VIDBE-Q Volume 67 Issue 4
specifically to Ivey's dual sensory loss from the context of IDEA. Still, there was
constant conflict between Stephanie, new classroom teachers, and service
providers (and at times, an administrator).
Classroom teachers were not filling their roles and responsibilities as
designated in Ivey's IEP. Stephanie was attempting to apply her knowledge of
deafblindness to Ivey's daily activities. Depending on the classroom teacher,
Stephanie was often left to her own accord to figure out how to address
accommodations within the classroom and modify materials. This configuration
often left Ivey and Stephanie isolated and alone, literally detached, from the rest of
the class. The alternate option was a classroom teacher who refused to
acknowledge Stephanie as an intervener, expecting Stephanie to carry out the
responsibilities of a paraprofessional, in addition to her role as Ivey's intervener. It
was a hostile and resentful environment, not suited for learning. One classroom
teacher literally said to me in a meeting, "She's just a glorified parapro." This
came from a classroom teacher who started her career in special education as a
paraprofessional. In that moment, enough was enough. I had a daughter in need of
serious and competent educators.
Even with the intervener designation in the IEP, Stephanie was constantly
wedged between a school system and parents. She was being pushed by me and the
inner workings of Ivey's IEP to execute a job, while simultaneously being rejected
