Are you the parent of a child with autism or a learning disability that needs an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE), to determine their educational needs or services? Have you heard that parents can ask special education personnel in their school district to pay for an IEE at public expense? This article will discuss the 5 IDEA (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requirements for an IEE at public expense.
1. IDEA 300.502 under (b) (1) states that parents “Have the right under this part to obtain an independent educational evaluation at public expense if the parent disagrees with the evaluation obtained by the public agency.”
2. Special education personnel may ask why you disagree with their evaluation, but they cannot require you to give an explanation of what you disagree with. In fact I recommend not telling them what you disagree with, because they may try and limit the IEE.
3. IDEA 300.502 (b) (2) states “that if a parent requests an independent educational evaluation at public expense, the public agency must without unnecessary delay either; 1. File for a due process hearing to show that its evaluation is appropriate, or 2. Ensure that an independent educational evaluation is provided at public expense. . .”
4. IDEA 300.502 (5) (e) states “If an IEE is at public expense, the criteria under which the evaluation is obtained, including the location of the evaluation and the qualifications of the examiner, must be the same as the criteria that the public agency uses when it initiates an evaluation, to the extent those criteria are consistent with the parent’s right to an IEE.” Many school districts try and put a lot of criteria on parents for IEE’s at public expense. For Example: geographic, cost, name of evaluator must be on a list etc.
5. Except for the criteria in 4 above, school districts may not impose other conditions or timelines on the IEE at public expense.
The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) has stated, that school districts may develop criteria for IEE’s at public expense; with these two exceptions.
a. The school district cannot make criteria, that prevent the parent from getting an IEE at public expense. For Example: If you live in a small town, with no available evaluators, and your district states that the evaluation must be done within 30 miles; it would be impossible for you to find an evaluator. Or the special education personnel make the cost so low that you cannot find anyone to evaluate your child. This may prevent you from getting the IEE at public expense, so stand up to special education personnel.
b. School districts must allow parents, to prove that their child’s circumstances are unique, and require a waiver of the criteria. For Example: If you feel that your child needs to be seen by a Clinical Psychologist, the cost is probably going to be more than a psychologist would charge. If you can prove unique circumstances, why your child needs to be evaluated by a Clinical Psychologist, then the school district is supposed to pay for the Clinical Psychologist. Whether a school district is willing to do that, without a due process hearing, depends on your school district.
Remember any criteria that a school district makes for an IEE at public expense must not prevent the parent from getting the IEE; and they must allow for waiver of criteria if the child’s circumstances require it. A good independent evaluation can benefit your child by determining their disabilities or educational and related service needs.
By: JoAnn Collins
Posts Tagged ‘Due Process’
5 IDEA Requirements for Independent Evaluations at Public Expense
January 16th, 20103 Ways to Use Tape Recordings to Help Your Child in Special Education
December 29th, 2009
Are you the parent of a child with autism? Are you the parent of a
child receiving special education services? Would you like to learn
parenting tips that will help you become an equal participant in your
child’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) meeting? This article will
discuss 3 ways that tape recording can help you in advocating for an
appropriate education for your child with a disability
3 ways to use tape recording:
1. Tape recording can allow you to focus on what is happening during
the meeting, rather than focusing on taking notes. Listen to
everything that is going on, and do write down important things. Speak
up and give your opinion as often as you need to, for the benefit of
your child.
2. If an IEP meeting is tape recorded, you will be able to go over it
at a later time, and fill in your notes. It will also allow you to
remember things that may have happened that you missed. IEP meetings
can be adversarial. A tape recording allows you to listen to the
interactions in the privacy of your own home.
3. Tape recordings of IEP meetings can be used as evidence at a due
process hearing. In order to use a tape recording, as evidence, it
will have to be transcribed. Tape recorders should be digital, and
powerful enough to pick up several different people’s voices.
A lot of special education personnel become very resistant when
parents want to tape record IEP meetings. Below is an interpretation
of tape recording under IDEA, by the Office of Special Education
Programs (OSEP).
OSEP published its question #12 opinion in the Federal Register Volume
57, No. 183, Sept. 29, 1992 interpreting tape recording IEP meetings
and stated “that it is permissible to tape IEP meetings at the option
of either the parents or the agency.”
There have also been several law suits that have given parents the
right to tape record IEP meetings. One of these court cases in
Connecticut V.W. v. Favolise had the court reason that parents have a
statutory right, to attend and participate in IEP meetings, and the
district could not legally engage in an act to limit the parents
rights.
If special education personnel refuse to allow you to tape record,
because they say that they have a district policy, ask for a written
copy of the policy. OSEP in a memorandum 91-24 July 18, 1991 stated
“Thus any policy limiting or prohibiting a parent’s right to tape
record the proceedings at an IEP meeting must provide for exceptions
if they are necessary to ensure that the parent is able to understand
the proceedings at the IEP meeting. . .” Ask your school district for
an exception, so that you can understand the IEP meeting.
With the written policy in hand, cancel the IEP meeting, and send a
state complaint to your state department of education. Tell them that
you asked school personnel for an exception and they refused. The
state will have 60 days to resolve your complaint.
Tape recording can help you be an active participant in your child’s
IEP meeting. Your child is depending on your help, do not let them
down.
By: JoAnn Collins
4 Benefits Your Child In Special Education Can Receive From FERPA
November 30th, 2009
Do you wonder if your child’s right to privacy in their educational records, has been violated? Would you like to learn how FERPA can help your child? This article will discuss the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which applies to all educational institutions to which receives funds from the Department of Education. Also discussed are 4 benefits that your child can get from FERPA.
Benefit 1: Use FERPA to review your child’s school record to see if it is accurate, and if it contains items that you have not seen. It is amazing, what you can find in your child’s school record. Also look for items that may support your case.
For Example: If your child has behavior difficulties, that special education personnel want to suspend them for, look for evidence that the behavior has been happening for a while. School personnel are supposed to work to prevent the behavior, rather than continuously punishing the child for it.
Ask for a copy of any item that you have not seen, or supports your case. Special education personnel may charge a reasonable copying fee, though you should ask for the school policy on parents receiving free records.
Benefit 2: Use FERPA to have removed anything in your child’s school record that is inaccurate, misleading or violates your child’s right to privacy. Once again, it is amazing what you will find in your child’s school record. If something is written about your child or family that you disagree with, ask that it be taken out. If the school district refuses, they can file for a due process hearing, to prove to the hearing officer that the school’s records are accurate.
Benefit 3: Use FERPA to ask for items that you may not think about, as part of your child’s school record. You have the right to review everything that has your child’s name on it; permanent record, temporary record, e mails, internal memos, testing materials and protocols, audio recordings, video recordings, etc. If your child has difficulty on the bus, ask and see if your child’s bus contains a camera. If it does, ask for copies of any day that you are concerned about.
Benefit 4: If you feel that your child’s confidentiality has been breeched by special education personnel, file for a FERPA complaint. This complaint can be filed with the Family Policy Compliance Office (FPCO) at: U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave SW, Washington DC 20202.
Your child has the right to confidentiality in their educational records. You have the right as their parent to access their school records. Good luck in your fight for an appropriate education for your child with a disability, the fight is worth it!
By: JoAnn Collins
