Q: Do professionals resent a surrogate parent's full

participation at an IEP meeting?

A: Special education law gives you a right to full participation. Your role is to represent the child's interests. Anyone responds better to a positive, assertive attitude. If the surrogate parent is prepared, interested, listens, and is concerned, the professionals are more likely to see the surrogate parent as an equal and valuable participant.

Q: If, during an IEP meeting, the emphasis is on academic skills while the surrogate parent believes that it should be on building independence, what can the surrogate parent do?

A: The surrogate parent should not be reluctant to express concern over the emphasis on academics if, based on the surrogate parent's observations of the child or evaluation data, building independence is as important or perhaps more important than academics.