have ZERO issues with demolishing the regular ed programs to service a few special ed kids. And the local community base has no industry at all, and an aging population with no serious tax base to increase from.

Its not that the communities and the educators don't care---far far from it. Its just that there are not enough funds to pay for what is needed, and so regular class sizes increase; art, music, phys. ed is cut; maintenance is deferred; regular education textbooks are not purchased, etc. and regular education is supposed to still keep up rising test scores, which having their budgets cut and class sizes rising due to ever increasing federal mandates. We periodically have new people get on the board to fix this and stop the out lay of funds we don't have, and then they are told by management what will happen to everyone if they cut these federally mandated programs, and we never hear a peep out of them again. The get a dose of reality to adjust their rhetoric.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

It's the same all over. Texas vote to abolish Common Core. The politicians simply changed the title, but the entire Common Core scam remains in place. The voters were betrayed. AGAIN!

[seasallyttle]

Originally Posted by Maineguy04654

We do not have a time on residency to get free medical program care. So if you have a address in the state ( like a motel ) then you are eligible for all manner of free ( paid for by tax payers ) medical equipment.

This may have more to do with Interstate Travel being protected under the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution than it does Maine, per se. I am not well versed in Maine Law but I do know there was a case years back where a state (I think Oklahoma, but may be wrong) tried to put a 30 day wait period on eligibility for welfare benefits and the US Supreme Court struck it down and would only let them do 10 days due to Fundamental Rights/Interstate Travel protection.

[Nor'Eastah]

Originally Posted by Elhunter

Hello, We are looking to locate to the state of Maine.

OP...? Where's the OP??? Is this an orphan thread? Is the OP a one-post phenomenon?

Mainers, continue with your education discussions....

[Zymer]

Originally Posted by Nor'Eastah

OP...? Where's the OP??? Is this an orphan thread? Is the OP a one-post phenomenon?

'Ppears that way...


Really gotta wonder about some people.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Many posts in many threads are hypotheticals for the entertainment of the posters. However we did have. School district in Eastern Maine that fully embraced the system. They gradually put all their kids into Special Ed. The state came in and blew the whistle. They wanted the district to pay beck some money. The District idn't have the money.

There are districts in Maine where 90% of the tudents gt free or reduced lunch prices.

[TopKick's Girl]

Our middle daughter had an IEP has a result of speech delay, severe expressive speech delay and a phonological disorder. She received speech therapy from 2 to 5 with a private therapist, paid through our insurance. At 5 she would have transferred to the public school special education program to receive services. During the initial meeting to set up the IEP, we discussed continuing her education in the parochial school she attended for Pre-K. The individual from the school district's spec ed. dept. was aghast at this idea. She explained all of the services our daughter would be provided at a public school, 1-1 aide, resource room time, unlimited time with a speech therapist, etc. We were shocked by this as our daughter really only needed a qualified speech therapist and nothing else. "But we can write the IEP so she can receive any services we deem necessary", was her response.
We decided to continue the therapy with the private therapist and pay for it ourselves.

[RootedRambler]

May I ask where and when this was, TopKick's Girl? Thanks.

[TopKick's Girl]

Originally Posted by RootedRambler

May I ask where and when this was, TopKick's Girl? Thanks.

spring 2010, before her kindergarten testing I believe.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

My compliments to topkick's girl:
"We decided to continue the therapy with the private therapist and pay for it ourselves."

Once your child gets into the "system" outside of "regular ed." they want home visits. They will ask your child if there are firearms in the home. If they answer affirmatively, your child may be designated as an "at risk child". Then they REALLY take an interest in your family.

An increasing number of parents are contacting school board members to determine what the heck is going on with their child? Administrators and faculty hide behind "confidentiality" as an excuse to hide what is really going on with a student. The system is broken. Out of 36 developed nations, the USA ranks dead last in academic achievement. In that population of 50 states in the #36 ranking, Maine is down there with Mississippi and Louisiana.

That said, there are a few schools that are excellent. You can find them on the Maine Department of Education web site.