Consultant hopes to assist children

     By Tina Allen
     View staff writer
      Former teacher Lauri White is hoping to bridge a gap between parents who are looking for the best educational route for their children with special needs and the school district with her new education advocacy firm.
      After teaching at Kim Elementary School for five years, White had planned to take an indefinite leave from her career about 18 months ago after her son was born to spend more time with him.
      However, when parents of some of her former pupils began calling her for advice when they didn't know where to turn with concerns about their children's progress, White researched the idea of becoming an advocate.
      Hence, the beginning of Educational Consultants, which she officially started in September.
      "There are a lot of kids in the regular classroom who are falling through the cracks because teachers have so much stuff to do," said White, who taught third and fifth grades. "If you can just bring those problems to the forefront to the teacher, the teachers are generally more than willing to work with the child. A lot of times, though, parents aren't aware of what could be done, so they don't know how to even approach it with the teacher, where I could come in and say `What about this behavioral plan, we can continue this at home and work for a home-school connection more than what is being done.' "
      White's interest in children with special needs was ignited during her first year of teaching -- ironically after a child with attention deficit disorder threw a chair at her. So, she decided to learn more about learning and behavioral problems.
      Because of her knowledge, more and more children with special needs were integrated in her classroom, where she learned the value of individualizing lesson plans.
      "I want to be the kind of person who goes in there and gets all the information I can from the school about this child in the school setting and then say `This is what I think. What's your opinion?' " said White, who earned two degrees at UNLV -- her bachelor's in education and her master's in structural and curricular studies.
      "At that point, we decide what we need to do," she said. "Do we need to tutor? Do we need to individualize some reading time? Do we need to look at a reading improvement plan the district provides? Do we need to look at different ways of teaching the child? Do we need to set up a motivational plan to get them reading? Those are all options that teachers may not think about. They've got a lot of concerns day in and day out."
      In addition to the school setting, White also prefers to spend time with children in their home settings, possibly going over basic study skills or reading with them. She also provides preliminary academic assessments for children who have not been tested to determine a starting point.
      Parent Lauren MatrŽ called White after repeated unsuccessful meetings with officials at her son's middle school.
      "My son has dyslexia and I was getting nowhere with the school system," she said. "It's very frustrating because he's not retarded. He has an above average intelligence. It's difficult emotionally because we don't want our son to suffer. He should have the education he deserves."
      MatrŽ, who moved here with her family from Texas last summer, said she had been in contact with the middle school several times before her son transferred to inform them of his Individual Education Program that was set up at his previous school in Texas.
      All children with special needs are given an Individual Education Program. She said the school confirmed he would be put in the proper special education classes.
      However, once he transferred, it wasn't long before she started noticing familiar behavior in him that she saw before his diagnosis in the fifth grade -- lack of interest in school, aggravation, fighting with his brother, talking back to her and unusually long hours of homework.
      She called the school and learned that he had never been put in special education classes for his dyslexia. His file had been lost and he had been put in regular classes, she said.
      "My biggest complaint was that my son was being treated like a number," MatrŽ said. "Lauri knew the legal aspect of it and she also gave them deadlines. They listened to her because they knew they couldn't get around her.
      "She's very polite to them, but she got them to move," she said. "He's doing much better, he's where he should be. They are following the (program) we set up and that's the most important thing."
      White said her job often takes much of the stress away from parents who feel caught in the middle. It's difficult for them not to be emotional, she said, because it is their children who are suffering.
      "I think (the school district) has a really tough job, especially in this city," White said. "There is such huge growth. I just think that if parents can have somebody deal with their child's education unemotionally, they get so much more success out of that and it brings the problem to the forefront and we can work on it and get it past being a problem.
      "It's a nice thing that you can see a child start to succeed," she said. "That was always my goal in teaching, that was always the best part for me, to watch a kid say `I can do that.' To see in some small way I've helped the school side and the parent side rise and meet together and work together as opposed to fighting each other."
      Those interested in Educational Consultants and the fees can call White at 243-7708.