Post by dihicks6 on Mar 24, 2008 8:54:50 GMT -5
Sorry, I couldn't remember who needed this info regarding the district telling them that the teacher's notes were sole possesion and therefore, not an educational record.
I have copied below a response from Reed Martin given a couple of years ago and I think it is excellent advice. I would do exactly as he describes and send the letter to that $%$#% school district attorney. (It's the first 3-4 paragraphs that are important, IMO>.)
***It has always been my suggestion that if you are communicating something that is important to your school district or State Education Agency, then do not say it over the phone or in person or in an email -- send it regular mail, return receipt requested.
I have seen two many situations where the school district said "We don't remember that phone call," or "we don't remember that conversation the way the parent remembers it," or "we have no record of having received an e-mail ....."
First, IN WRITING, and sent RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED, you can ask for the time and place at which you can review all of the "personally identifiable information collected, maintained or used in regard to your child." State that you are requesting that pursuant to your and your child's rights under the IDEA, FERPA, Section 504 and the ADA.
In that letter, you can ask them to send you a copy of the school board (or State Education Agency) adopted rules and regulations on "personally identifiable information collected, maintained or used in regard to your child" and how you can get access to review those records and make copies of them.
Also ask that they write you and tell you the date that your school district adopted those rules and regulations under each of those four Federal statutes, and where you can go to get a copy of the school district adopted policies.
Then request a time when you can review your child's records and keep a tape recorder with you to document if a school person constantly harasses you, or interrupts you, or makes it unbearable for you to get through all the records, or tries to charge you $10 per page if you want a copy..... or if the school sets up an appointment to review the records, but no, we have to reschedule, and reschedule and reschedule each time you arrive for the scheduled meeting ---
Now, before someone stands up for the many good school personnel that are out there and claims that never happens in their district -- I can document many instances of what I have just described.
I have won a number of cases just under the FERPA violation because no judge can understand how the school district or State Education Agency could keep refusing a parent to see all the records on their child, etc. The Federal laws are so clear.
if you are having trouble, do not ever have a telephone conversation or a personal conversation with a school person -- you are just giving them the chance to say "well in that conversation we had after the IEP meeting the parent said everything was OK ....." Once you feel that your school district or some individual school personnel are not being honest with you, it is time to say "Put everything in writing."
If you get a phone call from the school district and have a conversation, record the conversation or IMMEDIATELY reduce to writing what was said. Date it with that date. It becomes a "business record" and if you get into a battle with the school district later, your "business record" can be introduced and you can prevent the school person from talking about what they remembered -- you wrote it down and they did not -- so they cannot even talk about their recollection.
Once the school district personnel recognize that the parents know much more about the laws relevant to student records than the school personnel had been taught, the school personnel were not so sure of what they were doing.
Again, I am not demeaning the many hard working and caring school personnel, administrators and Board personnel that we have worked with so easily -- but a lot of school personnel do not ever receive any training on these issues and often break laws they do not even know exist.
Finally, many of you know Connie's story about her school denying her access to her records. We finally got the Feds to threaten to stop all Federal financial education assistance to the state until Connie's records were released to her. We had complained with a "Gebser" letter. The Feds gave them 24 hours to comply. When we asked what the charge would be for copying all those records, we were told by the local school system "It's free" and they asked where they could personally deliver them.
Reed
I have copied below a response from Reed Martin given a couple of years ago and I think it is excellent advice. I would do exactly as he describes and send the letter to that $%$#% school district attorney. (It's the first 3-4 paragraphs that are important, IMO>.)
***It has always been my suggestion that if you are communicating something that is important to your school district or State Education Agency, then do not say it over the phone or in person or in an email -- send it regular mail, return receipt requested.
I have seen two many situations where the school district said "We don't remember that phone call," or "we don't remember that conversation the way the parent remembers it," or "we have no record of having received an e-mail ....."
First, IN WRITING, and sent RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED, you can ask for the time and place at which you can review all of the "personally identifiable information collected, maintained or used in regard to your child." State that you are requesting that pursuant to your and your child's rights under the IDEA, FERPA, Section 504 and the ADA.
In that letter, you can ask them to send you a copy of the school board (or State Education Agency) adopted rules and regulations on "personally identifiable information collected, maintained or used in regard to your child" and how you can get access to review those records and make copies of them.
Also ask that they write you and tell you the date that your school district adopted those rules and regulations under each of those four Federal statutes, and where you can go to get a copy of the school district adopted policies.
Then request a time when you can review your child's records and keep a tape recorder with you to document if a school person constantly harasses you, or interrupts you, or makes it unbearable for you to get through all the records, or tries to charge you $10 per page if you want a copy..... or if the school sets up an appointment to review the records, but no, we have to reschedule, and reschedule and reschedule each time you arrive for the scheduled meeting ---
Now, before someone stands up for the many good school personnel that are out there and claims that never happens in their district -- I can document many instances of what I have just described.
I have won a number of cases just under the FERPA violation because no judge can understand how the school district or State Education Agency could keep refusing a parent to see all the records on their child, etc. The Federal laws are so clear.
if you are having trouble, do not ever have a telephone conversation or a personal conversation with a school person -- you are just giving them the chance to say "well in that conversation we had after the IEP meeting the parent said everything was OK ....." Once you feel that your school district or some individual school personnel are not being honest with you, it is time to say "Put everything in writing."
If you get a phone call from the school district and have a conversation, record the conversation or IMMEDIATELY reduce to writing what was said. Date it with that date. It becomes a "business record" and if you get into a battle with the school district later, your "business record" can be introduced and you can prevent the school person from talking about what they remembered -- you wrote it down and they did not -- so they cannot even talk about their recollection.
Once the school district personnel recognize that the parents know much more about the laws relevant to student records than the school personnel had been taught, the school personnel were not so sure of what they were doing.
Again, I am not demeaning the many hard working and caring school personnel, administrators and Board personnel that we have worked with so easily -- but a lot of school personnel do not ever receive any training on these issues and often break laws they do not even know exist.
Finally, many of you know Connie's story about her school denying her access to her records. We finally got the Feds to threaten to stop all Federal financial education assistance to the state until Connie's records were released to her. We had complained with a "Gebser" letter. The Feds gave them 24 hours to comply. When we asked what the charge would be for copying all those records, we were told by the local school system "It's free" and they asked where they could personally deliver them.
Reed
