1. BY: AMANDA BERG Richard’s Mother

2. Summary Richard qualified for Special Education Richard loves learning but is embarrassed by dirty, torn clothes and worn out shoes Lizzie (Mother) wears nice clean clothes, has painted fingernails, makeup, jewelry, and fashionable hair Mrs. Dudley (Teacher) calls social services and they tell her that Lizzie doesn’t spend her aid on her children Mrs. Dudley and Martha (Aide), buy Richard new clothes and shoes Lizzie sells Richards new clothes Mrs. Dudley and Martha buy clothes again, this time Richard changes out of rags before school and back into them after school The next year Mrs. Dudley and Haddy (School Counselor) are told that Social Services has interfered. They try to set up meetings with Lizzie but she lies and says she will be home and then is not there when they make the visit Mrs. Dudley and Haddy drop Richard off from school one day, mom ignores him, however, when the younger brothers and sister get off bus the two quickly realize Richard has become the parent

3. Summary Richard expresses his desire to become a preacher to Mrs. Dudley, who gets in contact with Mrs. Jordan who picks Richard and siblings up and takes them to church Church sets up funds at grocery store for Lizzie to get groceries to feed her family, she sells the groceries for drug money One day Richard comes to school and tells Mrs. Dudley that him and his siblings were chased out of house while mother was beat, broke her arm Mrs. Dudley talks to siblings teachers and they all agree that the children are shaken up so she calls Social Services Lizzie lies to Social Services and says that she had too much to drink and fell and broke her arm, they refuse to investigate farther Mrs. Dudley calls police, they tell her that they are working on the case Lizzie is arrested for drug possession and prostitution, all children are placed in different foster homes Richard lives in a district that doesn’t have a Special Education program and his school performance is terrible. He remains separated from siblings but eventually moves to district with a program Fifteen years later Mrs. Dudley hasn’t heard anything about Richard, until she hears a rumor that he is in jail

4. Teacher Perspective While reading this case I felt a tremendous amount of respect for Mrs. Dudley. If I had a student who so badly wanted to learn and be accepted in school, as Richard did, I feel I would have handled it just as Mrs. Dudley did. Try not to become too involved that it consumed my life, but remain concerned for his well being. Report to Social Services and talk with/collaborate with the school counselor, principal, and the teachers of Richard’s siblings. I would have made a home visit. Focus a lot of attention on Richard in attempts to get him to feel comfortable talking with me about home. I would have bought him clean clothing (but had someone else give it to him) Focus less on his academics and more on his basic needs. He was a young child caring for his brothers and sister, no one was caring for him. I have been in a situation like Richard before where I felt that I had to care for my younger brother and looking back on it now I would not have made it through that if someone wasn’t looking out for me and my needs. Provide a sense of security to my students.

5. Child’s Parents/Caregivers Perspective In this particular situation Richard’s mother could have been feeling a variety of things:  Struggle - Perhaps she felt drugs and Prostitution was the only way she could keep a roof over her children’s heads  Anger and Abandonment – There is no mention of a father figure but perhaps he left  Poor education – Perhaps she was uneducated and could not see the importance of the education her children were getting  Abuse – Maybe she came from a family where drugs and abuse were common and she didn’t know any other way.  Imbalance - Maybe she had a disability and was unable to meet her own basic needs let alone those of her children  Failure – Perhaps she may have even felt that her children would be better off without her, that a foster home could provide them with a better home

6. School Administration Perspective As an administrator I would be sure that the student was having their needs meet at school Contact Social Services Assist or initiate home visits to meet with mom Watch for abuse See that the driver, whether it bus or another form, is aware of the situation and waits to see that the children are safe when they get on or off the bus Allow student to come to nurses office and sleep Free lunch Provide child with appropriate clothing Be sure that the teachers/aides that are working with Richard are okay emotionally, provide them with someone to talk with

7. Richard’s Perspective Appreciative of those that help him and excited about learning Doesn’t appear to associate with others, not concerned about making friends Cares for and is protective of siblings Has goal to someday be a preacher, attends church Accepts help, but doesn’t really ask for it Wants a better life Seeking a sense of security, safe place to sleep, someone to talk to etc.

8. Social Services Perspective In most cases they try to keep children with parents They were more than aware of the situation but obviously believed Lizzie’s lies Possibly concerned about their own safety if they went to the house Potentially waiting for the cops to intervene so they weren’t hurt Maybe were annoyed with the amount of calls they received about the house/family Perhaps as long as the children were not physically abused they felt no need to step in Maybe they felt that the school was providing the children with the things they needed, and that they were safe.

9. Working with Family It would be very difficult to deal with a mother who was hurting/neglecting her children It would be important to keep your emotions under control Although Richard’s mother appeared to be unconcerned about Richard’s schooling and well being I would be sure to keep her posted on his progress.  The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) requires that you involve parents of students with special needs in their education  Early involvement/informing is best  Send out a letter early in the year and continue to do so even if you think the parent(s) are ignoring them  Schedule a home visit, check school policies first. Be sure not to go alone, ask a co-worker to go with or someone that knows the family.  Keep child’s best interest in mind, but inform parent(s) of child's struggles and triumphs

10. Working with Outside Resources In this particular situation Richard should have an IEP, which his mother would have had to “ok” Police were contacted to/because:  Mrs. Dudley felt that Social Services was missing the safety of the children and the severity of the situation  Further Investigation was needed, teacher felt that safety was being jeopardized Social Services were contacted to:  Investigate complaints  See that Lizzie was getting proper support (until they realized she wasn’t using the money on the children)  Ensure the safety of the children

11. Working with School Administration Keeping Richard’s home life in mind help, make sure that his basic needs are being met Keep the administration up to date about Richard’s situation throughout the year The teacher, aide, counselor, and principal appeared to be working very hard together to ensure Richard’s well being, both academically and emotionally When Richard was placed in foster care Mrs. Dudley was still concerned about him and his education. She stayed in touch with the new case worker in the new district. She requested/recommended that Richard be moved to a district where he could receive an appropriate and proper education. All school personnel involved with Richard’s case were very good about listening to him and trying to address his needs and help in anyway they could.

12. Instructional/Lesson Planning Allow exceptions for Richard Allow for extra time Do not expect him to complete big projects or large assignments at home (he is trying to care for his younger siblings while his mother is exposing them to terrible situations) Know that extra support may be needed Being that he has a lot on his mind make sure instruction is clear and specific Do not favor or ignore Richard, treat him just like every other student Challenge him but do not frustrate him, he has enough going on Take advantage of moments when he asks for extra instruction Richard likes and responds well to Martha (aide) let him work with her if need be

13. Management Planning Continue to be a consistent support in Richard’s life Collaborate with past teachers to get a knowledge of what works will for Richard and what does not. Richard doesn’t appear to have any behavior issues, however, he doesn’t really seem to be very sociable either. I would try to encourage him to work with other students and try to help him make friends He appears to want to learn, so providing him with enough to do would be important He doesn’t have support at home so I would try to figure out his interests and getting him involved in activities he might enjoy Get to know his body language, intervene if you think something is wrong Be compassionate, he needs to know someone cares about him and will listen

14. Relationship Building Richard will probably be reserved towards most people, therefore it is important that the teacher builds a trusting relationship with him Focus on his relationships with other faculty and peers Build a respectable classroom and challenge him to talk in class so his peers hear his voice Be patient with Richard, relationships take time Understand that he is dealing with a lot:  He is embarrassed/ashamed by clothing  Hasn’t seen positive relationships, help initiate positive conversation with classmates  May not want to talk about home, but may not be able to think about anything else

15. Artifact 1: Interest Inventory If Richard is capable of filling this out on his own, have him do so. If he cannot fill it out on his own ask him the questions and record his answers. interestinventoryC.htm

16. Artifact 1: Interest Inventory By having Richard think about these questions he is forced to focus on himself. This inventory would let the teacher in to what resources are available for Richard. I know that he doesn’t appear to have much support at home, but this would give me a better insight into what Richard does have and enjoys. Richard’s mother has pretty much abandoned him, his brothers and sister. With that being said, filling out this inventory with a teacher would be a good way to build a trusting relationship. Richard’s interest inventory would be a good tool to gain an idea of what is important in his life. He has talked with Mrs. Dudley about his desire to become a preacher, however, this would really allow her to see where he is coming from.

17. Artifact 2: Mentoring Pair Richard up with a mentor, the mentor can look for academic, emotional, social, and any other struggles. Organizations that this would include are:  Big Brothers and Big Sisters  Boys and Girls Club  YMCA program  High School Mentor  Middle School Mentor  Supportive teacher  After school program

18. Artifact 2: Mentoring By providing Richard with a mentor, I feel he would have extra support that he wouldn’t otherwise have. There is no mention of Richards friendships, so I would assume he struggles in that area. By pairing Richard with a mentor he would automatically have extra support and monitoring of his well being. This would also be a meaningful early intervention tool. Extra time with supportive help could easily serve as a way to catch up in school. There are a variety of organizations and ways that Richard could become a part of a mentoring program. Although, this would be beneficial educationally it would be very helpful emotionally. A mentoring program would be a great way to help Richard trust and rely on adults to help him.