COMMUNITY ALLIANCE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : a*****r@c**********y.o*g
Mission Statement
CASE, the Community Alliance for Special Education, is an San Francisco Bay Area-based education and disability justice nonprofit that supports students and their families as they navigate special education services in public schools. We believe that all students have the right to a high-quality education. Our mission is to empower students, their families, educators, and other professionals to advocate with and for students with disabilities and to ensure that they have equitable access to the resources and support they need to thrive.
About This Cause
CASE, the Community Alliance for Special Education, is a consortium of special education advocates who support students and their families as they navigate special education services in public schools. Founded in 1979, CASE has more than 45 years of experience providing technical assistance to families of children with disabilities, school-based personnel, and community partners. Over the decades, CASE has trained more than 40,000 Californians, provided over 30,000 consultations, and directly advocated for over 3,500 families. In surveys, over 90% of CASE parents report increased effectiveness as advocates for their children, resulting in improved school services. The work that we do at CASE is highly specialized, which is why there is such demand for our services. The need is greatest in low-income communities that cannot afford to pay for advocacy services. Hiring a special education advocate is traditionally a very pricey endeavor. All of our service offerings are provided on a sliding scale basis. Two thirds of our families cannot afford to pay for our services - so they don’t. All of our training sessions, including our two-day IEP Boot Camp, are free to families. That is a very large part of what makes our work so innovative and equitable. CASE advocates help students, families, schools, and community partners work together. We provide training and technical assistance to families and professionals so that they can better support students with disabilities. CASE offers four core services: -Training on special education issues for families and professionals; -Technical assistance and individual consultations with families and professionals regarding specific students or special education issues; -Direct advocacy at Individual Education Program (IEP) and 504 Plan meetings; and -Mentorship for individuals working towards becoming special education advocates. At CASE, our work is personal to us. All of our advocates are people with disabilities, family members of people with disabilities, parents who have helped their children navigate special education services, or professionals such as educators and school psychologists who have worked in the field. We understand the barriers faced by youth with disabilities because their lived experiences are our lived experiences. CASE's approach to advocacy derives not just from our expertise in special education, but also our philosophy of empowering parents and students. 12.5% of all students ages 3-22 have a disability qualifying them for special education services in schools, a number that has doubled since 2000. Special education is a civil right protected by state and federal laws, yet there is a significant lack of awareness about students’ rights in these laws. Families are often unaware of their rights. This leads to dire outcome gaps: students with disabilities are not provided equitable access to schools and programs; are over-suspended and “pushed out” of schools; and leave school unprepared for college and career opportunities. For students of color with disabilities, low-income students, and students from immigrant families, the outcomes are even more disparate. Parents who support disabled children are often unemployed or underemployed due to the caretaking requirements within the family, causing additional family stress. Demand for CASE’s services has tripled over the past three years. The pandemic has had a crippling effect on special education services in our schools. We are experiencing crisis-level statewide staffing shortages at the same time as the need for services, particularly mental health services, is exploding. Thanks to the commitment of partners and foundations like you, we have been able to significantly increase our work in these vital areas, providing essential resources and support to those who need it most. Your contribution will not only help us reach more families, but will also empower us to advocate more effectively for the services and opportunities that children with disabilities deserve.