We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shemica Allen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Shemica, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about serving the underserved.

Personalized Learning Solutions, LLC serves an underserved community by helping parents of students with disabilities navigate the special education process in the public school system in order to access appropriate educational services for their child. I am a resource for underserved parents as I help them engage in the education of their children by being an active participate in the special education process. Many times, parents of students with disabilities are less likely to engage with the public school system due to language, access, or socio-economic barriers. I help by providing support to parents to overcome these types of barriers which in turn can strengthen the relationship between parents and school districts.

On a daily basis I educate and help parents understand the special education process by attending Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting with parents. Parents of students with disabilities are often exhausted by the special education process and the inequities of our special education system therefore needing support navigating the confusing system. By providing support I give parents the opportunity to identify concerns regarding their child’s educational needs and help create solutions with families and school districts to improve access and parental participation.

Shemica, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Personalized Learning Solutions, LLC is an educational consulting firm specializing in providing special education advocacy and consultation services to parents/guardians as well as trainings to parents & educational professionals. Personalized Learning Solutions, LLC was formed for the expressed purpose of providing parents, guardians, and clients expert assistance and representation as they navigate the maze of Special Education and Section 504 services in the public school systems. Much care and attention is given to parent/guardian concerns and a child’s social, emotional, and educational needs. We are based in Texas, however, we do assist parents in other states. The overall mission of Personalized Learning Solutions is to assist parents/guardians of students with special needs in their quest for a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and other federal and state laws protecting children with disabilities. We are seriously committed to building and supporting a collaborative team of parents/guardians, advocate, school personnel, and community resources with an emphasis on continuous assessment of the child’s educational needs in all settings while supporting and guiding the parents/guardians through the Special Education process.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I feel my level of customer service has helped me build my market and clients in the special education advocacy field.

Parents of children with disabilities just want to be heard and feel like someone is listening. Part of my job as an advocate is to provide a listening ear while I am helping parents solve the issue or issues they are having with their child’s school district regarding their child’s education.

Also, I feel my reputation has grown in the special education advocacy field due to my willingness to share information and resources with other colleagues and advocates. When I worked in public education, I also shared any tools, strategies, lesson plans, etc. with fellow teachers and staff members. As I train other advocates through my work with the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Inc. (COPAA) teaching Special Education Advocate Training (SEAT) classes I routinely share resources to help other advocates build their resource library.

I personally feel sharing of information is vital to the education of parents and new advocates about the special education process.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The two most effective strategies for growing my clientele are word of mouth and utilization of social media.

As a result of the level of customer service I provide parents I have received several referrals from current clients to other parents who need help navigating the special education process. A common effect of word mouth has resulted in having several clients in a single school district.

Utilization of social media is very important to the marketing plan for Personalized Learning Solutions. Social media is used to share important special education information that is useful to parents, advertise upcoming events, advertise new products, etc. I also use social media via our parent Facebook group, Special Education IEP & 504 Plan Support Group, to help parents by answering questions posted by parents in the group who are needing assistance or guidance on a special education issue concerning their child.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://personalizedlearningforall.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/personalizedlearningsolutions/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/personalizedlearningsolutions
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@personalizedlearningsolutions
• Other: Facebook Group-https://www.facebook.com/groups/iepand504plansupportgroup

Image Credits

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