triennial re-evaluation & transition planning

[klmno]

My son turns 14yo soon and we are scheduling his re-evaluation and tranistion planning meetings. We are starting with the re-evaluation. One of my biggest goals is to get the calssification changed from ED to OHI. This is due to the stigma- right or wrong- that comes with ED and he's going to change to high school this year, so I want to minimize any stigmas as much as possible.

Who is required to be at this re-evaluation meeting and what should I expect? Is it like the full, initial child study? I have documentation, diagnosis, etc and am not expecting anyone to say that difficult child does not have issues. But, the iep is based solely on behavior right now because the sd still looks at this as the mental health issues ONLY effect him at school due to behavior, and his behavior has greatly improved so THEY have no issue WITH HIM. That, of course, is not why he really needs an IEP. I'm glad THEY have no issue with him bahvior-wise, but HE still needs help. I think I have enough evidence that their outlook is absurd- he needs accommodations even though he is not being a current behavior problem.

To me, that should be proof enough, along with a written BiPolar (BP) diagnosis, that he qualifies for the OHI calssification. I also have suggested classification (OHI) in brochures regarding bipolar. But, I was wondering if there is anything concrete that they can't argue? Like- if it's a chemical imbalance, it should be classified as OHI, however, that won't work, I don't think because schizophrenia is class'd as ED. (Isn't that a chemical imbalance?)

And, what can I expect at the transition meeting?

 

[Superpsy]

I think your reasoning is well thought out about switching from ED to OHI. I hope the sd thinks so as well. The only issue I think the sd might raise is seeing bipolar as a behavioral/emotional disorder rather than a medical condition. Of course, we know it's both but...you never know.

The transition planning meeting is going to be a discussion of post-secondary goals. i.e. Where is he going to live after high school? What kind of career is he interested in? What steps will he take to learn more about a career/job he's interested in? Is he going to go to college? Just that kind of stuff. Nothing too heavy and although it might seem waaaay early for talking about that I think it's good for students to start thinking about these goals. Personally I don't take initial transition goals too seriously since they change and mature over time. (For example, don't be surprised if he says he wants to live on his own after high school although he may not be anywhere near ready for that.)

Hope this helps.

 

[klmno]

Thanks!

Should I ask for school psychiatric to be at triennial re-evaluation meeting, or is a given that he/she will be there?

 

[Superpsy]

Usually school psychs attend re-evaluations because they're the ones who do the testing and compile the report...but I'd ask just to be sure.

 

[CrazyinVA]

Our triernnials were more or less an extended IEP meeting, nothing very significant came out of any of them. It was just a matter of confirming that difficult child still required services. Each of my kids had an IEP starting in 5th grade, so I went through quite a few triennials The "transition planning" was only covered very briefly .. even in 12th grade, it was mainly a referral to Dept of Rehabilitative Services (which Youngest never followed through on).

It wouldn't hurt to ask for the school psychiatric to do more testing, particularly since difficult child is having so much trouble right now. It would also be helpful to give to FAPT.