[time4me]

Hey richlevy, you sure do understand education and politics. I was actually in that boat ready to go to due process, our school district finally suggested mediation when we announced we had hired a lawyer. Our problem was that our twice gifted child was not getting an education because they couldn't understand how to teach him. But he was on grade level all the time because he is so bright. The problem was that he couldn't even get through a day of school and never even finished a school year until we placed him in a private school 1 hour away that he seems to be the "poster child" of. This is a long story but suffice to say, they could not look at my child as an individual but had to put him in a box. The box just couldn't stay wrapped. It is amazing the change in my child in just a year when he got what he needed and not what the kid down the street needed. We are dealing with people in the education business not a machine that needs a new screw or wire. Until our educators and politicians can see this, a lawyer will always be needed. I can tell you this, I would still go to due process to this day if I didn't get the settlement I needed to educate my child. In the end, they did what was right in our situation but have a long way to go to serve all of our children, especially our gifted kids who really do need a lot of guidance and a different approach to education than our traditional fare. Off my soapbox for now.