Beaty v. Tomball ISD

24/06/2022

One of Trace’s biggest passions is serving his community. He is not just volunteering, but he seeks out ways to serve and calls to set things up for himself and friends from school. We are so proud that of how compassionate he is and the young man he is becoming! He is not only working through his own struggles, but he is working to help others who struggles. That really illustrates Trace’s heart and character.

17/06/2022

The Beaty family were committed to working in partnership with Tomball ISD to help Trace. When Trace was not being served appropriately, they continued to offer insight in hopes there would be improvement. As no progress was being made and Trace continued to suffer, the family felt helpless and like their only choice was to take legal action. After all, how long can you wait when your child's life is on the line? The family participated in several mediation attempts with no success. In an effort to hold TISD responsible for failing to provide Trace FAPE, they prepared with their team for trial. While we are abundantly grateful Trace was safe and excelling in his private placement, this in no way dismissed TISD's legal responsibilities and failures in his education.

01/06/2022

Many children with unique or additional needs are given an IEP to succeed in school. This stands for independent education plans. IEPs not only contain accommodations to help the child succeed, but measurable goals so their progress can be tracked which allows the committee who reviews these plans to make sure the plan in place is being successful. Triumph had a very successful plan in place for Trace and the accommodations they suggested are very typical and commonly used for his diagnoses. The big question here is why did Tomball ISD not implement the evidence based IEP Triumph has had so much success with. The answer unfortunately is the same as the answer to the "why did TISD not test Trace for autism as multiple experts suggested they do" question. We don't know. It doesn't make sense. We truly believe it would have prevented Trace from struggling so deeply. Below you will find the list of requested accomdations that Trace needed to be successful:
1.) Small class size. (1:3-4 ratio)
2.) Opportunity to promote socializing within the constraints of small groups.
3.) Individual therapy for 1 hour per week and family integrative therapy (with Trace) for 1 hour per week.
4.)Seated in the front of the room near the teacher so that he can pay attention.
5.) Extra time for completing assignments.
6.) Allow short breaks as needed by inevident cue.
7.) Reminders to keep on task.
8.) Positive reinforcement
9.) Frequent checks for understanding material.
10.) Copy of notes
11.) Help with organizational skills
12.) Testing broken down into smaller parts and given in a separate room.
If you do some research on common accommodations for Trace's diagnoses, you will see these. They are readily applied in many public school settings and result in great outcomes for the students. There is no reason that TISD could not provide them. After all, they are absolutely necessary to grant Trace the free and appropriate education he has a legal right to and TISD has a legal duty to fulfill.

26/05/2022

25/05/2022

While The Beaty’s were well aware that the time would come where Trace would be ready to return home, they struggled with the idea of having him return to the school that failed him so miserably. They were encouraged by their advocate to give Tomball ISD another chance as Trace had made such extreme progress at Triumph. They requested an ARD meeting to prepare for the transition back. TISD told them they would not hold an ARD and that since they sent Trace to an out of district school, he was now an out of district student. Their home was still there, they were paying taxes, and this was their school system. The Beaty’s then asked that TISD pay for private placement at public cost. All of the sudden, TISD wants to hold the ARD meeting. The parents attended hopeful that their son would finally be provided FAPE. TISD wasn’t even going to provide minimal services such as speech therapy, much less provide what Triumph was suggesting they do to ensure Trace would be successful. This photo was taken with Trace and one of the student leaders of Triumph in Alaska. Trace learned so much on this trip and made huge leaps socially, emotionally, and educationally. The accomdations Triumph suggested Trace continue to have upon returning home were created based on evidence from what was working so well for Trace and the hope he'd continue to make forward progression.

25/05/2022

While it was difficult to send Trace to Triumph, it was a game changer for The Beaty Family. The staff there loved the children they served deeply and were committed to helping them succeed. Trace thrived under the rigid schedule and expressed feeling respected and cared for by his teachers. Trace was receiving excellent schooling, one on one therapy, individual therapy, family therapy, sessions for building confidence/self-esteem, and once he earned it, he was rewarded with the experience of getting to train a service dog. There were once in a lifetime experiences like wilderness excursions and a yearly trip to Alaska. Trace was in his element and the staff was continuously caring for him and developing a plan for him to return home and back to his zoned school when he was ready. They knew he would need to continue to learn in small groups, be rewarded for hard work, have assignments chunked into smaller pieces, and other accommodations which are not only very common but completely possible for public schools to implement for students who need them.

25/05/2022

The Beaty family chose to send Trace to Triumph after spending countless hours to find the best residential treatment center for their son. It was apparent that they made an excellent choice because Trace excelled there. While everyone was so thankful about the progress and healing that was taking place, there was no doubt that this came at an extreme cost for their family. They were physically separated from Trace who was only twelve at the time and they couldn’t see him for his first three months there. Taylor (Trace’s sister who was also adopted from Guatemala) is incredibly close to her brother so this separation caused her to struggle with depression and need therapeutic support. Trace’s parents were overwhelmed with grief wondering what else they could have done to help their son. The truth of the matter was that The Beaty’s had not failed Trace… Tomball ISD had. Traditionally when public schools cannot properly serve a student they provide for the private placement financially. Tomball didn’t even cover a portion of this. So The Beaty’s are struggling without not only being separated from Trace and worrying for his wellbeing, but they also had the weight of this incredibly expensive residential treatment facility. This photo is a picture of Trace celebrating Chanukah alone since he was at Triumph. It really embodies the loss the family experienced during this time of seeking help for Trace.

24/05/2022

The Beaty’s did extensive research on residential treatment facilities. They did not want to send Trace, but with the school being unwilling to properly service him and his life being in danger, their hands were tied. They studied all of their options, interviewed parents of children who have attended such facilities, and they ended up deciding upon Triumph in Utah. While Triumph was far away, they had amazing therapies and staff members. It was evident that Trace would be well loved and given what he needed to succeed… and succeed he did! Triumph did many evaluations that Trace’s parents had to pay for out of pocket. Traditionally such assessments are done by the child’s school of origin, but Tomball has been unwilling for quite some time and getting Trace help quickly was imperative. Trace was diagnosed with several things that are quite common for trauma survivors. These diagnoses helped shape a proper IEP to service him with. It was decided that when it was time to transition back to Tomball ISD, the IEP should remain in place but the eligibility should be changed to autism. Remember this was suggested two years prior but was not met with cooperation by the school.

24/05/2022

Trace’s suicidal outcries were a very low point on his journey and something that should have been handled with far more care. For the two years(at this point) that the school had been insufficiently servicing Trace, his struggles grew. By seventh grade, he was interrupting almost every class, hurting himself, and writing su***de letters. Trace’s parents were scrambling getting him to psychologists they were hoping could help. Their hearts were absolutely broken and they were at a loss on how to support their son without the help of the school where he spent most of his waking hours. The school psychologist, Donna LaRue, contacted the Beaty’s and told them it was an emergency. She told the parents based on her testing, Trace was high risk and very much in danger. Ms. Beaty asked for help and was told the school’s policy was to notify the parents but then it was on them because the school didn’t offer any further assistance. This is why Ms. Beaty was so desperate and had to make the difficult choice to send Trace to Triumph. Trace was not safe at Tomball ISD.

24/05/2022

After the private evaluations were completed in Trace’s fifth grade year, the Beaty’s were equipped with substantial information to help them in their quest to have Trace receive appropriate services at school. The doctor noted that Trace had signs of autism and the school needed to continue with further testing. The school insisted this was all behavioral and wouldn’t even entertain Ms. Beaty’s requests for more testing. Even if it were merely behavioral, there was far more Tomball ISD could do to care for Trace. Since they did not, Trace continued to decline. In seventh grade, Trace began struggling with suicidal ideations and even writing suicidal letters which he turned in as homework assignments. His outcries for staff members at Tomball ISD landed on deaf ears. Instead of helping him, Tomball would punish him by isolating him in the office or having him eat lunch in solitude. His mother begged the school for help, resources, and counseling services. They coldly told her to “figure it out” which is not only unethical, but ignores the social and emotional pillar of education Trace so clearly needed help with. Scared for her son’s safety, Ms. Beaty made one of the hardest choices she’s ever had to make as a mother; to send her son to residential treatment.

24/05/2022

Far too often, parents don't know all of the services available for their children's unique needs. How are we supposed to know it all when first getting started? Unfortunately schools don't always share all of this insight to help parents help their child. If you have found yourself in this position, we highly recommend getting a copy of this Wrightslaw book as a starting place. There is a future and hope for your child. You can help access the best services for them. You are not alone!

https://www.amazon.com/Wrightslaw-Special-Education-Law-2nd/dp/1892320169?ref_=d6k_applink_bb_dls_failed&dplnkId=1b15b82b-2276-48ed-9be2-bed6bbe9ae35

Wrightslaw: Special Education Law, 2nd Edition provides a clear roadmap to the laws and how to get better services for all children with disabilities. This Wrightslaw publication is an invaluable resource for parents, advocates, educators, and attorneys. You will refer to this book again and again.

23/05/2022

While Trace is a unique and sensitive child who went through incredibly difficult circumstances, he is capable of success when being properly serviced at school. There is measurable evidence of this at his current school when comparing his success there to his scores from Tomball ISD. Today, Trace is an honor roll student who comes with the highest accolades from his teachers and administrators. His current Head of School, Jordyn Nail, shares, “I can say with confidence that Trace is one of the most caring and driven students I’ve ever worked with in my thirteen years as an educator.” That is quite a stark difference from Trace’s struggles academically, behaviorally, and with his unfortunate suicidal ideation while at Tomball ISD. What flipped the switch? What has changed that has caused this great recovery and success for Trace Beaty? To put it plainly, Trace is finally receiving the accommodations he needs to succeed. Tomball had a legal duty to appropriately serve Trace, and they failed to do so. By not properly caring for Trace’s social and emotional needs, he was denied what he needed to succeed in the classroom, and therefore was not afforded the free appropriate public education (FAPE) he is legally entitled to.

23/05/2022

Trace Beaty came to the United States from Guatemala when he was adopted in 2007. Trace’s early life was marked by traumas including the primal wound of being separated from his primary attachment… and unfortunately he experienced being separated from a second foster mother before coming home. Upon his adoption, Trace’s family worked diligently to get him all of the supports and services he needed to heal from his early life experiences. His family was aware that even with ample amounts of therapeutic support, the way that trauma affected his brain would likely result in some learning differences which is quite common amongst people who have been adopted. What the Beaty’s did not expect is that the school would not afford their child with an equitable learning opportunity due to such differences even though the law requires them to. By pre-school, Trace’s mother knew that he needed intervention to help with some concerning things she was observing. Trace struggled to make eye contact, respond when spoken to, and his emotions were irregular. By first grade, Ms. Beaty was regularly requesting testing for special education services. She wasn’t met with collaboration or help. When Trace’s fifth grade year came, Ms. Beaty took him to Austin for advanced private testing. When she presented the school with the sixty pages of findings, their response was still inappropriate. They did not follow the suggestions of the specialist. Instead they reluctantly placed Trace in special education services for “behavioral disturbance” yet they did not provide him with a BIP (behavioral intervention plan.) This was the first of many negligent moves by Tomball that put Trace in danger. This is the story we will be presenting in court this week and we hope you will follow along with us so as a community we can work together to make sure that no child is ever put at risk like this again.