Sonja toet (o&o): “My strength lies in advising from expertise and personal experience”.
Sonja Toet recently celebrated her 1-year anniversary as an advisor at Ouders & Onderwijs. On the phone, parents with school-aged children ask her many different questions. Before she started at Ouders & Onderwijs, she was one of those parents with questions.
In January 2023, Sonja Toet picked up the phone for Ouders & Onderwijs for the first time. Toet: “Because of previous work experience, I already knew Ouders & Onderwijs. It seemed like a nice group to work for, and when the chance came up, I decided to apply.”
My strength lies in advising parents from my expertise but also as someone with experience. I do not always find it necessary to say that I am also a parent of children who stayed at home. But sometimes I notice that it helps the parent, and I share my experiences..
Different needs
Sonja sometimes uses her own experience when advising parents. “I notice that parents find the way I advise very helpful and pleasant. I am a parent of two children with very different needs. One of my children fully attended special education, and the other attended regular education. Because of the path my oldest child took, I am familiar with all care laws: Youth Act, Social Support Act, and Long-Term Care Act. With solutions like Care in Kind and the personal budget, one of my children used the extended Youth Act.”
Focused advice
“Now I see that waiting lists at municipalities, schools, and education consultants are unacceptably long, I like to give parents a little extra knowledge from my role within Ouders & Onderwijs. Much is possible, but often parents or education institutions do not know this. By now, I know a lot about the pros and cons of certain laws. I can take parents through this and give focused advice.”
Expertise
“Because of my own experiences, I can help parents of children with autism or exceptionally gifted children even better. I know what is needed to realize tailored education. I like to inform parents about everything involved with special education.”
In honor of our 10-year anniversary, Ouders & Onderwijs introduces some of our team members in this series. Keep an eye on our anniversary page and social media to get to know more faces that belong to the voices on the phone.
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