"...Words can't describe how much we appreciate you, your advocacy, time, dedication and constant support you have been and continue to be for X and us as a family. We would not be even close to this day without you Cheryl. We feel overjoyed by this outcome in general but also for having someone like you by our side fighting for and with us for X. If not for you, we would not know our rights, X's rights, or options. I am so excited to see what his future at X School will bring." -P. Family
“Cheryl, just a quick note to thank you again for all your hard work supporting all of us. Without a doubt, we would not be in this far better place and it’s all due to you and your expertise. Things get so busy and I just always want you to know how much we appreciate you. It’s an immense comfort knowing you are on out team. For today and this weekend, we will enjoy a bit of good news…” -G. Family
"Cheryl, we just want to let you know we are so glad to have you in our team, thank you for your support and assistance. We really appreciate every single minute we share with you . Thank you for being our voice. We could not have made a better choice. We look forward to our working relations in the coming years." -D. Family
"Creating the best possible IEP for your child can be a struggle, as parents are at a disadvantage when it comes to understanding all of their rights and best practices in special education. Cheryl made sense of a confusing landscape, and gave us the confidence to have high expectations. Her unrelenting drive and expertise led to a plan that is seeing our child thrive today. We recommend her highly."-M. Family
"My husband and I sought Cheryl's services when it became clear to us that we needed guidance in helping our son, who has autism, become successful in an educational setting. Cheryl was recommended to us by a friend who was using her and singing her praises. Hiring Cheryl was the best thing we did. Our experience with Cheryl has been remarkable. I truly couldn't have imagined how instrumental she would be in helping us to get our son the educational placement that was best for him. She has extensive knowledge in understanding IEPs and special needs regulations. She works collaboratively with staff, is a true professional and an advocate you can trust. She was always quick to respond to emails and phone calls and always kept on top of the issues at hand. A year ago at this time I was crying myself to sleep because things were so bad for our son. Today we are rejoicing that our son has overcome certain fears that he had in school. He is progressing, and he loves school. He had his birthday party with friends from school....a first! We truly feel that we couldn't be where we are today without Cheryl."-C. Family
"I don't know where I would be without you, Cheryl. This often feels overwhelming and there is so much to learn about X's disability and his education. I am so grateful to have you by my side as my calm, knowledgeable and strong "extra voice" to make sure we can all help X find his bright future.” -Mrs. V.
“You have helped our children and family so much over the years, we are so grateful to be working with you. You helped educate us, as new special needs parents, on our rights and how to advocate for our children. We've made some difficult decisions over the years and your expertise, support, honesty, and compassion have helped us be able to make them. Those decisions have changed their lives for the better, opened doors of opportunities, and given them such bright futures! We are thankful to have you on our team!”-K. Family
“...I really appreciate you being my eyes and ears at IEP meetings. I know you always have X’s best interests at heart and you are so knowedgable...he is in the right school for him now, and he even agrees too ( he actually said he felt excited to go back last week). I so appreciate all your help, you honestly are a wonderful person, and amazing advocate...” Mrs. P., Parent
"The second best thing I ever did for my son was to hire Cheryl as my advocate. The first best thing I ever did for my son was to change school districts which I couldn't have done without Cheryl's help. I had been frustrated with my sons current school districts for refusing to provide services he desperately needed. When he was in kindergarten, I hired an advocate (not Cheryl) who sat silently at the IEP meetings while I was outraged. When my son was in second grade, I hired a lawyer who did a little more than that at three times the price...I found Cheryl thru a friend of a friend who worked for a well known developmental psychologist. I was so overwhelmed at my first meeting with her I didn't know where to start, but as soon as I began talking, she quickly understood my plight and asked all the right questions...Cheryl was able to be calm and firm with my son's team, even when she was just as outraged as I was. All I had to do was give her a look during the meeting and she would explain to the team exactly what was wrong (or illegal) about what they proposed. She helped my husband and I write detailed concern statements that targeted our major areas of concern as to what we wanted for our son. She remembered all the details from the meetings and made suggestions as to what to do next. Usually she said, "the next step is this and if you don't mind, with your permission, I'll go ahead and draft a letter to get it done." Music to my ears! Cheryl pushed the school to be accountable for what they wrote in the IEP ...she was with me every step of the way...It's now a year later and my son is so happy at his new school and he has friends for the first time in years...I am so happy and relieved that I have Cheryl as my trusted advocate to help me navigate everything to come. She has been everything I hoped an advocate would be: a fighter, a negotiator, a role model, a teacher, a therapist and a friend."-E.S., parent
“...Your expertise and guidance have helped secure services and supports for X that otherwise he would not have had. We are grateful for all your care & compassion, patience, hard work, perseverance, dedication, and of course your passion for helping children and families navigate the murky waters of the educational system! You are gifted at what you do and we are so fortunate to have had you by our sides!” -Mr. and Mrs. B., Parents
“X is like a completely different child, between his school and home services he is doing great!!! X is so happy all the time, enjoys going to school and is just enjoying life. Warms my heart how happy he looks. X school loves him! Thank you so much for sticking with us all this time and help/getting X where he is today. “ -Mrs. L., Parent
“With the upcoming transition to high school and our impending move and possible district change, we are absolutely sure that your involvement remains an essential component in X’s education!!”-Mrs. M., Parent
"...We are so grateful we found Cheryl Temple: our son has made tremendous progress! Cheryl is an excellent resource and she plays a key role on our son's IEP team. She has helped the IEP team to establish challenging yet attainable (measurable) goals for my son, which I believe has been essential for his continued progress. We are very pleased..."-K. Family
"...Cheryl is a wonderful support to our family! Our child has very complex needs and Cheryl has been making sure the school district meets them! This is our first IEP experience and she has been extremely instrumental in navigating us through this difficult process. She is a wealth of information and knows the ins and outs of the educational laws. She is professional and direct. She doesn't let school administration intimidate her! Cheryl will fight for the rights of your child and get your child the education they deserve! Thank you for all you have done and continue to do for us! -C. Family
"...It has been great having Cheryl on our side. She's professional, very efficient and compassionate towards my son and family. Reaching out to Cheryl has made a difficult part of our lives so much easier..."-O.L., parent
"Working with Cheryl was wonderful. I felt more at ease about the IEP process after only one phone conversation with her (my husband said he could see the relief on my face)! She helped us understand the areas of our IEP that needed improvement while praising all of the areas of strength. Her demeanor in the meeting was exactly what we needed – confident and strong but not intimidating or ‘bulldog-ish’. She was extremely respectful and complimentary of our team while getting across sensitive points that I would have had trouble communicating. With Cheryl there I was able to be the parent in the room rather than the parent, advocate, legal expert and rule enforcer."-J.O., parent
"...Navigating the public school system can be very challenging when you have a child on the autism spectrum. As any parent with a child on the spectrum can attest to, every child has different needs and learning styles and an IEP that incorporates these needs is essential to ensure that your child is receiving the best possible education. Cheryl Temple has played an instrumental role in helping us to develop IEPs that reflect the individual needs of our daughters. Cheryl is knowledgeable about the current special needs regulations and works collaboratively with our school system to ensure we are receiving the appropriate services for our daughters. We feel very fortunate to work with an advocate that we trust is so invested in our daughters education and highly recommend her to anyone that is looking for an advocate to help them on this journey..."-A.D., parent
"...We've had a great experience working with Cheryl: she has helped us develop goals for interactions with our son's school and suggested practical approaches to get what our child needs. For instance, to help us gain clarity on the root cause of classroom issues, Cheryl suggested new data gathering techniques and brought sample templates to our IEP meetings. Those helped the school gather the right information so our child's team could adjust our approach. Cheryl sets a practical tone in meetings, comes prepared, and adds another voice to echo our concerns. We wholeheartedly recommend Cheryl Temple..."-L.G., parent
"...Cheryl brings a blend of knowledge, professionalism, commitment and tenaciousness that produces results. In working with her we have improved the school's compliance with the IEP and communication to us..."-A.M., parent
"We had many difficult interactions with the school district around getting our son the help he needs instead of punishing him for "misbehaviors" that were a clear result of his autism. Cheryl was able to help us navigate this very involved process & showed us things we could do to make sure his rights were being honored. She has helped us to honestly keep our sanity through some very trying days. She strikes just the right balance in all our meetings of working collaboratively with the school while also making sure that all the bases are covered." -W. Family
"I want you to know I am so grateful for all you have done. If I hadn't had you in our corner I don't know how we would have gotten the support X needed throughout these years. When he required a different type of in-district program you were wonderful in helping me advocate for that., and then when he required a different placement when the District could not meet his needs..I could go on and on with how amazing you've been. Having all the documentation and knowledge on how X learns will continue to be valuable as we move forward." -S. Family
