Tampabay.com
OCTOBER 02, 2009

Parents have rights in school, too

A Manatee family was at wits end. Their daughter with autism was so stressed by school that she refused to go. 

But when her parents tried to send a psychologist to observe her in class, the school district rejected their effort.

The family took the district to court and won. Now the district has to allow the observation and pay the parents' $70,000 legal bill, the Herald-Tribune reports.

"I just feel sorry for the parents who don't know the system and what the schools are getting away with," the mother told the Herald-Tribune. "That's what's scary, is that a lot of parents don't know what's going on or they don't feel like they have an avenue to fight them."

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Gradebook features education articles and insights on schools in Florida, focusing on Tampa Bay area schools. What's the latest from the Florida Department of Education? How is the FCAT being used to compare Florida schools? What's going in on in Tampa Bay schools? Get an insider's view from the Times education reporting team.

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THE TEAM

Rebecca Catalanello covers Pinellas County schools. E-mail her: rcatalanello@tampabay.com.

Tony Marrero covers Hernando County schools. E-mail him: tmarrero@tampabay.com.

Marlene Sokol covers Hillsborough County schools. E-mail her: sokol@tampabay.com.

Ron Matus covers Pinellas County schools. E-mail him: matus@tampabay.com.

Jeffrey S. Solochek covers Pasco County schools. E-mail him: solochek@tampabay.com.

Kim Wilmath covers the University of South Florida. E-mail her: kwilmath@tampabay.com.

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