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Back to School, Back to the IEP Table: Rapid-Fire Q&A for 2025-2026
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It's August 2025, and we’re back to school and back to the IEP and 504 tables! In this episode of Ask the Advocate, Karen Mayer Cunningham, the Special Education Boss®, takes questions live and delivers rapid-fire answers, real-talk strategies, and expert insight to get your year started right.
Whether you're prepping for a first IEP meeting, navigating an out-of-place placement, wondering about compensatory services, or trying to understand cell phone exemptions in Texas, this episode covers it all, with a little humor and a whole lot of clarity.
🟡 Topics Covered:
- ✅ What to request before your IEP meeting (and how)
- ✅ Why promotion language does not belong in the IEP
- ✅ Tips for advocating for a child with cerebral palsy
- ✅ How to write strong IEP goals for developmental gaps
- ✅ The purpose of a “Zac Pack” for Kindergarten transitions
- ✅ Clarifying inclusion responsibilities + para roles
- ✅ Graduation, electives, and accommodations: what’s legal?
- ✅ IDEA violations, denials of FAPE, and when to demand comp ed
- ✅ Charter schools, self-contained myths, and why public school can work—if we get it right
- ✅ Should a parent work as a para for their own child? Why that’s a red flag
- ✅ What to do if your school is sending your child home for behavior
- ✅ How to start a career as an advocate (without a college degree)
- ✅ Push-in vs. pull-out supports, IEP meeting prep, and so much more
🟣 Karen also covers:
- The new Texas cell phone law and what counts as an IEP/504 exception
- What really makes a school “good” for students with disabilities
- Advice for brand-new SPED teachers stepping into messy programs
- What to do when you’re ghosted by the school
- Why special education advocacy is a calling—and why it matters now more than ever
🎧 Whether you're a parent, teacher, para, or aspiring advocate, this is your weekly dose of clarity, confidence, and community at the IEP table.
🛠️ Resources Mentioned:
- 📲 Download the Special Education Academy App — FREE in your app store!
- 🎓 Join The Academy
- 📚 Visit the Book Shelf (IEP Goal Writing Resource by Dr.
✨ When we get it right for the child, we get it right for everybody. ✨
👩⚖️ Hosted by Karen Mayer Cunningham, Advocate & Special Education Boss®
Each week, Karen shares real stories, legal insights, and no-nonsense strategies to help you navigate special education with clarity and confidence.
👉 Subscribe & never miss an episode — new episodes drop every week!
🎓 Join The Academy: Weekly live trainings + 250+ hours of advocacy tools & expert resources
🔗 Learn more at The Academy
📬 Have a question? Email us at [email protected]
📱 Follow Karen on:
- TikTok & Instagram: @specialeducationboss
- YouTube: Special Education Academy
🧠 Want to level up your advocacy game?
Check out the Advocate's Bookshelf — a curated collection of must-have tools, guides, and legal references every special education advocate should own. From federal code to diagnostic manuals, these are the essentials that help you advocate with clarity and confidence.
📚 Browse now: https://amzn.to/3RiQPLl
(As an Amazon Associate, Karen may earn a small commission if you make a purchase — at no extra cost to you.)
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