My child has a wonderful relationship with his resource room teacher. In many districts, the special education teacher works collaboratively with the classroom teacher to help meet a child's needs. Some schools have restructured themselves so that all teachers, regardless of label, take responsibility for a mixed ability, but much smaller group of students at one grade level. Just because inclusion sounds good to the adults doesn't mean the kid is going to love it. As parents, we have become quite dependent on the special educator, who is the one person who really knows our child.
Parents often become very comfortable working with a special educator over the years.
There is often a very close personal relationship of mutual respect and understanding that helps to maintain confidence in a program. I think that a school system would be foolish to lose this connection, unless they feel that a parent has become over dependent on the special educator. In many inclusive schools, the role of the regular educator is being changed and expanded, so it is possible that the regular teacher might be assigned as your contact. As a parent, though, you might wish to specify that the special education person remain as the liaison, in order to keep the supports that have been so helpful to you in the past. Almost all of our child's friends are in her special class.