What are the most important things about FAPE?

During a discussion about FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education), Special Education Advocate and Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Pelangka lays out the three things parents should remember, and how it can affect their child’s education.

The Three Most Important Things Parents Should Remember About FAPE

What to Do When Schools Push a Non-Inclusive Environment

Education Advocate Dr. Caitlin Solone discusses how parents can respond when schools want to put your child with disabilities in a non-inclusive setting.

What Should Parents Do When Schools Push A Non-Inclusive Setting In An IEP?

Will a child with behaviors be excluded from a gen ed classroom?

Sometimes schools remove kids with disabilities from general education classes because of “distracting” behaviors. Dr. Caitlin Solone discusses why this is not okay , and how all kids may be missing out on a learning opportunity when children with behaviors are removed from the classroom.

Should Students w/ Distracting Behaviors Be Excluded From General Education?

Can my child be in a gen ed setting if they elope or show aggression?

Does eloping or showing aggression in a classroom mean your child should be excluded from a general education setting? Education Advocate Dr. Caitlin Solone explains how these actions should not exclude children from a gen ed setting as these actions are actually a call for more support.

Should Students Who Elope Or Are Aggressive Be Excluded From Gen Ed Classes?

Will stimming stop my child from being included in a gen ed setting?

During a discussion on inclusion, the Undivided team discusses children with disabilities who “stim”, and how it affects their participation in a general education setting. Dr. Caitlin Solone says “stimming” is an everyday part of some children’s experiences, and it should be normalized.

Should Stimming Stop A Child w/ Disabilities From Being In A Gen Ed Setting?

Why Behavior Support is Important for Children with Disabilities

Dr. Caitlin Solone discusses the importance of behavior support for children with disabilities seeking inclusion in school and stresses that a child's behaviors are ALWAYS a means for communication.

The Importance Of Behavior Support For Children With Disabilities In School

Is good behavior needed for inclusion?

The Undivided team debunks common myths about inclusion in schools for children with disabilities. In this discussion, Dr. Caitlin Solone explains why behavior should not be a factor for your child’s inclusion in a school setting.

Debunking Inclusion Myths: Why Behavior Is Not A Prerequisite for Inclusion

What to Know About Setting Up a Special Needs Trust

Do you really need a special needs trust? How should you set one up, and who should you name as your guardian? Here's what parents raising kids with disabilities need to know.

Special Needs Trusts: The Basics

Do I Need an Estate Planning Lawyer?

If you’re paying an attorney to draft your legal documents (and you should!), you want to make sure they have experience working with other parents raising kids with disabilities.

Do I need an estate lawyer with experience working with parents of children who have disabilities?

Independent Educational Evaluations Q&A

If a family wants to get reimbursed for an unconventional assessment, they need to provide evidence that their child has a need for a service resulting from that assessment.

What if the school district won’t fund an assessment I request?

Estate planning and making the vital decisions that go in legal documents

Estate planning means making vital decisions about our children’s care, our assets, and our own medical care — and it requires writing those decisions down in legal documents. The process can seem overwhelming, which is why we brought in some help from Brianna Davidson Jarrett!


The 5 Most Important Estate Planning Decisions

Basics of Estate Planning for Families Raising a Child with a Disability

As a parent raising a child with unique needs, you do so much for your kid. Brianna Davidson Jarret, Maryland’s Assistant Attorney General and a parent of three, including a child with disabilities, promises that estate planning is no harder than all the things you’re already doing.


You Can 100% Handle Estate Planning 

Special Education Services and Individualized Education Programs

Learn about special education services, everything you need to know about IEPs, and how to advocate for the services and supports your child needs.

Education and IEPs

Insurance Options for Parents of Kids with Disabilities

Whether you’re using private insurance or public benefits like Medi-Cal or a combination of the two, get tips on how to fund the supports and services your child needs.

Insurance

What to Do When Your Child Has Received a New Diagnosis

Has your child received a new diagnosis? Are you concerned about a developmental delay? Check out these resources to help you navigate medical services, funding, and more.

New Diagnosis

Public Benefits - Government Programs for Children with Disabilities

Depending on your income, your child’s age and diagnosis, and other factors, there are a variety of government programs available to you.

Public Benefits

Helping Kids With Disabilities Manage Anxiety, Stress, & Mental Health

Learn how to help your child manage stress, anxiety, and other mental health challenges with these resources from therapists and other experts.

Mental Health In Children with Disabilities

Financially Supporting Your Child With Disabilities into Adulthood

Check out our resources to help plan your child's transition into adulthood and set them up for success.

Future and Financial Planning

Family Life - Advice for Parenting Children with Disabilities

Parenting a child with disabilities comes with unique joys and challenges. Learn how to meet your family's diverse needs and how to talk about disability together.

Family Life

Self-Care for Parents Raising Children With Disabilities

Raising a child with disabilities can place a lot of demands on parents. Check in with your own mental and physical health needs through these resources.

Self-Care for Parents

Estate Planning Tips for Families Raising Kids with Disabilities

Estate planning means making vital decisions about our children’s care, our assets, and our own medical care — and it requires writing those decisions down in legal documents. The process can seem overwhelming, which is why we brought in some help!

3 Tips for Parents Diving into Estate Planning

IEP Prep Tips and Advice for Parents

Being an advocate for your child can make a world of difference when it comes to the services and supports written into their IEP.  Hear how one parent and an Undivided Navigator came together to make sure a kindergartener had her needs met.

3 Tips for Advocating for Your Child in an IEP Meeting

End of School Year To-Do List for Parents of Kids with Disabilities

Learn what parents should be trying to wrap up before the end of the school year, like plans for ESY, transitions for the next year, learning loss, and other IEP meeting prep.

What Do Parents Need to Do Before the End of the School Year?

Estate Planning Considerations for Parents Raising Kids with Disabilities

While it can be overwhelming, and incredibly complicated, your plan should be one that you feel confident in understanding as well as adapting over time with your growing or changing family.

What should my estate planning include as a parent of a child with a disability?

Basics of Estate Planning for Young Families & Families with Dependent Children

Does the thought of estate planning give you heart palpitations? You’re not alone. Former estate attorney and current Assistant Attorney General Brianna Davidson Jarrett gently shows us why estate planning doesn’t need to feel impossible to tackle, and why we absolutely have to do it. 

Estate Planning — We Dread It, But We Gotta Do It, with Brianna Davidson Jarrett

Advocating for Inclusion with Supports in Kindergarten

Undivided Parent and Navigator duo Isabelle Smith and Kelly Hatfield talk about how they worked together to advocate for inclusion with supports, language immersion, and retention. Isabelle shares how her advocacy affected her daughter’s kindergarten experience.

Unite and Conquer: Our Lessons Learned From the Kindergarten IEP

Addressing concerns as the school year ends

Special education advocate Dr. Sarah Pelangka helps us tie up any loose ends and concerns we may have in our kids’ education as the school year comes to a close.


End of Year Wrap-Up with Dr. Pelangka

What to Know About IEEs for Kids with IEPs

If you feel that the school district hasn't accurately assessed your child, you can request an Independent Educational Evaluation, or IEE. Learn how an IEE is conducted and how it may benefit your child with an IEP.

Independent Educational Evaluations (IEE) 101

Update to Medi-Cal’s Asset Limits for People with Disabilities

A new California law will expand Medi-Cal access for people with disabilities, including children. The law, which goes into effect on July 1, 2022, increases the asset limit for Non-Modified Adjusted Gross Income eligibility. 