Ten parents gathered for Special Education Boot Camp at the Chapel Annex on Jan. 11, 2014.

Families learned about the special education laws, organizing an Individual Education Program notebook, tips and strategies for your students IEP meeting and the five steps to the special education process.

“The purpose of Special Education Boot Camp is to empower the military families with quality training so they will be able to access special education services in a timely manner and retain services through the transfer process,” said Christa Bastian, training education outreach specialist with the Exceptional Family Member Program

Bastian brought 35 years of experience to the course, answering every question parents had.

“This is my second time taking this class and I got a different perspective because the questions that people asked were different,” said Deseree Morris, a participant of Special Education Boot Camp.

EFMP personnel provided binders and disks that had PowerPoint slides, examples of forms and resources in them.

“I feel like I’m better prepared to be an advocate for my son, and make sure he gets access to the resources he needs,” said Morris.

Something that makes this class different is that it includes lessons about the laws of special education, including the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, federal and state laws and regulations, agency policies and court decisions.

“We teach at federal level so they can use this information at every state and get the services they need no matter where their next duty station is,” said Bastian.

Every family was on a different level in their special education process. The five steps to the process are: identification and referral, evaluation and determination of eligibility, development of an individualized IEP, determination of services, and placement and reevaluation.

“My son is only 14 months old so I was mainly here to meet other parents and learn their experiences,” said Staff Sgt. Deanna Murphy, mother of a child with special needs.

Parents also received a certificate of completion.

Morris said that she would take the class again to learn from the perspective of others and prepare her for her son’s IEP meetings.

Special Education Boot Camp is offered six times a year and is open to all service members, retirees, dependents, Department of Defense civilians and contractors.

For information visit www.quantico.usmc-mccs.org/EFMP, email quanticoefmpoffice@usmc-mccs.org or call 571-931-0539.

Correspondent: sarah.a.garcia@usmc.mil