Autism Alert BLOG
 
As we approach the end of the school year, many students with autism are eligible for an Extended School Year (ESY). Before the break between sessions, parents should be expecting notice from their child's Teacher of Record (ToR) about details for the upcoming Extended School Year (ESY) program. If you do not receive notice, check your copy of your child's Individualized Education Program (IEP), or Section 504 Plan​. If your child is considered eligible for ESY, it should be mentioned in their Annual IEP paperwork.

​Also, now is the time to get a referral, or ask for therapists who may be available to come to the campus of your child’s public, private, or charter school, during ESY.
 
Know that in the United States, the current administration may be changing or amending this Federal Extended School Year (ESY) law. Check with your child’s school, as soon as possible. Eligibility for ESY services are at no cost to parents, and is determined by the child’s Individual Education Program (IEP) team. Parents who do not agree with their school districts ruling always has Due Process available to them.
 
Note: More about ‘IEP’ & ‘Due Process’ & ‘Section 504’ go to MENU for Know Autism, Know Your Child with < My Thoughts > by Sara Luker. Read on this website under – UNIT 6 Laws ~ Federal, State, & Local, CHAPTER 3 a. Individualized Education Plan (IEP); APPENDIX A Due Process Hearing, & APPENDIX B Section 504 Plan.
 
For your ‘regular’ education students at all levels, summer school programs are an opportunity to learn, relearn, and maintain skills taught in a different way by a different teacher. Summer school is also an opportunity to take classes which may be of interest to students.

Staff Writer, Wrightslaw (2022) tells us that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Education ruled that even students regarded as disabled under Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act, and not eligible for services under IDEA, must be considered for Extended School Year (ESY) services.
 
They also say that there are no comprehensive eligibility criteria in the law, and only general standards have been mentioned by the courts for including ESY in the student’s program. These general standards are designed to maintain the student’s reasonable readiness to begin the next year. It is not to provide a child with education beyond that is prescribed in his/her IEP goals and objectives.
 
According to Wrightslaw, there are seven ESY General Standards –
​

• ESY Standard #1 ‘no single criterion’

No single criterion can be used as a sole qualifying factor. The IEP team considers ESY determination only if the student’s IEP goals and objectives have been achieved over the school year. But those goals and objective may be lost or forgotten if not reinforced and maintained, through an ESY program. The program must be critical to the child’s school progress and IEP goal and objective maintenance.
 
< My Thoughts >      “…qualifying factor.”
 
If there were only one qualifying factor then that would negate ‘achieving their IEP goals and objectives. The Special Education student usually has goals and objectives in more than one curriculum area. And in addition, that student may also have a non-curriculum Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP).
​

• ESY Standard #2 ‘regression / recoupment’

 There is predictive data that the child needs to continue services in the summer to secure the minimum benefits of a free and appropriate public education in the fall.
​
< My Thoughts >      “…needs to continue services…”
 
The child needs to practice and continue IEP skills, plus have ‘follow-up’ to necessary therapies. Know that for various reasons, some ESY programs are not always able to provide the same therapy services as during the traditional school year. Or, your child may receive therapy in a group, rather than individually. Check with your school.
​

• ESY Standard #3 Emerging skills

If such an IEP skill is not completely acquired and mastered, it is likely that the current level of acquisition will be lost due to the interruption of summer vacation.

< My Thoughts >      “…not completely acquired and mastered…”
 
Often, the student is not able to show ‘skill mastery’. But that skill must be written as a goal on their lawful and current Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Parents should never have other or different expectations. You have every right to ask and receive any documentation regarding your child’s IEP and ESY services.

• ESY Standard #4 ‘nature & severity of the child’s disability’

The nature and severity are key factors in the ESY eligibility determination since children with severe disabilities are more likely to have significant regression and longer recoupment time.
 
< My Thoughts >      “…regression and longer recoupment…”
 
Remember however, that regression and recoupment time are not the only criteria for the child to receive ESY services. Yes, the severity of the child’s disability does determine the level of support needed; according to their DSM-5 level assessment.
 
Note: For further information on ‘DSM-5 levels of support’ go to MENU for Know Autism, Know Your Child with < My Thoughts > by Sara Luker. Read online here, under UNIT 2 – Why Is It Autism? CHAPTER 1, Diagnosis & DSM-5.

• ESY Standard #5 Notice & timing

The student’s eligibility for ESY must be considered at each IEP annual review meeting. Parents must sign a form acknowledging their receipt of this information.
 
< My Thoughts >      “…sign a form…”
 
Without this documentation, a child may not qualify for ESY. Also, if the family moves to another school district over summer, then the child may not ‘automatically’ be eligible for ESY at the new school. Know also that parents may ask for an IEP meeting at any time it is deemed necessary.

• ESY Standard #6 ‘content & duration of ESY services’

Some ESY services may extend over the summer, while other districts may provide only for periodic contact with professionals, or assistance to parents in providing instruction or reinforcement to their children.
 
< My Thoughts >      “…periodic contact…”
​
Some school districts may send students to a different campus for services. Parents may be required to private pay for ‘therapy’ services at home. Or, it may be suggested that they take their child to a therapist to continue services. Some ESY programs may not provide transportation to the ESY campus location. See Standard #7, below.
​

• ESY Standard #7 ‘ability of the parents to provide an educational structure at home’

​Your child’s school may determine that the student’s utilization of a computer software program will be sufficient to maintain a critical IEP designated skill. Or that accessing an existing community resource, such as a summer recreation program, will meet their needs.
 
< My Thoughts >      “…critical IEP designated skill…”
 
If the parents prefer, or can provide the student’s ESY services at home, then your child’s IEP team (of which the parent is a team member) may reject having services provided on the school campus.

REFERENCE:

​Staff Writer, Wrightslaw (2022). Standards for Extended School Year (ESY). Retrieved online from – https://www.wrightslaw.com › esy.standards.barlev.htm

​​Keep the key factors of your child’s IEP strong throughout summer, and all school breaks. Keep in touch with his or her teachers and take suggestions about how the family can help. Often, siblings can reinforce and/or perform follow-up methods so that the child learns to transition the skill from another perspective. Let the family get involved in making Visual Supports, making a favorite snack, doing chores; or, just planning summertime activities on their own with their ‘special’ sibling.

Thank you so much for sharing and commenting!

Regards,
​Sara Luker

​Happy Mother’s Day 2025
​
You may never get the ‘hugs’ or ‘love’ words, but you know they are there even if your child cannot emotionally express them.
 
Here are just some ‘Mom excerpts’ from my ‘Extended Book Reviews’; with < My Thoughts  > by Sara Luker which can be found on my website MENU. Go to sarasautismsite.com.
 
Susan Senator is the mother of three boys, the oldest of whom has autism. She is also the author of –The Autism Mom’s Survival Guide (for Dad’s, too!): Creating a Balanced and Happy Life While Raising a Child with Autism by Susan Senator.
 
One day you will feel that something inside you has shifted, lightened.  When you look at your child, you no longer see a mass of problems, a broken thing to be fixed; you see your kid, just your kid. One day you will know that it’s just your life, warts, autism, and all. And you can’t wait to start living it to its fullest. Once you know this…you have just won the game.
 
From – Building in Circles: The Best of Autism Mom by Elizabeth W. Barnes, eBook 2014; with < My Thoughts > by Sara Luker
 
My name is Elizabeth and I am an Autism Mom. Our son, who we call the Navigator, is nine and was diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum at the age of seven. Before his diagnosis, I had heard of Autism – non-verbal children who don’t like to be touched, who rocked, and who ritually lined things up.
 
There is no one thing or even series of things that work all the time, or are even discernible as a pattern. There is a need for constant analysis and creativity, which is exhausting and sometimes seemingly fruitless. Because there is no cookie-cutter approach, I developed a website and blog in case our experiences could help others. That website is Autism Mom.

From – Knowing Autism by Lorca Damon (2012). Extended Book Review with < My Thoughts > by Sara Luker

I certainly don’t waste a lot of time trying to make Carrie become normal.  …I do spend a lot of time trying to prepare her to live in the real world when she is older... 
 
I want her to grow up to have a job that she enjoys, not some menial task in a sheltered workshop that wastes her really sharp mind.
 
I want her to be as independent as she can be, because it means the transition to the group home she will probably live in will be a lot less painful for both of us. I want her to be able to form relationships…
 
But she can’t do any of those things if I don’t make her adapt to a world that is very different from the one she would like to retreat to inside her head.
 
Now that autism is here, and is here to stay, there is no point in wasting Carrie’s life by pretending that it is a good thing or that it is where she has to stay for the rest of her life. 
 
I work with her very diligently BUT LOVINGLY to bring her out of her isolated world, one baby step at a time.

End of ‘Mom excerpts’ from my ‘Extended Book Reviews’; with < My Thoughts  > by Sara Luker 

Thank you so much for reading and sharing my BLOGs. Comments are welcomed, to be viewed and answered privately. My goal is to assist families, clinicians, educators, and all people ‘autism’, to continue their journey on the Autism Highway. 

​Happy Mother's Day to all Autism Mom's!

Please  read and share.

Regards,
​Sara Luker

Taylor Duncan, founder of Alternative Baseball®

Founder. In 2016, Taylor Duncan founded the Alternative Baseball Organization in Dallas, Georgia. As a child, Duncan was denied opportunities to participate in sports due to his autism, some coaches deeming his disability a safety issue. Duncan said there were fewer opportunities to play baseball the older he got.

​Sandison, R. (2024) says that in answer to his interview questions, he was excited to hear the following from Taylor Duncan. “In Alternative Baseball we use baseball to teach our players teamwork with coaches and mentors to ensure a brighter future.”

<  My Thoughts >          “… a brighter future…”

Many parents and families, while waiting for the world to help them on their 'autism journey' can get started by investigating what may be already available to them in their community.

Alternative Baseball® began as one young man's dream and has grown into a nationwide movement for inclusion and empowerment. This is the story of Taylor Duncan, and how his personal journey led to the creation of an organization that's changing lives and communities across America.

REFERENCE:

Sandison, R. (2024). Taylor Duncan Making America’s Pastime Accessible. The Art of Autism. Retrieved online from – https://the-art-of-autism.com/taylor-duncan-making-americas-pastime-accessible/

​Thank you so much for reading and sharing my BLOGs. Comments are welcomed, to be viewed and answered privately. My goal is to assist families, clinicians, educators, and all people ‘autism’, to continue their journey on the Autism Highway. 

Regards,
Sara Luker