CHANGE WON’T COME ON ITS OWN

This week’s email is a bit of a Call to Action.

When my son was young, I truly had no idea about how much politics played a role in his education. In case you didn’t realize it, the Department of Education is run by and fully funded by our government. Children spend a considerable amount of time at school and to a significant degree, it is the school that is responsible for the development of children’s careers, which ultimately shapes their future.

Schools don’t only play a major role in academics, but they also help shape a child’s personality, way of thinking, opinions, and behavior. Schools influence their social circle and life outside their families. Knowing all of this, you can’t deny that if we are not involved in the decisions that our government makes in relation to the education of our children, they’re going to make decisions anyway and they may or may not be in your favor.

GOOD REASON TO GET ENGAGED

The good thing is that in the United States, we do get to be a part of our local, state and federal government. Yes, that means learning about things you probably had no idea existed. When I got involved with political advocacy, I did so kicking and screaming. I didn’t know much about the process and from my observation prior to that, it was just another system that had its own set of red tape, confusion, and way of doing things… aka bureaucracy.

There are laws that govern education, and in particular, special education – the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is the BIG one! Before that law came around in 1975, kids with disabilities had NO guarantees – the school systems didn’t even have to provide an education to them if they thought they couldn’t or didn’t want to. The IDEA is a very powerful tool for parents. It protects and promotes a parent’s right to:

• Evaluations
• FAPE – Free and Appropriate Public Education (different and unique to each student)
• Least Restrictive Environment (inclusive education)
• Parent participation in their child’s education
• Meaningful and measurable progress

There are certainly a few other things that IDEA and state regulations do, but as most of you know, we can have laws, but that doesn’t mean that people abide by them. However, if we don’t have them at all, we have the Wild West! Laws are made because citizens advocate to their elected officials to make positive changes for their community. If we don’t say anything, we won’t get anything.

SPEAK UP

There are 2 MAJOR opportunities for you to get engaged.

1. On February 6, 2024, there is an AUTISM AWARENSS DAY at our state capitol in Tallahassee. I know it’s a trek for a lot of you, but well worth it if you can make it. There truly is nothing like watching our government in action. The Autism Society of Florida (ASF) is the lead organization in making this happen and will have a booth on the 2^nd floor of the rotunda. I will attach a flyer below. I would LOVE to see as many of you there as possible. We will begin around 9 and be done and out of there by about 3:00 (but you can certainly come and go as your schedule allows).
2. On February 7, there is a Developmental Disabilities Day – same place, same location.  This is where groups such as the Florida DD Council and ARC of Florida advocate for positive change for the entire DD community.

BILLS WORTH ADVOCATING FOR

1. CAMERAS IN CLASSROOMS – We have cameras everywhere! They’re in grocery stores, elevators, Walmart, public parks, libraries, gas stations… but yet not in the place that we send our kids every day – including kids who can’t come home and tell Mom and Dad what was good or bad about their day. This is unacceptable to many of us.
2. DROWNING PREVENTION IN AUTISM – The ASF is hoping for a state appropriation to provide swim lesson grants, door alarms to parents, and training to swim instructors on how to teach kids with autism to swim.
3. ELOPEMENT SAFETY – Currently schools do not have to call 911 when a child has eloped from the classroom. ASF wants that to change. There are 2 school systems in Florida who already have protocol requirements – we want those in every county, no matter where you happen to live.
4. TRAINING FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT – At this present time, officers must be offered training in autism, but they don’t have to take it. We would like a minimum of 4 hours of training per officer – required.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

There are a few ways that you can get engaged in the process of legislative advocacy.

• JOIN US IN TALLAHASSEE ON FEBRUARY 6 OR 7 –
  • Schedule a meeting with your legislators
  • Create a one pager to share about your family to leave with them
  • Be specific about what you’re asking for and why you’re asking for it
• CALL THEIR OFFICE
  • Speaking to them is SO much better than an email
  • Talking to the aid is more than ok – they are a direct influencer
  • Share your story and ask for what you want them to do
• WRITE AND EMAIL, OR BETTER YET, SEND A HANDWRITTEN NOTE
  • Handwritten notes get SO MUCH more attention
  • Put something personal in the subject line of an email
  • Tell your story, remind them you’re a constituent and ask for what you need

Hopeful to see many of you in the capitol next month and I have no doubt that if you get the opportunity to go, you will learn a ton from the experience!

STACEYHOAGLUND@GMAIL.COM