A national coalition of parents, professionals and educators present tips and tools for educating state lawmakers about children’s mental health in America. Includes sample letters and fact sheets.

This article by Thomas Anders, former president of AACAP, seeks to articulate the importance of the various advocacy groups, professions, and consumer working together for the common purpose of educating the public regarding this illness and assisting nonprofessionals in dealing with the challenges of living with chronic mental illness.

The Balanced Mind Foundation urges the FDA to ensure that significant funding be devoted to research in the use of psychotropic medications by children and adolescents. The Balanced Mind Foundation further urges that the FDA ensure that children have access to medications for treatment.

Knowing your child’s educational rights is the foundation of educational advocacy.  Those parents who learn the basics of federal laws affecting their child’s education are better positioned to help their children than those who do not.  This doesn’t mean you have to memorize a lot of facts, but rather, understand how local school districts are bound by federal education law.

To become an effective advocate for your child, you must understand the eight-step process that is required under IDEA.  Certain activities must be completed at each step in order to obtain and implement an appropriate Individual Education Program (IEP) for your child.

Knowing your child’s educational rights is the foundation of educational advocacy.  Those parents who learn the basics of federal laws affecting their child’s education are better positioned to help their children than those who do not.  This doesn’t mean you have to memorize a lot of facts, but rather, understand how local school districts are bound by federal education law.

To become an effective advocate for your child, you must understand the eight-step process that is required under IDEA.  Certain activities must be completed at each step in order to obtain and implement an appropriate Individual Education Program (IEP) for your child.

Transcript of Danielle Steel's testimony about her son Nick (who had bipolar disorder and died at 19) before the United States Senate Committee on Appropriations.