The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) will be reauthorized within the next year or two.

To prepare for the reauthorization of IDEA, several disability organizations are sponsoring a survey that seeks to answer this question: “Are parents treated as equal partners in planning their children’s education?”

If you are the parent of a child with a disability, you represent your child’s interests. This survey is a great opportunity to describe your experiences in special education. Tell your story and share your views by taking the survey at www.ideasurvey.org

The results will be compiled into a report about experiences under the IDEA. The report will be published this summer.

Your comments will begin a parent advocate push to support improvements to the IDEA.
The survey is on behalf of all kids with disabilities and their families. There are also surveys for other groups:

  • Parents whose children have been denied access to IDEA services
  • Self advocates (people with disabilities)
  • Attorneys, advocates, other professionals

The IDEA survey runs until May 2011. Don’t procrastinate – complete the survey now!
The survey is sponsored by the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS), Autism Society of America (ASA), Autism National Committee (AutCom), and The Advocacy Institute (AI). All disabilities are welcome; the study is about these issues for children with all disabilities, not just those the organizations focus on.

Go to www.ideasurvey.org to take the survey or for more information. You can also visit us on Facebook, www.facebook.com/IDEA.Survey and Twitter, www.twitter.com/IDEASurvey .

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