Please watch the attached YouTube video which will give a very clear  description of all concerns:  https://youtu.be/RpzHpBUBRBA

I kindly urge you to consider this petition and take the necessary steps to make a change on behalf of special Education students. I believe in commitment to delivering exceptional education services to the special needs community. There is a lack of accountability of the upper administration and staff throughout the nation, however, Howard County Public School System's negligence has had an significant negative impact on both of my children's mental health and our family.

Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) is the #1 school system in Maryland. My family relocated to Howard County in 2010 for my autistic son to receive the best services. However, staff within the Special Education Department (SED) contributed to the damage of my children’s mental health by violating their disability rights through poor decision-making; some with intentional/malicious acts of parental retaliation. The administrations incompetence, dishonesty and lack of accountability displayed by the former Superintendent Michael Martirano and current Superintendent Bill Barnes are characteristics of poor role models for HCPSS employees. The lack of action by this administration puts the mental health of vulnerable students at risk negatively impacting the lives of special education students. Complaints should be resolved at the level of the County Superintendent, however, in this case, it escalated to the Howard County Board of Education, Local State Delegates, the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), U.S. Department of Education (OCR), County Executive Calvin Ball, Senator Clarence Lam, Senator Chris Van Hollen, Governor Wes Moore, and Congressman John Sarbanes. No one took action regarding my concerns except MSDE. However, many of the final MSDE reports were unfair and unethical. 

My daughter was a victim of years of ignored bullying within HCPSS. Bullying is directly connected to the degradation of confidence/self-esteem and is highly associated with major depression, substance abuse, risky behaviors, and suicide. My daughter displayed all the classic signs, yet 99% of the staff within HCPSS that interacted with her did not follow the bullying protocol. After many hospitalizations and much therapy, she continues to struggle but is beyond blessed to have made it through that season of her life. Many are not so fortunate. Regarding my son, 85% of the autistic population is unemployed, many are high-functioning and capable but do not receive the necessary services required to prepare them for success. My son’s story is a contributory example reflecting the high percentage of this population. As a parent, I refused to allow my son to be included in that statistic. In March 2024 I left everything behind to temporarily relocate nearly 1500 miles away, incurring now double the financial load and new debt while on a fixed income, just so my son could receive FAPE, equal treatment and the services that he is entitled to during the last few months of his final school year. No parent should have to go to this extreme for their child to receive standard services that are required by every school district. The actions of HCPSS do not represent that of a #1 school system.

This matter is URGENT! It is important to take immediate action to discontinue the behaviors of front-line decision-makers who hold the fate of special education students in their hands. No student should be left behind due to silent administrative bullying. Every student has the right to be treated equally and have a fair chance to become productive members of society. Below you will find all who were contacted with hopes for action and the stories of my two children. Due to the length and complexity of both stories, many issues worthy of mentioning were omitted. However, both are true examples and real eye-openers to what silently goes on behind closed doors in the lives of many special education students, victims of bullying, and parents who have experienced retaliation by school systems. In this case, Superintended Bill Barnes was in a position to reverse the trajectory of my children’s lives in a positive direction, but chose to ignore my constant parental complaints and allowed all his staff to do the same. This is not the character of a true leader. If the life of even one child is led in the wrong direction by its leader, that is one life potentially lost. All Lives Matter!!! As a parent I have done EVERYTHING in my power to make a change to gain justice for my children with no success. I am hoping this platform will provide a change for those who are unable to speak up for themselves. PLEASE WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO FOR THE FULL STORY.

Please sign this petition to take a stand for justice to protect the disability rights of special education students and bullied victims. Periodically check this page for links to other petitions for more upcoming issues regarding this population. Thank you in advance for your support!

                                

HCPSS Administrators, County Leaders, and County Officials Contacted: 

·         Patrica Gunshore, Coordinator of Special Education Compliance, Non-Public Services, and Family Support / Special Education Parent Liaison / New case manager – Opened all emails numerous times / Unethical Practices and Retaliation

·         Jessica Caire, Special Education Compliance, Nonpublic Services and Family Support / Former case manager – Opened all emails multiple times / Unethical Practices

·         Lindsey Madison, Special Educator/Behavior Support – Unethical Practices

·         Alison Barmat – Parent submitted Numerous MSDE Complaints – Recent MSDE complaint for my daughter (9/27/24) Did not hold HCPSS accountable. Response pending for most recent MSDE complaint for my son (9/29/24) Did not hold HCPSS accountable, Unethical Practices 

·         Carey Wright Parent submitted 2 recent MSDE Complaints – Opened emailed MSDE complaint numerous times, No response

·         Andrea Delmonte, Attorney (handling my daughter’s case) Parent submitted 2 Complaints to the U.S Department of Education OCR Division. Additional documentation was provided to OCR per their request.  No action to date (18+ months and still waiting)

·         Shannon Zipkin, Paralegal (handling my son’s case) Parent submitted 2 Complaints to the U.S Department of Education OCR Division. Additional documentation was provided to OCR per their request.  No action to date (18+ months and still waiting)

·         The Howard County Board of Education – All members were made aware, No response

·         Superintendent Michael Martirano – Opened all emails numerous times, Unethical Practices / No response / No action

·         Superintendent Bill Barnes / Chief Academic Officer – Opened all emails numerous times / Unethical Practices, No Response / No action 

·         Dr. Terrell Savage, Executive Director of Special Education – Opened all emails numerous times, Unethical Practices / Only responded to attempt to meet MSDE deadline / No action

·         County Executive Calvin Ball – Opened numerous emails multiple times, Unethical Practices / No response / No action

·         State Attorney Rich Gibson – Opened numerous emails multiple times, No response / No action

·         Senator Chris Van Hollen – Response to Parent Email: “Thank you for your patience with your difficulties with HCPS.  I have submitted numerous inquiries into the Department of Education and to their Office of Civil Rights and unfortunately, they have not responded. Due to the delicate nature of your complaint, I am hoping they contacted you directly.  Can you please let me know if you have received any updates?” / No action

·         Congressman John Sarbanes – Response: As your representative in Congress, I am permitted to communicate with federal agencies on behalf of my constituents. Regrettably, there are limits to what my office can do with respect to certain matters. Although I would very much like to assist individuals like you, the situation you describe is a matter pending before Maryland State officials and not the federal government. As such, it would be most appropriate for you to work through the officials within whose jurisdiction this matter falls. For your convenience I have inserted the contact information for the District 12A team: Governor Wes Moore, Lt. Governor Aruna Miller, Attorney General Anthony Brown, Comptroller Brooke Lierman, Senator Clarence Lam, State Delegate Jessica Feldmark, State Delegate Terri Hill. I am confident that the District 12A team will offer you all appropriate assistance in resolving this matter. Again, I am very sorry for the challenge you are currently enduring, and I very much hope you can work through this adversity to a better situation. If, in the future, I can be of assistance on other matters within my jurisdiction as your representative in Congress, please do not hesitate to contact me. / No action

·         Governor Wes Moore -Left a voice message with a verbal complaint, Parent complaint was forwarded to MSDE / No other action

·         Lt. Governor Aruna Miller, Left multiple voice messages with a verbal complaint, No response

·         Attorney General Anthony Brown – Left multiple voice messages with a verbal complaint, No response

·         Comptroller Brooke Elizabeth Lierman – Left a voice message, with a verbal complaint No response

·         Senator, Clarence Lam – Opened emails multiple times, No response / No action

·         State Delegate Jessica Feldmark - Opened emails multiple times, No response / No action

·         State Delegate Terri L. Hill - Opened emails multiple times, No response / No action

·         Parent attempted to contact President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris via the White House, informed that I needed to go through Senator Chris Van Hollen and/or John Sarbanes – Parent complaint was rerouted and remained stagnant within the state of Maryland.  

 

My Son’s Story: 

My son with high functioning autism has a history of multiple episodes of physical/mental abuse. His downhill journey began during the 2015-2016 school year after entering 7th grade, after Howard County’s Special Education Department ignored my complaint regarding his nonpublic placement, the Strawbridge School. Without parental knowledge or consent, the school staff transitioned him from his class of 6 high functioning students into a class with one student with significant challenges whose native language was profanity. Transitioning was always a struggle. But at the beginning of that school year, I started to notice significant changes in his behavior that modeled property destruction and profanity which he had never cursed in his entire life. The school staff denied changes in his daily program, but 5 months later my son reported only one student was in his class and he cursed too much. After calling an emergency IEP meeting, his teacher quit and the only peer in his class was removed. A request was made to HCPSS to take action. Instead, I was informed that all parental concerns would be addressed at the next annual review, nearly 30 days away. My son was isolated in a classroom with no teacher or peers and was only with his one-to-one aid for nearly 30 days. From that point the frequency and intensity of the behaviors escalated to a point where he could not be managed at home. Days before his annual review, he underwent his first hospitalization, followed by 944 days of hospitalizations intermittently over the course of 3.5 years. His last hospitalization was 1 year and 6 days. Throughout this hospitalization I heavily advocated for Home and Hospital Services and an appropriate school placement while HCPSS did nothing. I located an out-of-state placement, Bancroft in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, which had interviewed and accepted my son in October 2018, however, HCPSS significantly delayed the placement process.

On July 9, 2019, the Special Education Department placed my son at Bancroft. On 7/10/23 during the Extended School Year, my son reported that a Bancroft staff tried to choke him. Bancroft waited 2 days before reporting the incident to me, 8 days before reporting the incident to the state of New Jersey, and never reported the incident to HCPSS. I contacted the Mt. Laurel Police Department to do a wellbeing check on my son. The first officer reported that Bancroft denied restraining my son and no restraint was documented in Bancroft’s restraint log. However, when the detective arrived the following day, Bancroft was non-compliant with law enforcement, not allowing the detective to see the surveillance camera. Bancroft was also noncompliant with the subpoena o0 f the video. Days later, Bancroft contacted the detective to return to the school to view the video. The detective’s report revealed an unreported restraint and Bancroft’s final investigation report concluded that there was no substantiated evidence. The detective closed the case.  

Howard County ignored my son’s report of abuse. No action to ensure his safety and never initiated an investigation.  There was no contract in place between HCPSS and Bancroft when the incident occurred. HCPSS had no process in place to monitor my son’s safety the entire 4 years while at this out-of-state placement and was unaware of the many restraints, the many trips to the emergency room nor the medication mismanagement as he was experiencing a Benzodiazepine addiction which contributed to significant behaviors. 

The Deputy Compact Administrator Department of Human Services, informed me that HCPSS only submitted documentation to approve the Bancroft school, but no Interstate Compact Agreement was on file. Therefore, it was not on record by the state of Maryland that my son was out of state. 

An email was sent to Dr. Martirano and Mr. Barnes (Chief Academic Officer at the time). Attachments were provided with evidence including the 2 conflicting police reports and Bancroft’s final report. HCPSS staff was offered a copy of the reported staff’s consented audio statement as he repeatedly stated that he never put his hands on my son nor was a restraint required. HCPSS did not respond to my email, did not request the audio, nor requested a copy of the video footage from Bancroft. 

After the incident, my son returned to Maryland in fear of going back to Bancroft due to the reported assailant actively working on the campus and in his residential building.  The new report of abuse was now compiled with his pre-existing history of abuse. My son began to display significant signs of depression with crying spells, nightmares and behaviors from the residual thoughts of the new trauma yet was denied counseling services. I urgently requested that HCPSS provide him with counseling services, Home & Hospital and behavior support services since there was no plan in place. HCPSS Policy 1030 – Abuse and Neglect: states that any HCPSS student who witnesses, reports or experiences abuse is entitled to counseling services. Although my son was an HCPSS student with all the rights as any other student in the county, he was denied counseling services. Home & Hospital and behavior services were also denied.

HCPSS was aware that my son had no IEP or Transition Plan on record for 16 months. My MSDE complaints regarding both my children not having an IEP on record were confirmed as violations by the state in July and August 2023. After these violations were confirmed, HCPSS began to retaliate against me and my children as there were significant delays finalizing his IEP and his placement. Multiple emails were sent from me and the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) representative repeatedly requesting the completion of the IEP to initiate my son’s placement, and initiate DDA services. HCPSS did not respond.  

On August 11, 2023, an email was sent to Dr. Martirano and Mr. Barnes with concerns about placement as school was about to start and there was no IEP or placement lined up for my son. Mr. Barnes responded on August 14, 2023, arranging a telephone call meeting with me the following day. On 8/15/23 I had an extensive conversation with Mr. Barnes lasting over an hour. All my concerns were expressed with a heavy focus on my son’s placement. Concerns were reiterated regarding the reported abuse. Mr. Barnes assured me that he had read all my parental concerns and viewed the attachments which he stated he had shared with his staff. Mr. Barnes seemed genuinely concerned about establishing placement for my son as soon as possible and promptly arranged a meeting for 8/21/23 including himself, Ms. Gunshore and Dr. Savage. After the call, Mr. Barnes sent a follow-up email listing all parental concerns that were addressed. Regarding placement, he stated: “School Placement - Ms. Gunshore and the team have been actively pursuing placements. I have communicated that you are not interested in a residential placement. (When we meet, I want to verify that this is still your request). Ms. Gunshore will be able to provide an update during our meeting. If information is available prior to our meeting, I will share that with you.” I was relieved that a real plan of action was finally in place, not realizing that Mr. Barnes’ motives were deceptive and was nothing more than a set up for false hope.

On 8/21/23 the arranged meeting was held including Ms. Gunshore, Dr. Savage and Mr. Barnes. Mr. Barnes was completely silent as I learned for the first time that on 8/8/23, that Ms. Gunshore she had a private meeting with Bancroft’s vice president regarding my son’s placement. I was not invited to attend, nor could I advocate on behalf of my son in this decision-making process. HCPSS and Bancroft arranged to maintain my son’s placement at Bancroft until his 21st birthday, 10/8/23. HCPSS was aware that my son had returned to Maryland and was aware of his fears of returning to Bancroft. No consideration was given regarding his well-being. Despite my son’s fears, Ms. Gunshore informed me that Bancroft was determined to be an appropriate placement, and all services on his IEP were available at Bancroft, and no services would be provided in Maryland. She also confirmed that he would be marked absent daily until he returned to school. No other options were provided to accommodate my son. My son’s therapist provided a letter to HCPSS recommending that my son continue to reside with the parent to prevent re-traumatization. Due to his level of anxiety and emotional distress that was displayed with mere discussions about a residential placement, his fear exhibited throughout sessions were alarming and a residential placement was not recommended at that time due to his recent trauma. 

Ms. Gunshore stated that HCPSS would continue to fund this placement based on Bancroft’s final internal investigation report. This major placement decision was made by HCPSS based on a report that Ms. Gunshore, Dr. Savage, and Mr. Barnes confirmed on that day that they had never seen. Mr. Barnes stated that Mr. Cowels, HCPSS’s General Counsel, was working on getting a copy of Bancroft’s final investigation report. Upon reconfirming with Mr. Barnes during this meeting whether he had reviewed the evidence provided by me, he then stated he had not seen it, yet previously stated he had received the attachments and shared it with his staff. I referred him back to the email that he had received per the mail tracking system which included all the evidence in addition to Bancroft’s final report. He later responded to my email simply stating, “My bad.” Mr. Barnes was aware that placement was my primary concern, yet deliberately did not inform me that HCPSS had predetermined my son’s placement prior to our phone conversation. Even after Mr. Barnes claimed he reviewed the evidence, the decision to maintain the placement at Bancroft was not reversed. Therefore, my son had no appropriate placement or services from 7/17/23-10/8/23 and all compensatory service hours were denied. On 10/8/23, no placement had been established by HCPSS as per MSDE’s requirement Please note: an email was sent to HCPSS in June 2023 informing them that I would be recording all meetings from that point forward.

On October 3, 2023, Dr. Savage contacted me for the first time just prior to the MSDE deadline with a sudden interest in setting up an IEP to get my son on track to receive FAPE. She mentioned public school was an option and a program could be created for him and provided within the high school. I had inquired about public school as an option at one of the high schools that included an Alternative - Regional Program which provided behavioral and emotional support. However, Ms. Missie Baxter, Director of HCPSS High Schools repeatedly stated this was not an option for my son.  On 10/25/23 an IEP meeting was held. Ms. Gunshore was in charge of creating a program for my son and hiring 2 behavioral staff and Ms. Baxter was to arrange a tour at Oakland Mills ALT-Regional Program. It took Ms. Baxter 3 weeks to arrange a tour of this local high school. On 11/13/23 a tour was arranged. My son did extremely well and was excited to start school. HCPSS claimed they were still interviewing 2 behavior staff before he could start. There were no new updates. 

On 12/13/23, it was confirmed that my son would be starting school at Guilford Park High School after the holiday in January 2024. This location was never discussed with the parent and no tour was initiated. I requested a tour and found many flaws with this program. On January 26, 2024, I sent a certified letter to Ms. Gunshore, copying Dr. Savage and Mr. Barnes regarding these concerns:

#1 No Age-Related Peers:

GPHS served 9th and 10th graders. The oldest student was 15. My son was 21, an inappropriate age gap.

#2. Isolation / Seclusion / Inability to Meet IEP Social Interaction Goals:

My son was in a secluded area, isolated in a classroom with no peer interaction. After touring Oakland Mills, my expectation was a setting that was at least comparable to this special education class integrated with other students. At Bancroft he worked in groups in the classroom and was paired with peers to perform many different work-related tasks. Being isolated led to significant depression. HCPSS was notified. When asking how he would meet his social interaction goals on his IEP, Ms. Gunshore suggested that he talk to his teacher and stated he had an opportunity to earn peer interaction time based on good behavior. Upon asking who he would graduate with, I was informed he would graduate alone since he was the only senior.

#3. Inappropriate Behavior Staff:

HCPSS claimed there were concerns about my son’s behaviors However, his teacher, Ms. Lindsay Madison, was a tiny lady with a dual role as his behavior support staff. The second female behaviors support staff did not start until February 2024. My son was isolated in a classroom with only his teacher. It was discomforting knowing he had no witnesses and there were no cameras in the event of a behavioral incident or if any other incident was reported.

#4. Inappropriate Program Curriculum / No Transition Plan

This overly simplified program took more than 2 months to create which allotted 30 minutes for arrival and 30 minutes for dismissal, 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after lunch for Communication Check-in to assess his mood, 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after lunch for Reinforcement Time, where he would earn the iPad, TV time, as a reward for doing good behavior, 30 minutes for Lunch, 30 minutes of reading, 30 minutes of math and 30 minutes for Job Skills. There was no Transitional Plan.

#5. Amended IEP Without Parental Knowledge or Consent:

The Social/Emotional goals on my son’s IEP were completely deleted. This was critical due to his history of trauma. Ms. Gunshore’s response was, “The IEP was developed by an IEP team over a course of several meetings. The meetings and participants are listed below. You were in attendance at each of these meetings. The finalized IEP was sent to you on August 27 after the last meeting. Copies of the IEP were sent on September 5, September 18 and October 26, 2023, per your request. At no time during these meetings or after the IEP was provided to you did you raise concerns about the content.

After listening to all the recorded IEP meetings, there was no discussion by any of the IEP team members regarding the changes that were made to my son’s IEP. I should not have had to search for altered documentation that was done illegally.

#6. School Hours / Bus Schedule

My son’s IEP entitled him to 33.45 hours per week, he received 20 hours per week. GPHS’s start and dismissal hours are 7:50 am - 2:35 pm. His bus was late daily, picking him up at 9 am and his school day ended at 1:30 pm. In the meeting Ms. Gunshore stated she was aware that the program she created could not meet his needs and he would just receive compensatory hours to make up the difference. No thought or care was put into this program. My son was entitled to FAPE during school hours to prepare him for society.

#7. False Documentation:

Upon reviewing the teacher’s end of the day reports it was documented daily that my son was in class daily at 9:00 am engaged in activities, however, he was enroute to school. On 1/12/24 it was documented that he was in class at 9:00 and a behavior and he was in the midst of a behavior crisis at 9:10 pm, however, my son contacted me when he arrived at school that day at 9:16 am and he was just getting off the bus. This behavior report is questionable. After I reported this to HCPSS, the teacher no longer put the times on any of the daily reports. Even after complaining to Ms. Gunshore, Dr. Savage and Mr. Barnes no one intervened. 

On 2/22/24 a suspicious behavior incident took place. I was contacted to pick up my son.  On arrival Ms. Gunshore was in the lobby my son was yelling upstairs. I informed her that I could calm him down so things would not escalate. I was prohibited from calming him down, instead, Grassroots and the police were contacted. My son was taken out the back door of the school, put in hand cuffs, put in the back of a police car and taken to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. Ms. Gunshore was aware that my son was triggered by police officers in fear of being re-hospitalized. The police report was obtained which stated that a school staff advised that my son was not a student at GPHS but was in a mental health program to help with his autism. The hospital report was obtained which stated that a school staff informed them that his home appeared to be a trigger, CPS was going to be contacted, and a residential facility was being recommended. Ms. Gunshore stayed at the hospital with another member of staff from GPHS interacting with the nursing staff regarding my son. However, I was escorted out of the patient area by security and prohibited to be with my son by security. 

The teachers incident report included no times, however, from morning until at some point after lunch no appropriate behavior staff were in place. The counselor was never involved to assist in deescalating the situation, instead the police were called. I have a high index of suspicion that this incident was provoked since HCPSS knew they were not meeting his needs. The only way to meet his needs would be to transfer him to a real program. Interestingly days prior to this incident I received an email from Ms. Gunshore stating that could not meet my son’s needs 

Elijah became so withdrawn he no longer would discuss any of the incidents, he would only act out behaviorally due to frustration. I has reason to believe that Elijah was being set up and was isolated so he would have no peers to witness the real triggers behind the scene. I questions whether Elijah was intentionally provoked to make him appear to be a danger so he would no longer be a candidate for GPHS because HCPSS had already admitted that they could not meet his needs. For HCPSS to meet his needs they needed a reason to transfer him to a nonpublic school that could meet his needs.  Only then could HCPSS claim that they met his needs. 

Ms. Madison’s daily report there were no times on the incident report to regarding when any of the events occurred. From morning until after lunch there was no behavior staff other than his teacher and another behavior staff. The counselor was not contacted to potentially deescalated this situation. Due to inadequate behavior support in place the staff contacted the police. resort to law enforcement. There is a high index of suspicion believes using law enforcement was an intentional action by Ms. Gunshore as a segway to the plan to change his placement as only days before this incident, Ms. Gunshore independently changed his notified I that he would starting a new placement on 3/4/24 at the “Strawbridge School.” She was aware that this was where his initial trauma began, landing him in the hospital. She was aware that this was where his initial trauma began. No IEP meeting was held to support this change in placement nor in any of the recorded IEP meetings was it ever communicated that this change could potentially take place. This was never communicated to I. My son’s therapist documented that The Strawbridge School should not be considered as it would re-traumatize him. 

They could not meet his needs. because 2/22/24 the teacher documented a false behavior report stating that Elijah on this same date it is documented that a behavior incident took place. For some unknown reason Ms. Gunshore was there. I was contacted to pick Elijah up. On arrival, Elijah was heard yelling upstairs. I asked to go upstairs to calm him, but she would not allow me. She said the staff would bring him downstairs to me. While waiting for the staff to bring him down, Grassroots and the police were already involved. Elijah was taken out the back of the school, handcuffed and put in the back of the police car and taken to Howard County General Hospital. The police would not allow me to speak with him even though I was his legal guardian. The official police report stated that the school staff stated that Elijah was NOT a student at GPHS but a part of a part of a mental health program to help him with his autism. Grassroots reported that home was the problem, and they had planned to contact CPS and were recommending a residential placement. This was malicious retaliation likely from filing the MSDE complaint and the fact that HCPSS was aware that they could not meet Elijah’s needs but there was nothing fair about the way Elijah was treated. Elijah received no compensatory services from the time missed from July through October 8, 2023. HCPSS is not allowing Elijah to utilize the additional compensatory services that MSDE required be granted. Numerous requests have been made for different services and HCPSS has not responded. Because they Strawbridge School. On March 4, 2024, I moved  over 2,000 miles away s so Elijah’s needs could be met.  HCPSS owed him numerous compensatory hours with a deadline to use all service hours, however, HCPSS abruptly discontinued his therapy services which left him with no services for 60 days after this major transition. Service have been requested numerous times, but HCPSS has delayed responding.

 

My Daughter’s Story: 

My daughter started out as a confident 6th grader on the honor roll who was sent on a downhill journey by HCPSS also during the 2015-2016 school year at Bonnie Branch Middle School, when the principal ignored her many bullying complaints and did not initiate the bullying protocol. This led to an assault by a peer which was recorded on a student’s phone. My daughter informed the principal (Cher Jones) who deleted the video. The principal contacted me stating that it was just “middle girl school drama” but she never mentioned that my daughter was assaulted, that the incident was recorded, nor that she had deleted the video. This changed the trajectory of her life by setting a standard for her bullies that bullying was acceptable, so she felt like she just had to endure this daily mistreatment daily. After numerous complaints and completing many bullying protocols with no results. From that point it was domino effect as the bullying spiraled out of control, which led to major depression. My daughter in the hospital numerous times for major depression with suicidal ideations. After one of her hospitalizations a student spread a rumor that my daughter had threatened a student. My daughter denied it and informed me that the student that they were referring to wasn’t even at school that day. The administration, without any facts other than another student’s report, contacted the police and had my daughter removed from the school and escorted out this middle school, placed in the back of a police car and taken to the ER for a psych evaluation and was banned from returning to school until a threat assessment was completed. From that point my daughter went downhill, and the school system labeled her as “Emotionally Disturbed.” She lost a lot of time from school and was transferred to a regional program at Ellicott Mills Middle School where there were more emotional, and behavior supports in place. She had to ride the short yellow bus, so kids started teasing her from day one. As the bullying continued, the principal (Christopher Rattay) also did not follow the bullying protocol. My daughter who at that point started to avoid classes by making frequent trips to the bathroom or the nurses office with pseudo symptoms to escape her bullies.  She had never had behavior challenges before, but she developed aggressive behaviors as she spent more time trying to defend herself than she did learning. The more she complained, the more the staff reversed her complaint to make her appear to be the problem and they blamed it on her behavior / mental health. One day the principal removed her from her all her classes for 10 days without my knowledge or consent. She reported to student services daily with no teacher and no peers. She too had an IEP with educational / social and emotional goals, but during that time she received none of those services. When I found out she was returned to class, but she never caught up academically from that point. She was transferred to a nonpublic school for 2 years which was a very secluded and isolated program, but there were no other schools to accommodate her as she was not on the autism spectrum.

She re-entered the public high school during her junior year so she could experience inclusion. This was her first time re-facing her bullies since middle school. An IEP meeting was held to ensure a plan was in place to accommodate her needs including social/ emotional support services and psychological counseling. An IEP meeting was held at the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year and these goals were set. That school year was eventful as the bullying recurred and she was assaulted by a peer. A Peace Order was filed with the juvenile court system. There were multiple disciplinary actions with no modifications. At the end of that school year, I called an emergency IEP meeting to request a Functional Behavior Assessment. When the following school year started the FBA had not yet been completed and her annual review was delayed for 2 months. 

It was later brought to my attention that my daughter had no IEP on record at Howard High School for 2 full school years, although we had IEP meetings in which one meeting on 5/10/22 a recommendation was made to have a Functional Behavior Assessment completed which was done one year later, only weeks prior to her graduating from High School. IEP meeting. A state complaint was initiated at that time on behalf of my daughter in April 2023. The FBA was initiated in May 2023, the month that she was scheduled to graduate. The state required the special education department to review the FBA as a team by 10/1/23, however, it did not convene and ignored the deadline not convening until February 2024. 

When meeting in February 2024 the FBA was reviewed but it was found not to be an official FBA on a Howard County Functional Behavior Assessment form. There was much information missing and the Behavior Specialist never reached out to the parent to provide input, which is a major part of the FBA. Based on this drafted documentation it was concluded that my daughter was not eligible to receive compensatory services as it had been determined that she endured no negative impact in May 2022 based on an evaluation that was completed one year later in May 2023.

While attending a summer enrichment program at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, I received a call 2 weeks into the program requesting me to pick my daughter up as she had experienced a mental health crisis which was so bad, she was not able to return.

She started attending Cosmetology School. After relocating out of state just so my son could receive FAPE, I had to pull my daughter out of cosmetology school in which Howard County had agreed to pay 100% of her tuition. However, due to her early withdrawal she incurred a significant financial penalty causing her to have a $1200 balance. Howard County refused to pay the balance even though it was not our fault that we had to relocate due to the County’s inability to provide my son with FAPE. My daughter had to take out a $1200 student loan just to pay the remainder of her balance. 

The Special Education Department used their leverage to retaliate against me through my children by treating them unfairly and by repeatedly violating their disability rights. The Special Education’s former Executive Director Dr. Terrell Savage, Superintendent, Mr. Bill Barnes and the Howard County Board of Education was made aware of all the actions that took place that had a negative impact on my children, however, instead of taking action to rectify the issues, they contributed to the challenges that my children faced which has significantly affected both of my children socially, emotionally and behaviorally.  The written portion of this petition will be reviewed and additional information may be added at a later time, however, the YouTube video provides a very clear and detailed descriptions of my concerns.