I’m conducting research on educational consultant Rich Weinfeld.
Quick Notes About Expertise
- Twice Exceptional
- Special Needs
- Asperger’s Syndrome
Quotes:
- “Provide a predictable environment with clear rules and consequences.”
- “In these cases, the advocate can help the parents to understand the process and effectively express their opinions, as well as ensure that parental input is treated with the same importance afforded any other parent. “
- “An effective advocate helps parents and school staff to accurately see the problem and all of the possible solutions that may solve the problem that the individual child is experiencing.”
- “Advocacy, when done appropriately, can be beneficial for any student. It may be especially crucial in cases where the parents don’t feel that they are an equal part of the process because of their own cultural, language, or socioeconomic differences. In these cases, the advocate can help the parents to understand the process and effectively express their opinions, as well as ensure that parental input is treated with the same importance afforded any other parent. “
Points of Interest
- Rich Weinfeld was first a teacher, then a special education teacher, then a director of some sorts for the Montgomery County School System helping to plan and implement special education programs for the county. He now runs an education consultancy named the Weinfeld Education Group. Based upon what I’ve read, Mr. Weinfeld has spent 30 years as a education specialist. Twenty of those years were focused on students with learning disabilities, and ten of them included both students with learning disabilities as well as “twice-exceptional” students - gifted students with learning disabilities.
- I was interested to learn about his specialization on twice exceptiona students. I’d never heard about those types of students yet the concept makes perfect sense.
- Rich Weinfeld interviewed personnel at a school who recently taught a student who was unilaterally removed from the school without notice. In tandem, the school was issued a subpoena to produce documents and appear for a deposition by that student’s mother.
Thoughts
- Rich Weinfeld appears to be totally legit. He appears to have a lot of passion for his work.
- I can relate to his profession personally as my family is extensively involved with education. My mother spent several years working as a special education teacher and the rest of her thirty plus year teaching career as an elementary school art teacher. Also, my aunt has a PhD from Harvard University in developmental reading programs. She has helped design and implement reading development programs all over the world. Her husband, my uncle, is also an accomplished education administrator, currently working as a superintendant of schools in Massachusetts.
Questions
- Is Rich Weinfeld acting as an educational advocate for a student when he recommends one school over another as more appropriate and beneficial for that student?
- Is Rich Weinfeld qualified to evaluate schools as an advocate for children without learning disabilities?
- Is Rich Weinfeld capable of identifying and diagnosing children with learning disabilities, such as Asperger’s Syndrome?
- Would Rich Weinfeld’s school assesment change depending upon whether or not the student had a learning disability, such as Asperger’s Syndrome.
- Given Rich Weinfeld’s substantial involvement with the Montgomery Public School system, is there a potential for bias - either for or against recommending attending these schools?
Links
- http://mail.experts.com/Articles/A-Break-in-Communication-When-an-Advocate-Is-Needed-By-Rich-Weinfeld
- http://www.educationupdate.com/archives/2007/JUN/html/book-schoolsucc.html
- http://ww2.gazette.net/stories/110106/silvnew181200_31952.shtml
- http://205.222.0.20/curriculum/enriched/mcpsprograms/gtld/docs/RoeperArt2002.pdf
- http://www.prufrock.com/client/client_pages/BoysQnA.cfm
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