Special Education Advocacy with Ashley Barlow

We wrap up our 200th episode celebration today with one of your favorite repeat guests, Dr. Rachel Schwartz, and man did we ever have fun! Dr. Rachel and I set out with a loose idea of discussion topics, but what you really get in this episode is a discussion between someone who supports IEP teams in supporting students' behavior and an advocate who sees the trends when things go south. Dr. Rachel provides so many insights and strategies for common behavioral issues at schools - both how to support the student and how to advocate within IEP teams. We talk reinforcers, skill deficits, replacement behaviors, sensory process, belonging, and even shame!!!! That one blew my mind and made me want to re-read every Brene Brown book with my clients in mind! I know you'll love this episode!

When Pepper Stettler's daughter, Louisa, was first entering school, she was IQ tested. Pepper didn't think much of it... until the results came in. What happened next prompted Pepper to go on a years-long journey of research and discovery. Pepper assimilated the results of that into a book called A Measure of Intelligence: One Mother's Reckoning with the IQ Test, and boy is it ever good! In the book, Pepper explores not only the history of IQ testing but also the methodology of testing, the impact on people with disabilities, the impact on the special education system, and so much more. Pepper and I set out to answer some common interview questions, and even though I never read one questions during our interview, we answered all of them in an organic, excited conversation! That's my favorite kind of interview! If you've ever wondered about IQ testing, how it impacts eligibility, or how it affects special education, this is a must listen! Pepper's book can be found on Amazon or other booksellers!

Pepper Stetler is the author of A Measure of Intelligence: One Mother's Reckoning with the IQ Test. She writes extensively on issues facing people with intellectual disabilities and their caregivers. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Slate, The Progressive, the Ploughshares blog and Gulf Coast. Pepper is a professor of Art History at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where she lives with her husband and daughter Louisa.

Does your child experience demand avoidance? This episode is all about Pathological Demand Avoidance/Persistent Drive for Autonomy, and our guest is one of your favorites, not to mention MINE! Dr. Taylor Day is my go to on demand avoidance and drive or autonomy, and in this episode we dive a little deeper into PDA and what it means to support students that experience it. Taylor talks us through this concept of "non-negotiables," "shoulds," and "yets," one of the best pieces of behavior advice I have ever heard as a mom! I got so jazzed during this episode that I couldn't help but insert some advocacy advice. I find PDA so hard to navigate with school teams. and this conversation opened so many doors for me! Hope it helps you!

Meet My Guest

Dr. Taylor Day is a licensed psychologist specializing in neurodivergent affirming care for autistic children and their families, including very early diagnosis and early intervention. She has a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and is the CEO and founder of Dr. Tay Concierge Clinical Care. Her practice integrates The Whole Family Approach, a process she created utilizing evidence-informed principles after seeing a gap in autism care. Her passion for child psychology and her focus on autism is in many ways tied to her own personal experience growing up with a brother who was diagnosed at 23 months of age.

As we continue to celebrate our 200th episode, we welcome school-psych-turned-advocate, April Rehrig to the pod this week! April's been on the pod twice before, and you all have loved her. I think that's because she's a) so incredibly knowledgeable and b) really good at explaining hard stuff. Because April's a school psych, she's really good at special education eligibility and reading reports. That's why we had her talk about what to ask your school people about special education evaluations and how to do so. Join us for this crazy helpful episode... and join me in wishing April a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY today, too!!!!

Meet the Guest