The Children’s Law Center—a DC Bar Foundation grantee partner—helps more than 4,000 children and families every year, focusing on improving each child’s health, family stability, and education outcomes. They work directly with DC judges, agencies, health care professionals, parents, and educators. They are committed to helping children and families until their efforts translate into meaningful improvements in their health, education, safety, and well-being.
In this client story, we highlight one family that has benefited from the Children’s Law Center’s legal advocacy and representation.
Ms. George is a strong advocate for her three sons, Messiah, Matthew, and Mark. The boys have faced difficulties in school, and Ms. George has had to fight to get the proper supports for their needs. Two of the boys are autistic, one has ADHD, and they have additional medical concerns.
Despite early diagnoses, they have faced delays in getting critical educational services from their school. For students with disabilities, every week that goes by, not getting the right services can compound the impact of the delay as they fall further and further behind their peers.
For health reasons, Ms. George wanted the boys to be able to continue virtual school after most schools returned to in-person; however, she needed to line up the right supports for that to be a viable option.
In need of help on how to navigate the system, Ms. George reached out to Children’s Law Center. Their staff helped her identify the right path in the special education system for each of her sons. They worked with the school to get updated evaluations and essential services for each child, including specialized virtual instruction, small group programs, and compensatory services for delays.
“My attorney was a major help,” Ms. George said, “bringing in all the research and her experience with the system.”
The boys have done well in virtual school, and Ms. George has used advice from the Children’s Law Center while in meetings with the school to ensure the boys continue to get the support they need.
Because Children’s Law Center’s expertise extends beyond education to include the full array of support families need to build stability and ensure their children are healthy and learning, Ms. George knows she can turn to CLC again if she faces new challenges.
The DC Bar Foundation is proud to fund legal services organizations in DC that help residents during times of crisis.
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