“I know there must be a million parents especially in the WNY area who are probably in the same situation as I am, not knowing where to go, not knowing who to take advice from,” Eileen says. “I have taken advice from my family and friends but they don’t really know what the system involves. Parent Network is great at doing that. They knew exactly what steps to take to guide us in the right direction.” When Nora Klipfel was in high school, school district officials advised her to enroll in the Skills and Achievement Credential Commencement Program.
A first-time parent of a child with a disability, Eileen Klipfel agreed to this without fully grasping what this would mean for her daughter’s future. After meeting Laura Westfall, a Family Support Specialist at Parent Network of WNY, she realized her daughter was not on track to graduate with a high school diploma.
Eileen was dismayed. She was shaken. She was angry.
She felt the school system had led her in the wrong direction and found herself lost in a cacophony of unanswered questions.
But now four years later, Nora will graduate from North Tonawanda High School with the class of 2020. She is graduating in the top half of her class and is on the Erie 1 Boces Honors Society for Early Childhood Education. And her mother, Eileen is now reveling in her daughter’s success and feels she has been relieved of a boatload of stress and anxiety.
As a child, Nora had difficulty reading and speaking. Her mother says she was often poorly disciplined and removed from classes.
Nora underwent a series of tests and behavioral therapy in an effort to determine the cause of her verbal and literary challenges. Nora was eventually diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a general learning disability and auditory processing disorder. Her IQ was also deemed below average.
By the time Nora got to kindergarten, Eileen decided not to provide her with any special education services. Eileen says she was still learning how to care for a child with a disability and thought that was the best decision at the time.
Throughout middle school, Eileen continued to feel misguided by school personnel and started to seek out resources to help her to navigate the special education system.
By the time Nora started high school, Eileen met Laura Westfall through a mutual friend. Laura invited her to conferences, attended Committee of Special Education (CSE) meetings with her daughter and served as a constant sounding board of advice for Eileen.
Because Laura was so well-versed in guidelines for New York State Special Education, Eileen says she felt relieved and knew she and her daughter were in good hands.
Eileen remembers a standout instance of Laura providing her with eye-opening advice.
“Laura recommended that we go to the University at Buffalo (UB) to get an analysis for learning technology. They were able to guide us and make recommendations to the school district on specific computers and programs and various technical aspects that could help Nora that the school district was not even aware of,” Eileen said.
Eileen and Laura engage in “constant communication,” whether it is a phone call, text message, email or in person. She describes Laura as a “cheerleader,” who has been there for Nora every step of the way.
“If it wasn’t for Parent Network, I think my daughter might be attending school until she was 21 not knowing what she would do after she left high school. Now working with Parent Network, she’ll get a diploma, she’ll graduate, walk across that stage with the class of 2020, getting her high school diploma knowing what her future might be,” Eileen says.
Laura says she always knew what Nora was capable of.
“[Nora] has become a superstar,” Laura says. “She is on the honor roll. She is graduating in the top half of her class and has exceeded the expectations of everyone around her.”
Laura and Eileen’s relationship has continued to progress over the past few years and Laura describes herself as not only an advisor but a friend of Eileen’s.
“You know she comes to me with questions, she comes to me with problems, but my best times are when she comes to me with news that Nora has once again blown that threshold, topped out of the glass ceiling and that just makes me so happy,” Laura said.
Eileen feels she has finally found the pathway to navigating her daughter’s education that once seemed so elusive.
“I know there must be a million parents especially in the Western New York area who are probably in the same situation as I am, not knowing where to go, not knowing who to take advice from,” Eileen says. “I have taken advice from my family and friends but they don’t really know what the system involves. Parent Network is great at doing that. They knew exactly what steps to take to guide us in the right direction.”
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