Recent data suggests 1 in 36 children has autism.  In Michigan, the number of autism students is almost 40,000.  If such a high number of children have autism, why is it SO HARD to get a good IEP for autism in Michigan schools?  I ask myself this question often as a Special Education Advocate. One would think that schools are very well versed in supporting autistic children but that isn't always the case.

Some schools do a great job supporting ASD kids, while others not so much.  Autism can impact so many different areas that for most ASD children school can be extremely challenging.  This is why it is so important for parents to be strong advocates for their child in IEP meetings.

HOW DOES AUTISM IMPACT CHILDREN?

Autism can impact many aspects of learning and functional performance.  It is important to ensure that all key areas are discussed and assessed for a student's need when discussing IEP eligibility, accommodations, supports and services.

• Academics:  Reading, written language, math, science, and literacy.
• Cognitive Learning: How a child processes and understands information including: executive functioning (planning, focus, organization, impulse control), processing skills (storing information/memory, cognitive fluency), problem-solving, knowledge, and reasoning.
• Communication: How a child uses and understands language for communication including speech skills (sound production, fluency, voice), social and pragmatic language, and need for special communication devices for those with limited verbal communication abilities.
• Self-Advocacy: A child’s ability to recognize need for support and ask for and receive help.
• Independence: Self-care skills, community functioning, employability, goal setting and decision making.
• Social-Emotional: Skills and knowledge needed for building and maintining relationships including identifying/communicating needs, self-management/emotional regulation, emotional awareness, perspective taking, expressing feelings/emotions, self confidence and self esteem.
• Physical and Health: Understanding and maintaining physical well-being (vision, hearing, senses) in addition to gross/fine motor skills, attention, auditory and visual processing.
• Behaviors: Undesired behaviors that need interventions or supports. Determine if a Behavior Intervention Plan is needed to addresss behavior changes (outbursts, repetitive behaviors, eloping, etc.).
• Sensory: Need for sensory breaks or coping strategies when there is sensory overload.
• Mental Health: Learn to identify anxiety triggers and how to implement coping strategies.

MICHIGAN AUTISM IEP ELIGIBILITY:

One would think that if my child has an autism diagnosis then they should be eligible for an IEP under the eligibility category of autism, right?  Nope!  It's not that simple.  MARSE (Michigan Administrative Regulations for Special Education) has its own IEP eligibility requirements for students to get an IEP based on autism.  This is what Michigan law says about autism IEP eligibility requirements:

MARSE R 340.1715 Autism spectrum disorder defined; determination.
Rule 15.

(1) Autism spectrum disorder is considered a lifelong developmental disability that adversely affects a student’s educational performance in 1 or more of the following performance areas:

(a) Academic.
(b) Behavioral.
(c) Social.
Autism spectrum disorder is typically manifested before 36 months of age. A child who first manifests the characteristics after age 3 may also meet criteria.  Autism spectrum disorder is characterized by qualitative impairments in reciprocal social interactions, qualitative impairments in communication, and restricted range of interests/repetitive behavior.

(2) Determination for eligibility shall include all of the following:

(a) Qualitative impairments in reciprocal social interactions including at least 2 of the following areas:

(i) Marked impairment in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body postures, and gestures to regulate social interaction.
(ii) Failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level.
(iii) Marked impairment in spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people, for example, by a lack of showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest.
(iv) Marked impairment in the areas of social or emotional reciprocity.

(b) Qualitative impairments in communication including at least 1 of the following:

(i) Delay in, or total lack of, the development of spoken language not accompanied by an attempt to compensate through alternative modes of communication such as gesture or mime. 

(ii) Marked impairment in pragmatics or in the ability to initiate, sustain, or engage in reciprocal conversation with others.
(iii) Stereotyped and repetitive use of language or idiosyncratic language.
(iv) Lack of varied, spontaneous make-believe play or social imitative play appropriate to developmental level.

(c) Restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped behaviors including at least 1 of the following:

(i) Encompassing preoccupation with 1 or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus.
(ii) Apparently inflexible adherence to specific, nonfunctional routines or rituals.
(iii) Stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms, for example, hand or finger flapping or twisting, or complex whole-body movements.
(iv) Persistent preoccupation with parts of objects.

(3) Determination may include unusual or inconsistent response to sensory stimuli, in combination with subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) of subrule (2) of this rule.

(4) While autism spectrum disorder may exist concurrently with other diagnoses or areas of disability, to be eligible under this rule, there shall not be a primary diagnosis of schizophrenia or emotional impairment.

(5) A determination of impairment shall be based upon a full and individual evaluation by a multidisciplinary evaluation team including, at a minimum, a psychologist or psychiatrist, an authorized provider of speech and language under R 340.1745(d), and a school social worker