Inclusive Education Project (IEP) Podcast

The New Year is always a great time for a fresh start, especially as we get back into the swing of the school year after the holiday break. It’s a time to set intentions and make a plan for the second half of the school year, and we are here to remind you to think about scheduling those transition meetings now before the second semester gets away. Today’s guest gives us a young person’s look at ne...

There are so many misconceptions about special education that we hear frequently. In today’s show, we address those, along with understanding how behavioral tools are used in the classroom. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Hayley Montelongo, a Behavior Interventionist for a public school district with a career history in early childhood education. Hayley is a special ed teacher with a focus...

Happy New Year! Whether your kiddos are already back to school or they have a few more days of Christmas Break, we all need to get ready for the second half of the school year. If you have a junior, senior, or even a student in junior high, it is never too early to start planning for the transition to college. Today’s guest knows the ins and outs of this transition to college and how accommodation...

During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year.  Our series on eligibility continues as we are joined by Melissa Brady Petrillo, who came up with a unique idea for children with special needs. She is a teacher in New Jersey who is passionate about books and inclusion and was inspired...

During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. As a much-needed tangent from our eligibility series, today’s topic is manifestation determination meetings. We have mentioned it in previous episodes in passing, but we will take a closer look in today’s episode. We will discuss what it...

During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. We are in a new era regarding the perception of private schools, mostly due to the new perspective we have because of the COVID implications on learning. For most students, distance learning is NOT the best answer for optimum learning. We...

During our winter break during the month of December, we are featuring a few of our most popular episodes that you might have missed during the busy school year. Today’s encore edition covers important information for parents who are gearing up for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. Join us as we break down some of those little details that are most often overlooked in IEP meetings.  Show Hi...

If you have an older student, you might already be thinking about post-high school transitions, so we are excited to dive into the topic of programs for students outside the school setting. Join us to learn more! Robert Freiri is the Executive Director of Gateway Center in Monterey County, CA. Most of his career has been spent in the nonprofit space, working with YMCA Boys and Girls Clubs, after-s...

Wherever you are listening from, your area of the country is probably in full back-to-school mode. We love to bring you helpful information to ensure that your school year is off to a great start, whatever the situation for you and your kiddos. We want to educate parents and school personnel about how we can work together to make safer and more inclusive spaces for our kids in schools. Our guest t...

We see many clients in the transitional time of life after finishing high school and wondering what comes next. Today’s show focuses on a wonderful program that meets specific needs in multiple ways, alleviating the worries of many parents of neurodiverse young adults. Join us to learn more! Dr. Michael Held is the Executive Director of The Village, which offers a multitude of programs that serve...

You have heard us often discuss the shortcomings of standardized assessments in accurately determining the best ways to meet a child’s needs in the classroom. Standardized assessments are a tool, but they are not the best tool to use for every student. Today we dive into “learning stories,” observations that tell a story recognizing a child’s everyday efforts as milestones in their growth. Join us...

Here we are at the end of October already! If you haven’t met with your IEP teams, we remind you to schedule those meetings and do a check-in, even if it’s not quite time for your yearly meeting. Today’s episode takes a new, more holistic approach to neurodivergence as we focus on neurodivergent-affirming care in the IEP process. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Dr. Taylor Day (Dr. Tay), a...

As we find ourselves here at the end of October, we are in the thick of the first semester. The holidays will be here before you know it, so this is your friendly reminder to schedule those IEP meetings with your school team if you have been procrastinating. Today’s topic is how schools and teachers can be more supportive in providing appropriate gender-affirming care for students. Join us! We are...

Today’s episode finishes out this brief series on the four low incidences eligibility categories. We covered blindness, deafness, hearing impairment, and now, visual impairment. “Visual impairment” is an umbrella term that includes an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness. Join us for...

In this series about the four low-incidence eligibility categories, we are giving examples of different accommodation services we have advocated for in serving students. Next up in today’s episode is low incidences of hearing impairment. This is defined as “an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.” Let’s take a closer loo...

As we continue with our series on the eligibility categories of the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), we present another brief episode on the second of the four categories that can be summarized within the law as “low incidence disabilities.” Join us for a closer look at low-incidence deafness in today’s episode. To clarify, the deafness category includes a severe hearing impairm...

We are returning to our series on the eligibility categories with four brief episodes on the categories that can be summarized within the law as “low incidence disabilities.” This section of the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) is an umbrella of four sub-categories, so let’s take a closer look at low incidence deaf-blindness in today’s episode. Show Highlights: Why the deaf-blind...

It’s the perfect time to give parents tips and best practices in navigating IEP meetings and working in collaboration with your school team. THE most important aspect of that collaboration is effective communication, and we have not one, but two communication experts joining us for today’s episode. Join us to learn more! We are joined by Peggy S. Bud and Tamara L. Jacobson, the co-authors of Navig...

We are excited to follow up Episode 274 (Understanding the Enigma: Autism in Girls) with a Part 2 discussion with Melody Abbene. There are so many nuances of autism that we can understand better through the lens of Melody’s expertise. As most of the US is a few weeks into a new school year, this is the perfect time to have these helpful conversations to bring clarity to confused and frustrated par...

Here in mid-September, we are well into a new school year around the country. This is your friendly reminder to get ahead of any developing issues and schedule those IEP meetings now. Make those contacts with your school personnel in the spirit of collaboration and cooperation for the good of your student.   The focus of this episode is on the design plan that goes into brand-new school...

As we are off and running into the new school year, we are sending out good vibes and best wishes to all parents and educators that 2023-2024 will be the best one yet! We always strive to bring you relevant information about topics that can help the students in your life get the very most out of their educational experience. Today’s show focuses on dyscalculia, a common math struggle for many stud...

Wherever you are listening from, your area of the country is probably in full back-to-school mode. We love to bring you helpful information to ensure that your school year is off to a great start, whatever the situation for you and your kiddos. We want to educate parents and school personnel about how we can work together to make safer and more inclusive spaces for our kids in schools. Our guest t...

A new school year is always ripe with hope and anticipation that this one will be better than the last. We can all learn from our past mistakes AND successes to enter the 2023-2024 school year on a hopeful note. On today’s show, we talk with a guest who works every day as a fierce advocate to empower parents, grandparents, foster parents, educational right-holders, guardians, and all others who ha...

Today’s topic is one that many people don’t recognize or acknowledge: autism in girls. Autism seems to present differently and to be much more commonly diagnosed in boys, so let’s learn more with today’s guest.  Dr. Melody Abbene is a clinical psychologist with a specialty in working with neurodivergent people, most of whom are autistic. She does therapeutic work and adult autism assessments...

Things are always changing in the field of education, and sometimes even new legislation and policies are like a whirlwind. Today’s episode takes a look at some exciting steps forward in inclusive education practices in California. Join us for more! Arielle Starkman is an Inclusive Education Consultant originally from New Jersey, and she now lives in Los Angeles. Her career as a special educator b...