Magic Marketing Assumes Funding Role For Exposé Documentary on the Education of Children With Autism
Actually, now 1 in every 91 children, not 150, have Autism
Under the Lanterman Act (Federal law 94-142) (1975) (Education for All Handicapped), IEP’s (Individual Education Plans) must include disabled children and parental input. An Assistant School Principal is required to sit with parents and develop an adequate plan for their autistic children. In practicality, someone in the school board who has never met your child determines what service he or she receives. What is necessary to achieve FAPE (Free and Appropriate Public Education) consistent with the law, is for parents to engage in a punishing and costly arbitration, using an advocate who must battle with a mediator paid by the school board.
One purpose of the film is to make people aware of how legitimate services are being denied their autistic children for the sake of indefensible budgetary considerations and illegal bureaucracy. This happens in an overwhelming majority of cases, and 80-90% of parents are dissuaded by school authorities from seeking recourse. In fact, the documents the school board now uses for IEP’s have been deliberately made more vague and ambiguous, in order to confuse parents into accepting grossly inadequate, special education for their kids. By denying those with Autism necessary and legally-mandated service, educators entrusted to possess their best interests are going a long way in preventing them from becoming functional, self-sufficient members of our society. Our intention is to guide parents through the process of achieving redress and rectification, being the autistic child’s best advocate. In our film, we will be following families who are currently enduring different stages of this process.
In addition, we shall portray families who have older, properly serviced and educated autistic children, the latter now happy and productive members of our society. Adequate services include behavioral interventions designed to help affected children control their over-stimulation disruptions, so they may access the curriculum, and later, enter a vocational field. Special Day Classes (SDC) should be offered when needed, and in-class, Shadow Behaviorists who supervise the autistic child the entire school day. There are also Resource Teachers which must be there when the student is acting-out or having subject-specific difficulty. Finally, sufficient service includes mainstreaming the autistic child into a regular curriculum.
The “marching orders” are for school officials to lie to parents, and deter them from the achievement of necessary, educational interventions for their kids. This forces families into an exorbitant and emotionally jarring battle. Your contribution to our documentary will enable us to arm them for this battle to stop the tyranny against defenseless children. Our budget is 561,000, and the piece will be about an hour and a quarter. There will be a condensed version available to parents and educators with specific presentation of means of action. You may support the production with a tax-deductible gift through our non-profit umbrella, the International Documentary Association. Use the Contact Me link on this website’s Home Page, and I can inform you as to how to do so. Thank you very much. The documentary site is: www.150documentary.com
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As an update to this post, I am approaching the CA Wellness Foundation for assistance in funding, but so far, there hasn’t been a response from Autism groups and foundations, or families of Autistic children, for whom this subject should be compelling. Most of these entities are willing to help with marketing, if the film is completed, which underscores dramatically the need for monies to start and complete the project. Please consider a tax-deductible gift to our documentary. Help make a worthy and valuable film happen! Thanks.