What do you do if you feel your child's special-education rights are being violated? When in doubt, call the state special education department, advises Shelley Smith, author of IDEA 2004: A Parent Handbook for School Age Children with Learning Disabilities. In this excerpt from the book, Smith outlines the seven areas that the state department will take most seriously when considering complaints from parents. [Reprinted from the book IDEA 2004: A Parent Handbook for School Age Children with Learning Disabilities by Shelley Smith. Copyright © 2006 Shelley Smith; published by AuthorHouse. Reprinted with permission. This article may not be reproduced for any other use without permission.]
1. Procedural violations
- Failure to provide written notice with
- A full explanation of procedural safeguards
- Description of the proposed action
- Options considered and why rejected
- Description of each evaluation or test
- Failure to obtain consent prior
- Initial evaluation
- Initial placement
- Release of records
- Independent Evaluation
- Parents have the right to an IEE if they disagree with the district's evaluation
- Schools must either agree to an IEE and pay for or go to a hearing
- School districts must consider results of an IEE no matter who pays for it
- Incomplete/insufficient IEP
- No goals for identified needs
- Poor annual goals
- Failure to complete IEP because parent and district cannot agree
- Failure to plan in advance for transition and graduation
- Improper Evaluations
- Delay in reevaluations
- Failure to evaluate all students suspected of having a disability
- Improper change of placement
- Failure to provide notice
- Failure to allow reasonable time for parents to challenge placement decisions
2. Denial of Services Based on Cost
- Cost is not a defense for the failure to provide a FAPE
- Cost may be a consideration when choosing between two appropriate placements
3. Program Rigidity
- The district's programs must be flexible enough to meet the needs of all children regardless of need.
- District must meet the student's needs whether or not it currently offers a particular program
4. Giving in to Parents Even When it Violates a Child's Right to a FAPE
- The right to a FAPE is the child's
- Parents participate in the process but it is ultimately the school district's responsibility to ensure a FAPE
5. Principle vs. Reason
- Consider the intent of the law as well as the letter of the law
6. Burden of Proof
- Usually the burden of proof is on the school district [NOTE: After this book was published, the Supreme Court's decision in Shaffer v. Weast changed the burden of proof to whichever party makes the complaint. However, there may be exceptions to this; for commentary, read the articles listed here.]
- It is not enough to show the inappropriateness of the parent's proposal, but must also show the appropriateness in the LEA's [Local Education Agency's] proposal
7. Procrastination
[Reprinted from the book IDEA 2004: A Parent Handbook for School Age Children with Learning Disabilities by Shelley Smith. Copyright © 2006 Shelley Smith; published by AuthorHouse. Reprinted with permission. This article may not be reproduced for any other use without permission.]
