EdSource

Saran Tugsjargal, 18, advocates on behalf of special education students for the state Disability Commission. 

When she got to high school, she realized that she needed to stand up for herself. One of the first ways she did that was to show up to the meetings that determined what kind of specialized instruction she would receive due to her disabilities. This is known as her IEP — Individualized Education Program. 

Advocating to improve the templates that are a part of the IEP process has also been a key part of Tugsjargal’s advocacy work as a student commissioner. She worked with the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence on a new template, required by the state Legislature, that will be rolled out in the coming years. “Youth and families need an IEP template that speaks to them, not a federal document that looks like a corporate document,” she said.