Michigan Alliance for Families

Michigan Alliance for Families Michigan Alliance for Families and Michigan Alliance - PTI provides information, support and education Michigan Alliance for Families is a moderated page.

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
Michigan Alliance for Families (MAF) will use its Facebook (FB) page and any other social media siteS to connect with and inform parents and other interested parties about our organization. We encourage all MAF supporters to be involved in online tools such as Facebook, which can promote MAF, connect people with the information and resources that they need and positively impact the lives of families of children receiving special education services. Your use of MAF social media sites is acceptance of this Policy and has the same effect as if you had actually physically signed an agreement. If you do not agree to the terms of this Policy, you may not view or post any content to any MAF Social Media site. As a guest posting content to any MAF social media sites, you agree that you will not:
violate any local, state, federal and international laws and regulations, including but not limited to copyright and intellectual property rights laws regarding any content that you post;
transmit any material (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) that is unlawful, disruptive, threatening, profane, abusive, harassing, embarrassing, tortuous, defamatory, obscene, libelous, or is an invasion of another's privacy,
make comments about a person or groups’ culture, race, ethnicity or disability that is hateful or objectionable as solely determined by MAF;
impersonate any person or entity or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity;
transmit (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, or promotional materials about a product or Web site
post any content that may be construed as political lobbying, solicitations or endorsements. MAF reserves the right, in its discretion, to restrict or remove any content that violates these policies or any applicable law or revoke a user’s privilege to post on its page. All comments, visuals, videos and any other type of material posted by guests on MAF social media sites do not necessarily represent the views of The Arc Michigan, MAF, or their employees or affiliates. MAF assumes no legal responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information posted by guests. To protect your privacy, never post personal contact information on a social media site. If you need to reach MAF, call the main number at 1-800-552-4821 or send an email to info@michiganallianceforfamilies.org

MAF reserves the right to report any comments that imply harm or imminent danger to yourself or others. By submitting a comment for posting, you accept that MAF has the right to contact the appropriate authorities to report any suspicious activities, threats, or behaviors. By posting on this site, you are granting permission to MAF to reproduce, distribute, publish, display such content and the right to create derivative works from your content, edit or modify such content and use such content for any purpose. MAF reserves the right, but undertakes no duty, to review, edit, move, or delete any material submitted as a comment to information posted on its social media sites without notice. MAF reserves the right to edit comments for grammatical purposes. This policy may be updated at any time without notice, and each time you access a MAF social media site, the new policy will govern, usage, effective upon posting.

For 50 years, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, known as IDEA, has helped schools, communities and famili...
11/20/2025

For 50 years, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, known as IDEA, has helped schools, communities and families work together to ensure that infant, toddlers, and children with disabilities receive the special education and services they need to succeed.

IDEA is more than a law. It's a promise of fairness, opportunity, and dignity for every child.

Watch an informative video on the history and evolution of IDEA here: https://youtu.be/89_PTxKGVbI?si=xSw3g_5-9KNtcOr_

11/19/2025

Parents are their child's first teacher. Early Childhood Special Education teachers give parents the tools to help their child grow.

OPTIMISE is an initiative to attract, prepare, and retain an effective and diverse special education workforce to serve students with disabilities across the state.

Follow OPTIMISE, a task force of the Michigan Legislature, to stay informed of their work.

Bureau of Services for Blind Persons (BSBP) provides services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired to achie...
11/18/2025

Bureau of Services for Blind Persons (BSBP) provides services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired to achieve employment and independence. In this video Michigan Alliance for Families Transition Specialist Karen Wang walks us through applying for BSBP online.

Vocational rehabilitation services and training can assist young adults with disabilities get and keep a job. Available services include: reasonable accommodation recommendations, employee counseling, job analyses, job coaching, and skill analyses.

People with visual impairments or deaf blindness can now use a simple online form to refer themselves to the Bureau of Services for Blind Persons. BSBP offer...

🕛 Today, November 18 at noon. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports with Stephanie Nicholls. Register at https:...
11/18/2025

🕛 Today, November 18 at noon.
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports with Stephanie Nicholls. Register at https://tinyurl.com/5xyn7ceb

Disability rights activist, author, and MacAthur "Genius" award winner Alice Wong has died.Her work touched many lives, ...
11/17/2025

Disability rights activist, author, and MacAthur "Genius" award winner Alice Wong has died.

Her work touched many lives, encouraging people to challenge assumptions about people with disabilities. Wong was best known as the founder of the Disability Visibility Project, highlighting disabled people and disability culture through storytelling projects, social media and other channels

An archive of her work is available here: https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/

https://www.npr.org/2025/11/15/nx-s1-5609903/disability-rights-activist-author-alice-wong-dies-51

🕡Today, November 17 - Intro to AAC & Resources with Michigan Disability Rights Coalition at 6:30pm. Register at https://...
11/17/2025

🕡Today, November 17 - Intro to AAC & Resources with Michigan Disability Rights Coalition at 6:30pm. Register at https://tinyurl.com/murxuphk

Students who have difficulty expressing themselves may require an alternative way to communicate. Communication systems, strategies, and tools that replace or supplement natural speech are known as augmentative and alternative communication (AAC).
• what is AAC and when AAC should be considered
• how to find the right AAC
• philosophies to consider

Come back on December 9 for Supporting AAC @ Home with Alt+Shift.
Register at https://tinyurl.com/ypmp9der
Many have questions about how to use AAC at home and how to best support growing their AAC user's communication skills. This online session will cover:
• Strategies for incorporating AAC tools into daily routines
• Training skills to support AAC as a communication partner
• Advice from other parents AAC users on supporting AAC at home

Assistive Technology enables people with disabilities to participate more fully in all aspects of their lives – at home, at school, and in their community. Our partners from Alt+Shift and Michigan Disability Rights Coalition will be talking technology during these November and December webinars.

For full details and more webinar topics, visit the calendar page on our website at https://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/upcoming-events/

Notice is powerful tool. Notice is given to the parent by a district to explain an action the district wants to take, or...
11/17/2025

Notice is powerful tool.

Notice is given to the parent by a district to explain an action the district wants to take, or is refusing to take, with a student who has a disability or is suspected of having a disability. Notice provides parents with a written document that explains their reasoning. Parents need the information included in Notice so they can make informed decisions about what to do next.

Join us on December 3 at 12:30pm for "The Power of Notice" to learn more about your rights. Register at https://tinyurl.com/yc576s28

Notice includes:
✔️A description of the action that the school district proposes or refuses to take
✔️An explanation of why the school district is proposing or refusing to take that action
✔️A description of each evaluation procedure, assessment, record, or report the school district used in deciding to propose or refuse the action
✔️A description of any other choices that the IEP Team considered and the reasons why those choices were not selected
✔️A description of other reasons why the school district proposed or refused the action

Full details, shareable flyer, and easy registration for webinars through 2025 and into 2026 on our website calendar ➡️ www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/upcoming-events/

The most effective dispute resolution methods use direct communication in a collaborative manner. But when a disagreemen...
11/16/2025

The most effective dispute resolution methods use direct communication in a collaborative manner. But when a disagreement can't be worked out through informal discussions, there are dispute resolution options available to parents. These include facilitated meetings, mediation, state complaints, and due process complaints.

On Thursday, November 20 join us for a Due Process Complaint and Hearing workshop that will explain when and why a parent may want to file a due process complaint/request a due process hearing and how the process works. Due process is a formal way to resolve disputes with a school about your child’s education. In a due process hearing there is an impartial hearing officer, a hearing, evidence, and witnesses. https://tinyurl.com/5n7drp6y

🔗See our complete calendar for more events: https://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/upcoming-events/

November is Family Engagement Month, celebrating the collaborative relationships between families, schools and community...
11/16/2025

November is Family Engagement Month, celebrating the collaborative relationships between families, schools and community partners that support every learner’s success.

The Family Engagement for Literacy initiative provides tools and guidance to families in helping their children strengthen essential reading and writing skills, bridging classroom learning into the home.

Additional resources support family engagement in areas such as academic planning, multilingual learning, equity, assisting families experiencing homelessness and more.

https://readwithmi.org/

If you are at the Epilepsy Foundation of Michigan Wellness  and Epilepsy conference today, please stop by our resource t...
11/15/2025

If you are at the Epilepsy Foundation of Michigan Wellness and Epilepsy conference today, please stop by our resource table to say hello 👋🏼

Michigan Alliance for Families staff participate in outreach events across the state to connect with parents, families, and youth who interact with the special education system.

We assist families of students with disabilities to:
💡know their rights
🗣️effectively communicate their child's needs
🤝facilitate family involvement to improve educational outcomes

Connect with the Parent Mentor in your part of the state ➡️ https://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/maf-offices/

Parents, avoid having that “deer in the headlights” moment at the next IEP meeting. Understand. Ask questions. Knowledge...
11/15/2025

Parents, avoid having that “deer in the headlights” moment at the next IEP meeting.

Understand. Ask questions. Knowledge is power. ‘IEP: A Closer Look’ gives you tools to be an active, informed member of your child’s IEP team.

Gain a better understanding of your child's IEP by taking a closer look at the core areas and how they build on each other. Learn to use the IEP process to address your concerns.

This online workshop for parents and caregivers takes a deeper dive into the key parts of the IEP. Time is set aside to ask your questions.

❄️Thursday December 11 at 9:30am
with Andrea Beachnau
https://tinyurl.com/4sju6kj7
❄️Thursday January 15 at 5pm
with Stephanie Nicholls
https://tinyurl.com/377b4w7k
❄️Monday February 9 at 12pm
with Stephanie Nicholls
https://tinyurl.com/4b6emncr

Full details and more webinar topics on our full calendar at https://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/upcoming-events/

Address

1325 S Washington Avenue
Lansing, MI
48910

Telephone

+18005524821

Website

http://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/upcoming-events

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