Legal Question in Education Law in Massachusetts
IEP and joint legal custody
I have a son about to enter 2nd grade next week. I'm dreading dealing with his ''team'' this year because of all the problem we've had with them in the past two. Currently, dad and I share joint legal custody, but son lives with dad during the school year. What rights do I have in Massachusetts in regards to receiving information regarding meetings, evaluations, and questions that the school has. Although I have asked several times in the past, it has been denied to me by one particular person on his team. Are there any laws I can quote? Thanks for the help
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: IEP and joint legal custody
You need to stop dealing with the team. You should forward va certified letter to the school board, copy to the school superintendent, with a copy of the order containing the shared legal custody terms. Advise the Board that you expect that every teacher will fully cooperate with all of your requests for information, and offer to provide pre-addressed, per-posted envelopes to the team coordinator.
Many divorced parents have this difficulty. It helps when you take a top-down approach. If some smarmy administrator tells you it's too much trouble, point out that the 50% divorce rate and the inflated rate of never-married parents means that 50% or more of their children have parents who are apart.
I can't cite you chapter and verse, but you have the clear right to full cooperation here unless you have been denied school records or other copntact by a judge.
Re: IEP and joint legal custody
One other thing -- you have the right to bring an attorney or educational advocate with you to IEP meetings and such. The presence of such an "escalation" usually gets attention.
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