Parent of a child with FAS?

Are you the parent or caregiver of a school-age child or children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)?

The Family Empowerment Network in Wisconsin will host a one-hour teleconference on school advocacy for families affected by FASD. The call will take place on Tuesday, June 9, 2009, from 11:00AM-Noon.

Terri M., a mother from northwestern Wisconsin, will be their guest and will talk about her successful school advocacy efforts for her daughter this past year. She was at a point of frustration because the school wasn't responding to her requests for accommodations for her daughter, who was having meltdowns daily after school.

The IEP didn't address the behaviors that Terri was seeing. This is a success story you won't want to miss. You can plan to come away with some valuable tips. Terri also has an organizational tool that she developed that she will share with you.

This teleconference is primarily for Wisconsin residents but, space permitting, will be open to those beyond the state line.

For call-in information, call Patti Cameron, Coordinator, at (608) 262-6590. Call June 1st or after, as she is out of the office this week. If you just can’t wait to inquire or register, call Dr. Georgiana Wilton at (608) 261-1419. If there is space available, you will be given the toll-free telephone number and the access code for the teleconference.

I can personally relate to this mother because of the difficulties that I encountered when trying to solve extreme absenteeism problems about five years ago. The school’s response was, “Our responsibility ends at the curb in front of the school.” I knew that wasn’t true. Anything that affected the child’s education needed to be addressed.

It cost the school district over $150,000 for three years of therapeutic day school expenses and 60 miles of daily transportation. While I’m glad they spent it, the student missed a rich high school education and friends, as he was excluded from activities. The whole issue of “Inclusion” was ignored during that time.