Lions and Tigers and ARD Meetings, Oh My!

ARD

ARD (Admission, Review, and Dismissal) meetings can feel so daunting. There are so many people involved, stacks of paper work, and a whole host of acronyms that just don’t seem necessary. 

At The Helm ABA we believe collaboration is essential to creating lasting behavior change and one essential piece of that collaboration is with schools. After all, that is where many of our clients will spend the majority of their childhood years. 

The Helm ABA has worked with over 15-local school districts to provide evidence based practices within the public school classrooms.  We know a thing or two about making successful plans for children across the spectrum within public schools!

Here are our Top 5 tips for Navigating the ARD Process! 

  1. Everything is negotiable. An IEP, ARD meeting date, Goals, are all negotiable. When you receive an ARD meeting request it’s ok to say, “that date or time doesn’t work for me.” 
  2. Review goals before attending the meeting. I always request to read the WHOLE IEP (goals, schedule of services, accommodations etc.) before stepping in the ARD meeting. Remember number 1? Everything is negotiable. The ARD goals are only proposed and if they do not fit with your priorities you can ask for changes. We find it really valuable to share the goals with your BCBA so they can collaborate with your teacher and work on skills across both therapy and the school setting. Never assume that you HAVE to stick with what the school proposes. 
  3. Ask for real data. General statements of “getting better” or “getting worse” don’t give us the information we want to know. How many times is he refusing to do his work a day? How many times are we seeing physical aggression? When you ask him his personal information how accurate is he the first time asked? All of this information lets us know if we are heading towards independence and if the current supports in the classroom are working.  
  4. Communicate Early and Often. Schools want to support you and your family, but they will not know what is most important to your family priorities unless you tell them. Let the school know what you hope to achieve this year and how you would like to stay in touch to play an active role in making sure the goals are accomplished. A daily note home is not too much to ask and can be a great way to ensure there is consistent back and forth communication happening!
  5. Bring support. Attending an ARD can be overwhelming and can feel like 1 against a million. You can bring anyone you want to the ARD meeting who knows your child you feel might be helpful. Sometimes it’s nice to have another set of ears as a backup when you get bogged down in all the fancy acronyms. They may catch something you miss! 

Using these five tips really does help start take the overwhelm out of ARD meetings, but remember we are always available. We support all current Helm families with up two ARD meetings per year and one ARD meeting up to one year after you graduate! 

Call us today to learn more about how we can support!

We have been a family blessed with the help of the team at The Helm. Our son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder when he was 2.5 and The Helm was one of the places recommended by our developmental psychologist. I am a physician and still found it hard navigating this new medical problem and knowing what to do next. I called many places and from step one Lee Ann was the most helpful explaining the process with paperwork, assessment, available services, insurance, etc. we were able to start therapy quite soon after diagnosis and had sessions at home daily for 3 hours. The quality of staff, the system they have in place for the therapists, the coordination by the BCBA supervising therapist and early response put us at ease that we were on the right path. Ultimately the steady positive changes we saw with our son overcame any fears we had about autism holding our son back for the rest of his life.

We used many forms of intervention that we felt were individually tailored for our family – for potty training, anger management, dietary intervention and even let them know when we could not maintain something suggested in family training, and they would just take our request and implement another plan. Our son has now graduated/transitioned out of therapy and is currently in pre-K in a regular classroom with him on par with his class in academics, has friends and no behavior issues. Most important of all we have a happy son who loves to play with his big sister.

I know that I will always read all there is on autism and watch my son for any features. But I hope my review adds to positive aspects that I wish someone would have told me when I started the journey – start early, don’t put off your suspicions, get your child evaluated now! The label does not hinder,  in fact it falls to the side once you have the diagnosis to facilitate therapy. ABA intervention, especially done with the right people, makes a big difference. It does not pressure or upset the child at all, and you are not stuck in therapy for life! I know if any behavioral issues come up in the future I have The Helm, and they will help us and the outcome is going to be positive. Said with heartfelt thanks.

– Former Helm ABA Family

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