Until this week, the only type of court situation I had been in was in regard to speeding tickets (it happens to everyone... doesn't it?). However, when I received an email from a DCPS Attorney General, Ms. G, I was beckoned to a new type of legal situation.
"Good afternoon,
There is a due process hearing for [my school] student [JN]. The issue is whether the IEP and location are appropriate. Based on the meeting notes I have read, it appears that Ms. Walker has enough experience w/ the student to speak knowledgable about her. Ms. Walker, are you available for a hearing on August 3rd?
Thank you."
I knew this was coming. I had 3 meetings in the past 7 months for this student where the parent and attorney for the student argued that JN needed a more restrictive, therapeutic environment. (Read: They want DCPS to pay for JN to go to a vocational instruction based private school for students with special needs located in Northwest, DC). I continued to explain that based on what I knew about JN's needs, my school could technically service her. Would she benefit from this private placement? Absolutely, any kid would. Should it be on the Districts dime? No, I need that money for new curriculum that she would benefit from. But they kept fighting, and I kept disagreeing, so here I was, being asked to testify at a hearing as the District's witness.
The meeting actually occurred on a different date (which I found out by showing up on the 3rd and then told that it wasn't that day.... so glad I came back early from vacation for this meeting...), but I agreed to come and testify in JN's case. Before this hearing, a person called an Educational Advocate had been the representative for the lawyer at the IEP meetings. The lawyer was clearly too busy being important to show up for JN's IEP meetings, but was perfectly capable to speak about the entire process we had been going through for 2 years by reading notes from all the meetings. I had never met the lawyer, and the advocate was not my biggest fan since I wasn't intimidated by her (something many of these people bank on), so this was not going to be the most comfortable situation. Luckily, JN's mom, Ms. C, and I have a great relationship and talk frequently about JN and how I can best help her in the classroom. I talked to her about once a week (or more) during the school year and Ms. C always appreciates everything I do for JN. Ms. C doesn't like anyone else in the building, but at least she liked me. It was nice to have at least one person who didn't hate me when I walked into the office...
The prosecuting lawyer, Mr. H., presented his case first. He used the advocate as a witness first. As I listened to the questions he asked her, I was blown away. I found the whole process fascinating. He asked her questions that would ideally mold someone's point of view (duh) and it was frustrating. I wanted to interrupt and yell at him for being manipulative. Naturally, I raised my hand and the DCPS lawyer just kept hushing me. As Mr. H asked questions I wrote notes for the DCPS lawyer, Ms. G, informing her about all the between the lines things that he was glossing over, hiding, or flat out lying about. I didn't realize that Ms. G was going to get a turn to ask the advocate questions. I became much more aware of how important my presence was... my notes became our entire case... everything I wrote down was really important to counter any arguments put forward, clear up any manipulation Mr. H tried to create, correct any lie that was laid on the table. I felt pretty important.
After the advocate was finished with her testimony, Mr. H brought forth his next witness, the Executive Director of the private school in NW that Ms. C wanted to send JN to. This woman was really nice - I liked her. She seemed to be running a school that was helping kids who needed it and anyone who does that is a winner in my book. No manipulation was needed, her program sounded great without the shady questions. Once her testimony was complete, he asked the woman who completed JN's Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to review the assessment that she completed. This was annoying and unnecessary because we could simply read the assessment and get the same amount of information out of it, but of course when the psychologist reviewed it she only discussed negative aspects about my school and didn't point out the positives that she wrote about. I became increasingly annoyed with Mr. H who was wasting my time and going out of his way to be a jerk. Just use the people who were at the meetings and who know JN, not people who met her once and performed an assessment.
Next up to bat was Mom, Ms. C, my only ally in the room. Unfortunately, this was the first time we were pitted against each other. There were several points during the hearing where we tried to communicate, but Mr. H hushed Ms. C as if I was going to give her cancer by talking to her. I was a disease that would ruin her mind and his case. So he began asking questions, and she was unsure of some of the answers and would look at me for help. I'd look back and frown, wanting to say something but Mr. H would remind her to just say what she remembered... implying not to ask me for help. It was brutal. We had been a team for 2 years in educating JN and now we were separated, both trying to give JN what was best but having different views of how to provide it (appropriately so). I continued to write notes for Ms. G for her counter argument, but I didn't want to, I didn't want to do that to Ms. C. But alas, it was expected, and I like to meet expectations.
After the prosecutor's case was complete, it was my time to shine. I was sworn in (the first time I've ever had to do that!) and then Ms. G began asking the questions. She used my notes mostly to mold her case and ask questions that would counter arguments that had been said. I knew what to say, and how to say it. After listening to the first 3 witnesses and paying attention to the questions that Mr. H was asking, I realized this wasn't about what information you shared as much as HOW you shared it. It was all word play. Ms. G spent about 15-20 minutes questioning me, where Mr. H and Ms. C wrote notes about everything I said and whispered back and forth as Ms. G and I had done during their testimonies. This is much more nerve-wracking than I had expected, but I tried my best to keep my cool. (To be honest, I was rather concerned with my peeling skin from a bad sunburn, and every time they whispered my inner-self-conscious-teenage-girl thought they were commenting on how I looked like a reptile. My inner-confident-young-female-adult knew that this was not the case, but it was definitely one of the reasons my heart was pounding.) Then it was time for Mr. H to counter-question (or whatever it's called). I became visibly nervous.
"Take a deep breath, Ms. Walker! I'm not going to bite. You look nervous!" "Well, thanks Mr. H! You saying that is totally convincing and now my heart can stop pounding, my palms can stop sweating, and my peeling skin will reattach itself and you won't notice that I look like a 24-year-old-white-leper! You're SOOOO kind!"Ok, maybe I didn't say that out loud, but I definitely wanted to. I figured that wouldn't be a good thing to have on the record. Instead I politely laughed and reassured him I was fine, just anxious about meeting my 12:30p deadline to leave for another meeting (politely reminding him not to waste my time and to be prompt).
There were several moments where he became upset with me. I could tell he was upset because he actually raised his voice at me. I was caught off guard... I thought we were all adults, and adults don't raise their voices at other adults... at least I thought they didn't. When this occurred I would look around the room and then back at him to make sure that others were aware of him belittling me and treating me like a child. I would also pause before answering any time he raised his voice at me, to make sure that I had an extra calm response to show the contrast between our two voices.
"Ms. Walker, you clearly stated in this report that JN was suspended more times this year than last, but you are now saying she wasn't suspended her first year?!". [Look around to make sure we all noted he is acting like a child....1....2....3....4.... Look at him and make eye contact....5....6...] "Yes, Mr. H. Since she didn't have any suspensions her first year of school, anything more than 0 would be more than the previous year. So I am right, she was suspended more this year than last since she has been suspended at least once." "Ms. Walker, please pull up page [blah blah blah blah blah] and read that last line for me." "It reads, 'Despite [JN's] improvements, Ms. Walker explained that JN has had more disciplinary suspensions this year than last year." "And you now say she wasn't suspended her first year but in this report you clearly state she was suspended more than her first year, clearly pointing out that she had been suspended!" [Look around to make sure we all noted he is acting like a child....1....2....3....4.... Look at him and make eye contact....5....6...] "No. I clearly stated that she was suspended more this year than the previous. And as I said earlier, anything more than zero suspensions would make that statement true. We have repeatedly said she was suspended multiple times this past year, which is more than zero, and thus more than the previous year." "Ok... well... Ms. C said that JN was suspended her first year... are you saying she LYING?!" [Pause... look at Ms. C with a note of sympathy.... 1.....2.....3.....] "Yes, I believe that Ms. C is mistaken." "Oh... well... you think Mom is lying... then fine...." [Mr. H shuffles through papers and acts like a 5 year old with an attitude problem] "On to my next question..."
This went on for 20 minutes. Then the "judge" hearing officer had clarifying questions that lasted another 10 minutes. He seemed genuinely interested in what I was saying and doing at my school and seemed to show more sympathy than I expected. When I was finished, Ms. G wrote "good job." in my notebook and closed it for me. I said goodbye to everyone, told Ms. C "good luck with everything!" and then ran out of there. After being yelled at by a lawyer for 20 minutes about things out of my control, I was ready to forget all about it. I can't control whether the deans document suspensions properly. I can't control what other teachers do in their classrooms. I can't control whether adults are consistent with children in the building. I CAN worry about me and I CAN control what I do, but that's about it.
Cases like JN's aren't uncommon in the district. I have about 5-6 students each year who are special needs and have lawyers who "represent" them by filing complaints against the district. We call these, HOD cases, which stands for Hearing Officer Determinations. When a parent feels their child has had educational harm done to them, they can file a complaint against the district. The complaint is presented to a Hearing Officer, and that Hearing Officer determines what actions are to be taken in order to resolve the issue. If these steps are taken and the issue is still unresolved, it comes back before the Hearing Officer and the case is then heard about whether DCPS can service the child within the public school system or if the student must attend a private school where students from the district are placed. So, JN's case was an HOD that went back to court because mom wants JN at a placement school. Unfortunately, the equivalent of ambulance chaser's have taken on the responsibility of encouraging parents to file complaints against DCPS and the district spends a significant chunk of their budget on lawyers, placement school tuition, and transportation to said schools. While I think it's great that these kids get to go to private schools, it has diverted millions of dollars in resources from those kids without lawyers who also expect to be educated on the public dime. Who is really winning here? We'll save the explanation for how this lawsuit culture started and my opinions of it's effects on the District for another day.
One thing I did realize after this whole experience is I need to start watching more lawyer shows... Maybe I'd know what to expect? On a more serious note, it did make me think about going to law school. If I'm going to be battling lawyers as a teacher, I feel it could be useful to know what they know. Know thine enemy, right?
For now, that will have to remain on the back-burner and I'll just watch more Law & Order.
"Good afternoon,
There is a due process hearing for [my school] student [JN]. The issue is whether the IEP and location are appropriate. Based on the meeting notes I have read, it appears that Ms. Walker has enough experience w/ the student to speak knowledgable about her. Ms. Walker, are you available for a hearing on August 3rd?
Thank you."
I knew this was coming. I had 3 meetings in the past 7 months for this student where the parent and attorney for the student argued that JN needed a more restrictive, therapeutic environment. (Read: They want DCPS to pay for JN to go to a vocational instruction based private school for students with special needs located in Northwest, DC). I continued to explain that based on what I knew about JN's needs, my school could technically service her. Would she benefit from this private placement? Absolutely, any kid would. Should it be on the Districts dime? No, I need that money for new curriculum that she would benefit from. But they kept fighting, and I kept disagreeing, so here I was, being asked to testify at a hearing as the District's witness.
The meeting actually occurred on a different date (which I found out by showing up on the 3rd and then told that it wasn't that day.... so glad I came back early from vacation for this meeting...), but I agreed to come and testify in JN's case. Before this hearing, a person called an Educational Advocate had been the representative for the lawyer at the IEP meetings. The lawyer was clearly too busy being important to show up for JN's IEP meetings, but was perfectly capable to speak about the entire process we had been going through for 2 years by reading notes from all the meetings. I had never met the lawyer, and the advocate was not my biggest fan since I wasn't intimidated by her (something many of these people bank on), so this was not going to be the most comfortable situation. Luckily, JN's mom, Ms. C, and I have a great relationship and talk frequently about JN and how I can best help her in the classroom. I talked to her about once a week (or more) during the school year and Ms. C always appreciates everything I do for JN. Ms. C doesn't like anyone else in the building, but at least she liked me. It was nice to have at least one person who didn't hate me when I walked into the office...
The prosecuting lawyer, Mr. H., presented his case first. He used the advocate as a witness first. As I listened to the questions he asked her, I was blown away. I found the whole process fascinating. He asked her questions that would ideally mold someone's point of view (duh) and it was frustrating. I wanted to interrupt and yell at him for being manipulative. Naturally, I raised my hand and the DCPS lawyer just kept hushing me. As Mr. H asked questions I wrote notes for the DCPS lawyer, Ms. G, informing her about all the between the lines things that he was glossing over, hiding, or flat out lying about. I didn't realize that Ms. G was going to get a turn to ask the advocate questions. I became much more aware of how important my presence was... my notes became our entire case... everything I wrote down was really important to counter any arguments put forward, clear up any manipulation Mr. H tried to create, correct any lie that was laid on the table. I felt pretty important.
After the advocate was finished with her testimony, Mr. H brought forth his next witness, the Executive Director of the private school in NW that Ms. C wanted to send JN to. This woman was really nice - I liked her. She seemed to be running a school that was helping kids who needed it and anyone who does that is a winner in my book. No manipulation was needed, her program sounded great without the shady questions. Once her testimony was complete, he asked the woman who completed JN's Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to review the assessment that she completed. This was annoying and unnecessary because we could simply read the assessment and get the same amount of information out of it, but of course when the psychologist reviewed it she only discussed negative aspects about my school and didn't point out the positives that she wrote about. I became increasingly annoyed with Mr. H who was wasting my time and going out of his way to be a jerk. Just use the people who were at the meetings and who know JN, not people who met her once and performed an assessment.
Next up to bat was Mom, Ms. C, my only ally in the room. Unfortunately, this was the first time we were pitted against each other. There were several points during the hearing where we tried to communicate, but Mr. H hushed Ms. C as if I was going to give her cancer by talking to her. I was a disease that would ruin her mind and his case. So he began asking questions, and she was unsure of some of the answers and would look at me for help. I'd look back and frown, wanting to say something but Mr. H would remind her to just say what she remembered... implying not to ask me for help. It was brutal. We had been a team for 2 years in educating JN and now we were separated, both trying to give JN what was best but having different views of how to provide it (appropriately so). I continued to write notes for Ms. G for her counter argument, but I didn't want to, I didn't want to do that to Ms. C. But alas, it was expected, and I like to meet expectations.
After the prosecutor's case was complete, it was my time to shine. I was sworn in (the first time I've ever had to do that!) and then Ms. G began asking the questions. She used my notes mostly to mold her case and ask questions that would counter arguments that had been said. I knew what to say, and how to say it. After listening to the first 3 witnesses and paying attention to the questions that Mr. H was asking, I realized this wasn't about what information you shared as much as HOW you shared it. It was all word play. Ms. G spent about 15-20 minutes questioning me, where Mr. H and Ms. C wrote notes about everything I said and whispered back and forth as Ms. G and I had done during their testimonies. This is much more nerve-wracking than I had expected, but I tried my best to keep my cool. (To be honest, I was rather concerned with my peeling skin from a bad sunburn, and every time they whispered my inner-self-conscious-teenage-girl thought they were commenting on how I looked like a reptile. My inner-confident-young-female-adult knew that this was not the case, but it was definitely one of the reasons my heart was pounding.) Then it was time for Mr. H to counter-question (or whatever it's called). I became visibly nervous.
"Take a deep breath, Ms. Walker! I'm not going to bite. You look nervous!" "Well, thanks Mr. H! You saying that is totally convincing and now my heart can stop pounding, my palms can stop sweating, and my peeling skin will reattach itself and you won't notice that I look like a 24-year-old-white-leper! You're SOOOO kind!"Ok, maybe I didn't say that out loud, but I definitely wanted to. I figured that wouldn't be a good thing to have on the record. Instead I politely laughed and reassured him I was fine, just anxious about meeting my 12:30p deadline to leave for another meeting (politely reminding him not to waste my time and to be prompt).
There were several moments where he became upset with me. I could tell he was upset because he actually raised his voice at me. I was caught off guard... I thought we were all adults, and adults don't raise their voices at other adults... at least I thought they didn't. When this occurred I would look around the room and then back at him to make sure that others were aware of him belittling me and treating me like a child. I would also pause before answering any time he raised his voice at me, to make sure that I had an extra calm response to show the contrast between our two voices.
"Ms. Walker, you clearly stated in this report that JN was suspended more times this year than last, but you are now saying she wasn't suspended her first year?!". [Look around to make sure we all noted he is acting like a child....1....2....3....4.... Look at him and make eye contact....5....6...] "Yes, Mr. H. Since she didn't have any suspensions her first year of school, anything more than 0 would be more than the previous year. So I am right, she was suspended more this year than last since she has been suspended at least once." "Ms. Walker, please pull up page [blah blah blah blah blah] and read that last line for me." "It reads, 'Despite [JN's] improvements, Ms. Walker explained that JN has had more disciplinary suspensions this year than last year." "And you now say she wasn't suspended her first year but in this report you clearly state she was suspended more than her first year, clearly pointing out that she had been suspended!" [Look around to make sure we all noted he is acting like a child....1....2....3....4.... Look at him and make eye contact....5....6...] "No. I clearly stated that she was suspended more this year than the previous. And as I said earlier, anything more than zero suspensions would make that statement true. We have repeatedly said she was suspended multiple times this past year, which is more than zero, and thus more than the previous year." "Ok... well... Ms. C said that JN was suspended her first year... are you saying she LYING?!" [Pause... look at Ms. C with a note of sympathy.... 1.....2.....3.....] "Yes, I believe that Ms. C is mistaken." "Oh... well... you think Mom is lying... then fine...." [Mr. H shuffles through papers and acts like a 5 year old with an attitude problem] "On to my next question..."
This went on for 20 minutes. Then the "judge" hearing officer had clarifying questions that lasted another 10 minutes. He seemed genuinely interested in what I was saying and doing at my school and seemed to show more sympathy than I expected. When I was finished, Ms. G wrote "good job." in my notebook and closed it for me. I said goodbye to everyone, told Ms. C "good luck with everything!" and then ran out of there. After being yelled at by a lawyer for 20 minutes about things out of my control, I was ready to forget all about it. I can't control whether the deans document suspensions properly. I can't control what other teachers do in their classrooms. I can't control whether adults are consistent with children in the building. I CAN worry about me and I CAN control what I do, but that's about it.
Cases like JN's aren't uncommon in the district. I have about 5-6 students each year who are special needs and have lawyers who "represent" them by filing complaints against the district. We call these, HOD cases, which stands for Hearing Officer Determinations. When a parent feels their child has had educational harm done to them, they can file a complaint against the district. The complaint is presented to a Hearing Officer, and that Hearing Officer determines what actions are to be taken in order to resolve the issue. If these steps are taken and the issue is still unresolved, it comes back before the Hearing Officer and the case is then heard about whether DCPS can service the child within the public school system or if the student must attend a private school where students from the district are placed. So, JN's case was an HOD that went back to court because mom wants JN at a placement school. Unfortunately, the equivalent of ambulance chaser's have taken on the responsibility of encouraging parents to file complaints against DCPS and the district spends a significant chunk of their budget on lawyers, placement school tuition, and transportation to said schools. While I think it's great that these kids get to go to private schools, it has diverted millions of dollars in resources from those kids without lawyers who also expect to be educated on the public dime. Who is really winning here? We'll save the explanation for how this lawsuit culture started and my opinions of it's effects on the District for another day.
One thing I did realize after this whole experience is I need to start watching more lawyer shows... Maybe I'd know what to expect? On a more serious note, it did make me think about going to law school. If I'm going to be battling lawyers as a teacher, I feel it could be useful to know what they know. Know thine enemy, right?
For now, that will have to remain on the back-burner and I'll just watch more Law & Order.
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