The GLASS Advisory Board is having its annual meeting on Monday, April 20th at 11 a.m. If you have a special needs child or have an interest in special education, it is critical that you either attend this meeting or that you send someone to represent your family. If you fit neither one of these categories, I encourage you to attend anyway. If you are a taxpayer, a significant amount of your tax dollars are going to support a program that does not work for a number of our special needs children. Please come and support us.

I have been the only patron who has attended this annual meeting for the past three years. This surprises me, since I receive weekly calls from parents in Tippecanoe County who need assistance in obtaining special education services for their special needs children. In addition, there have been a number of families who have had to resort to due process hearings to obtain services for their children. This is another increase in tax funds that we are forced to pay in order for special needs families to receive the educational services their children have a right to receive.

I have been surprised during the last three Advisory Board meetings at the lack of interest our three school corporations have expressed in knowing about and understanding our critical special education services are in preparing our special needs students for further education, employment, and independent living. We want our children to become tax-payers instead of tax users. In order for that to happen, they must learn to read, write, and do arithmetic. That is not happening. 

I have many stories I could share about children who are intelligent, motivated, and come to school wanting to learn. But, because they have Dyslexia or another type of learning disability, they are allowed to fall through the cracks.

Please attend this important meeting or send someone to represent your family. Please feel free to share this email with other interested people.

Thank you for your interest in our children.

Patricia Howey

P.O.Box 117

West Point, IN 47992

www.patriciahowey.com

http://sped consulting.blogspot.com