Welcome back, everyone! It’s back-to-school season across the country, and we are cautiously optimistic about this upcoming year. The sky has not fallen, and there is still work for us to do to effect change in the world of education. We are still here in the thick of the fight, ready for another school year. As always, we will continue to feature guests and informative conversations focused on funding, equity, inclusion, and the special needs of all students in classrooms. It’s a new academic year with new challenges and real opportunities for change. Join us!

Show Highlights:

• The state of education under the current administration: The shift is real.
• Participating in state and local elections is the best way you can make the biggest impact.
• This is not the moment for a “the sky is falling” attitude!
• We can “steer this boat” in a different direction!
• Our goal on the podcast is to help all of us understand the problems and discuss solutions, while keeping it fun and loose.
• We look forward to many meaningful conversations during this academic school year–and we have a lot to cover!

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns: Facebook, Instagram, X, IEP Website, and Email.

We are officially here at the last episode before we take a summer break. We will return with new episodes in August. This last school year was one in which we felt the negative shift in our education system, but all hope is not lost. Our focus today is on how we can best prepare for the upcoming school year. We have a great responsibility! Join us to learn more!

Show Highlights:

• Problems as a result of workforce reductions in the Department of Education
• The process to file discrimination complaints against school districts (Only 1% of the complaints were resolved in 2025!)
• Problems with the voucher system in providing a “free and appropriate” education
• Current bills in Congress regarding the voucher system
• Your responsibility in the November elections (Do your homework!)
• The continuing struggle to fund special education
• Advocation for our kids depends on our awareness
• “Outside-the-box” thinking is vital when it comes to supporting our students.

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information at the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us on: Facebook, Instagram, X, IEP Website, and Email.

Transition IEP meetings are essential when your child transitions from elementary to middle school, middle school to high school, and high school to college/vocational school. If you haven’t had a transition IEP meeting for the end of this school year, you can still get one scheduled as soon as the new school year begins. We are breaking it down in today’s episode. Join us!

Show Highlights:

• What the law provides for parents regarding transition IEP meetings
• The transition IEP meeting is NOT just a box to check.
• Waiting 30 days into the new school year means 30 days of missed opportunities for the student to be successful.
• From middle to high school, the student’s diploma track has to be determined.
• From elementary to middle school, executive functioning skills are put to the test; we need to prep the student.
• The transition IEP meeting is a chance to “think outside the box” to meet a student’s needs.
• How can we “front-load” a student for success in each transition?
• Each transition is a chance for a fresh start for students, parents, teachers, and the IEP team.
• Streamlining communication with the IEP team

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns: Facebook, Instagram, X, IEP Website, and Email.

Crazy time is here! Schools across the country have a LOT happening in these final days of the school year. For parents, there is a sense of relief, along with the panic of realizing that summer is about to begin and that they need to plan what their kids will do. Having a structured literacy plan is key, but it doesn’t have to be complex. Don’t be confused by the plethora of reading programs that are advertised as a “must-have” resource. Today’s guest helps us understand what’s most important for parents to know as they help their children hone their reading skills. Join us!

Tara Giddings is from LearnUp Centers, a non-profit with the mission to reach and teach struggling readers in every community to read with confidence. Her passion for helping kids learn to love reading is the heart of her work. She has a master’s degree in educational therapy. She loves raising awareness about the right ways to teach kids to read, including helping parents understand the best resources and supports to cultivate good readers.

Show Highlights:

• The evolution of reading programs over the past few decades
• Understanding” structured literacy”
• Keep an open mind about how reading is taught today vs. many years ago; we need to understand the science of how the brain decodes and learns.
• Three categories of students who are learning to read
• Addressing gaps in students’ reading skills in higher grades: What is the best approach?
• Five pillars of literacy: phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension
• Determining when a child needs interventions to improve reading skills
• Dyslexia and other reading struggles are not indicators of lower intelligence.
• Recognizing the elements of a good structured literacy lesson
• Tara’s best tip for parents for the upcoming summer to boost their child’s reading skills

Resources:

Connect with Tara Giddings and LearnUp Centers: Website

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns: Facebook, Instagram, X, IEP Website, and Email.

Welcome to the final weeks of the school year. Across the country, school districts are winding down to summer break from now through mid-June. It is a busy time for everyone involved in education. Today’s episode explores the power of inclusion, particularly when policies don’t always align with what best serves our students. We are thrilled to welcome Andrew Goff back to the show for his unique perspective on this topic. Join us!

Andrew Goff taught early childhood special education in five different least restrictive environments over 12 years. He is currently the lead instructor at Colorado Northwestern Community College. Based on his life as an educator, he wrote the memoir, Love is a Classroom, and is a fierce advocate for “inclusion—early, everywhere, and always.” His latest book, Shattered and Becoming: A Teacher’s Journey Between Policy and Purpose, was published in March, 2026.

Show Highlights:

• Mixed messages and confusion for teachers
• Andrew’s motivation to write his second book, Shattered and Becoming
• Andrew’s message to teachers: “You are not alone. The system is set up to confuse you.”
• Recognizing the power dynamics in the educational system
• “What is my range of acceptable behavior?”
• It starts with trust. (Parents need to be able to trust their children’s educators.)
• Words to teachers who understand inclusion and need to advocate for students
• The importance of documentation
• Being curious is always the best approach.
• Concrete data can make all the difference in securing services for a student.
• Andrew’s message to administrators
• Creating community begins with shared values.

Resources:

Connect with Dr. Andrew Goff: Website, YouTube, and TikTok

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, or Email.

What is an IEP? What does it mean for your child? How do IEPs and IEP meetings differ across school districts? What is my recourse if the teacher who relates best to my child is moved to another school? We’re answering these questions and more in today’s solo episode with Vickie and Amanda!

Show Highlights:

• The IEP outlines services, accommodations, and placements, but does not guarantee specific personnel to implement them.
• A general rule for any concerns about your child’s IEP: Always ask!
• Getting creative and specific in the IEP, regardless of the teacher
• Advice to parents when “that one great teacher” goes elsewhere
• Debate over different types of interventions (The law says they must be “appropriate.”)
• Clearing up confusion over expert opinions and evidence-based programs
• The most valuable teacher on your team is the one who is willing to try an intervention without becoming combative, defensive, and egotistical.
• What to do right now for next year

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, or Email.

As the school year winds down, this is a critical window for families and educators. If there’s anything you’ve been meaning to put in motion before summer, now is the time to act. Planning ahead is essential, and school districts often operate on fixed timelines, leaving limited flexibility for scheduling assessments and services. In today’s episode, we’re diving into the challenges many families face in kindergarten and transitional kindergarten classrooms when it comes to getting students evaluated and connected with the support they need. Tune in as we break it down and share what you should know.

Show Highlights:

• The reality of expectations for TK students measured against kindergarten standards
• Watch out for the “typical peer” trap.
• What we are seeing from schools
• An example to support this question: “Which group of typical peers is my child being compared to?”
• Does the level of support prove that the child needs services?
• Understanding the functional component of education (lining up, transitioning to other classrooms, grasping routines and procedures, etc.)
• The purpose of an IEP is to provide consistent implementation from year to year.
• It’s not appropriate to rely on the “COVID baby” designation to excuse a student’s struggles.
• Early intervention is everything!

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, or Email.

We are back with the second part of our conversation with Dr. Dennis. Our previous episode covered the escalating attendance crisis and how we can address it with new evaluations and data-collection tools. We are excited to dive deeper into this important subject through Dr. Dennis’ expertise and passion. Join us!

Dr. Dennis Lefevre recently served as the Executive Director of Student Support Services in a small, high-performing school district in southern CA. Before that role, he worked in various capacities in public, non-public, and private school settings with thousands of preschool, elementary, and secondary students. He had a front-row seat to the unfolding attendance crisis and became increasingly frustrated with the lack of ownership among schools, homes, and communities. He is now piloting a new kind of evaluation that is an intensive data collection process designed to lower the threshold enough to get students back on campus. As an educational psychologist in private practice, Dr. Dennis started an agency called Back at School, which offers consultations, advocacy, targeted data collection, interventions, workshops, and more to help the attendance crisis.

Show Highlights:

• A new approach based on revising the BIP (Behavior Intervention Plan): the AIP (Attendance Intervention Plan)
• Creative interventions for attendance challenges
• Differentiating between school refusal and truancy
• School refusal is typically an attempt to escape aversive stimuli, like bullying, tests, social phobias, and separation anxiety.
• Truancy is characterized by defiance, a pursuit of external rewards, and developmentally inappropriate rebellious behavior.
• Educators are trained to treat all students the same, which doesn’t allow for specialized needs.
• Why it’s important to ask, “Is this a performance deficit or a skills deficit?”
• Providing even a small amount of control or choice to the student can be very effective.

Resources:

Connect with Dr. Dennis Lefevre: Website

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, or Email.

Whether you’re ready for Spring Break or still have a few weeks until Spring Break, the reality is that there isn’t much of the school year left. There are many assessments and IEP meetings that need to be scheduled now. In today’s episode, we are talking with a wonderful guest, really getting into the trenches of evaluations and the escalating attendance crisis of the last few years. Join us to learn more!

Dr. Dennis Lefevre recently served as the Executive Director of Student Support Services in a small, high-performing school district in southern CA. Prior to that role, he worked in various capacities in public, non-public, and private school settings with thousands of preschool, elementary, and secondary students. He had a front-row seat to the unfolding attendance crisis and became increasingly frustrated by the lack of ownership among school, home, and community. He is now piloting a new kind of evaluation that is an intensive data collection process designed to lower the threshold enough to get students back on campus. As an educational psychologist in private practice, Dr. Dennis started an agency called Back at School, which offers consultations, advocacy, targeted data collection, interventions, workshops, and more to help the attendance crisis.

Show Highlights:

• Understanding the crisis and the disconnect between school districts and parents
• Prioritizing the fidelity of “the data” is not the solution
• Different categories of school team perspectives: those who are competent and conscientious, those who are “just okay,” and those who aren’t competent and are just waiting for summer break
• The benefit of school study team meetings in identifying school refusal/avoidance or simple truancy
• A truism in school attendance: “The longer you’re out, the harder it is to go back.”
• Understanding external and internal behaviors in crafting solutions
• When the IEP program/curriculum is the root cause of attendance issues
• The facts: 19-25% of students remain chronically absent since COVID (Neurodivergent/special needs students are affected about 3x more than their peers.)
• Specifics about the MDAE, Multi-Domain Attendance Evaluation

Resources:

Connect with Dr. Dennis Lefevre: Website

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, or Email.

It’s already March, and we are quickly approaching Spring Break season when different school districts have those breaks scattered over the next 4-6 weeks. Seeing a flare-up in behavior problems is not unusual during this time. There are highly severe sensory and emotional dysregulations happening with many students, and our goal should not be punishment. We need to appropriately address these behaviors that might be outside of the student’s control, especially those that are a result of a disability. Join us for today’s discussion about Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBAs) and Behavioral Intervention Plans (BIPs).

Show Highlights:

• The first step in an FBA is to collect data to define and describe the behaviors.
• Sensory overload, avoidance, and seeking attention are common challenges that cause dysregulated behaviors.
• Unmet needs have to be understood and met before behaviors can be regulated; this is where a BIP comes in.
• A BIP can be helpful when “the behavior is affecting a student’s learning or the learning of others.”
• Autistic students may use masking behaviors at school and explode later.
• How FBAs compare to the former Functional Analysis Assessment
• Defining behavior in assessments should follow the ABC format: antecedent, behavior, and consequence.
• We must teach both preventive and reactive coping skills.
• The BIP should be checked and thoroughly evaluated after 30-60 days.
• Amanda’s advice to parents about getting the most out of a BIP
• Vickie’s advice to teachers about implementing a BIP

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns: Facebook, Instagram, X, the IEP Website, and Email.

We are entering the crazy season when Spring Breaks will be happening all over the country during March and April. This is a friendly reminder to be proactive in scheduling any meetings, tours, tests, and assessments that you would like to have completed before the end of the school year. The year will be winding down before we know it! We don’t want to see more students fall behind by multiple grade levels simply because assessments haven’t been done in a timely fashion. It’s not just academics that warrant an IEP meeting; social and emotional struggles should be documented and addressed as well. Don’t be afraid to be the “squeaky wheel” when it comes to advocating for your child’s educational services!

Show Highlights:

• When there is a problem, be proactive, not reactive.
• Don’t be afraid to raise the alarm and raise the questions to get support in place for your child.
• Transition IEP meetings should be robust and address ALL the student’s needs.
• Amanda’s tips for IEP meetings for students transitioning to middle or high school
• Specific problems with providing IEP services and accommodations amid the current teacher shortage
• Handling RSP hour shortages and makeup times (Ask for the logs to verify the required hours.)

Resources:

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org.

Thank you for listening!

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your rating and review help other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions or concerns via Facebook, Instagram, X, ​​the IEP Website, and Email.