Autism may be one of the hottest disability topics for this year’s presidential candidates. All the major candidates have addressed it in some way, which isn’t surprising, given the rapid rise in autism (1 in 150) and all those children with autism have parents and grandparents who are presumably voters.

A site called AutismFACTS has compiled information on the presidential candidates’ stance on autism and the government’s involvement. The information on this website is a bit dated, since most... more

An interesting bill passed the Georgia Senate on Friday, one that requires schools to weigh and then report the body mass index (BMI) of students. Other states are doing this, including Arkansas, the first. Arkansas’ plan as part of the Governor Huckabee’s statewide weight reduction plan.

I’m truly not sure if this is a good idea or not. I recognize how much obesity plays into health issues and how overweight the state of Georgia is. (Southern states are typically much heavier than other parts of the country.) And nationwide 34% of all children are overweight. And... more

LuLu’s history curriculum through Georgia Virtual Academy never ceases to amaze me. It is rather detailed and heavy stuff! We work on it together, reading the textbook and doing the online enrichment work.

Today’s lesson was a continuation on people immigrating to America in the late 1800s. Today’s lesson centered on how some were against immigration and the prejudice and racism that sprang up during that time period. There was information on the Ku Klux Klan, the increase of crime in the cities, and cultural neighborhoods that formed in New York and other major... more

Put on your advocacy hats and start contacting your congressmen to show your support for the bipartisan Adoption Equality Act, (S. 1462/HR 4901), which will ensure that foster children with special needs will not be denied SSI Title IV-E support based on their birth family’s income.

NACAC (the North American Council of Adoptable Children) is spearheading an advocacy effort to get other adoption and foster care organizations to partner with them in showing support for this legislation. If you are a member of an adoption or foster group, visit... more

First, I’ve got to insert a bit of patriotism here. For all the battles my family has endured in securing a free, appropriate public education for LuLu (which we have or have not succeeded at yet, depending on how you look at it), I can think of no other place on this earth where we would be afforded as many rights for her as we are in the United States. I shutter to think about where my Chinese daughter with so many disabilities would be at this moment if she were still in China.

And, no matter what negative things you think about Richard Nixon, he was the one... more

Prior to 1975 children with any handicap did not have to be served in public school. If your child couldn’t walk up and down the stairs of the school building or had a mental or intellectual impairment, the school could just turn you away. Hence, thousands of children with various disabilities were either institutionalized or kept at home and never educated.

This initial act is now known as IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), and has greatly impacted and improved the lives of children with disabilities over the last 30 years.

IDEA is a... more

If you’re the parent of a child with a disability, it would greatly benefit you to have a basic understanding of the federal laws dealing with disability and what they cover. Like any other legislation, disability laws are not always clear-cut or completely understandable. But by having a basic overview of what laws are in place, you will know which law is likely to cover your situation, should one arise.

There are numerous laws that impact people with disabilities. But there are three key federal disability rights laws that every parent should be aware of:

1. The... more

Several days ago, Super Dad and I attended a session at a local autism support group on special needs trusts and estate planning. It is hard for me to imagine “estate” planning, since the few assets we have are far from an “estate”. But that is all the more reason we need to be thinking about the future for LuLu.

What we learned from the attorney who spoke, who specializes in special needs planning, is that we need to make provision for whatever inheritance that LuLu could receive from us so that it doesn’t negatively impact whatever disability assistance moneys... more

Some are just more equal than others. When I was in junior high school, we were assigned Animal Farm. Even at the tender age of 13, I “got it” about the dangers of group think and about governments that were not controlled in a democratic way by serving and protecting the people.

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a day of remembrance of all King contributed toward equality. The news is filled with praises for how far we’ve come. And we have. But there is still a huge minority that is without equality on many levels. That minority is the disabled population.... more

Today, as we travel back from Florida and prepare to travel to Illinois for the funeral, my teammates in my Partners in Policymaking class will be convening at the Georgia State Capitol building to present a “mock testimony” on Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Counselors.

These counselors assist students with disabilities in their transition from school to a work environment. It has been both fascinating and frustrating to learn about this program. The original premise of our testimony was that there are federal monies available to hire these counselors... more