educational rights for childhood cancer patients and survivors

The Evaluation Process

Federal Law – IDEA

– All eligible students, ages 3-21, are entitled to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE)

– Supports and services designed to meet the student’s individual needs as designated in the student’s IEP

Montgomery Law | www.ed-law.com


20 USC § 1401 – Definitions

– (29) Special Education

• The term “special education” means specially designed instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the UNIQUE needs of a child with a disability, including:

(A)instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings



Interventions in general education

– special education not the first stop



Working together:

• The IDEA requires school officials to work with parents to develop IEPs for all children in need of special education and related services

• Before IDEA, district’s could make decisions (placement and otherwise) unilaterally without parental input.



20 USC 1414 – Evaluations, eligibility determinations, IEPs, and educational placements

– Request for initial evaluation (a)(1)(B)• A parent or the LEA may initiate a request for an initial

evaluation to determine if the child is a child with a disability

– (D) Consent• (i)(I) Parental consent for evaluation shall not be construed

as consent for placement or for receipt of special education and related services.



Child Find: There is an affirmative obligation on the LEA to establish a procedure to make certain that all children with disabilities are properly identified and evaluated to determine whether they are entitled to receive special education.

– Identify Locate Evaluate: how far do they have to look?

• Before providing special ed services, a thorough evaluation must be completed.

• Reevaluations



– Evaluations must be completed within 60 days from the time in which parental consent is received (or within the requirements set by the state – whichever is less time). • Uncooperative Parent• Summer

– Extent of evaluation: in conducting evaluations, school officials must use a variety of assessment tools and strategies to gather relevant functional, developmental, and academic information, including information provided by the parent .. In all areas of the suspected disability• “unique needs of the child”



PENNSYLVANIA NEW JERSEY

Students with disabilities are entitled to attend school until the age of 21

Students who turn 21 anytime during the school year may continue to receive those services until the end of that school year

Students who turn 21 prior to the start of the first day of the school year are no longer entitled to receive special education supports and services through their school district

SAME AS PENNSYLVANIA


Students who turn 21 anytime after June 30th are entitled to complete the upcoming school year as their last year of school, until the end of the school year.




A school district cannot evaluate a student without written parental consent

Parental consent for evaluation may be revoked in writing at any time

A district may request a due process hearing to have a student evaluated. However, if found eligible for services, only a parent can approve the program and placement

The law does not require a district to seek due process if a parent refuses to agree to an evaluation








Consider allowing the district toimplement general education options prior to requesting an immediate evaluation, or allow them to implement general education options during the evaluation process

A request for an evaluation, with your reasons for the request and the nature of the child’s difficulties, should be made in writing in order to begin the evaluation process






1. A school district is required to provide interventions within the general education program to students experiencing educational and/or social emotional problems prior to referring a student for a special education evaluation

2. Exception: If it is clear, based on data, that a student’s educational and/or social emotional problems indicate that he or she may have a disability, or if a parent makes a written request for an evaluation, a referral must be made for a special education evaluation

1. SAME AS PENNSYLVANIA. General education options should be exhausted first. Special education is NOT the first stop!

2. Same as Pennsylvania but a referral is made to the Child Study Team (CST) composed of a School Psychologist, Social Worker , and Learning Disabilities Teacher Consultant (LDTC)




If a verbal request is made for a student evaluation, school must provide Permission To Evaluate (PTE)–Evaluation Request form within 10 calendar days, excluding summer break . Form Not given if request is in writing

Within 10 calendar days, excluding summer break, when written request or the Evaluation Request form is received, parent is sent a Permission To Evaluate-Consent Form which outlines the types of evaluations that will be conducted

If a verbal request is made parent is asked to put the request in writing and informed as to whom it should be sent

A meeting is scheduled with CST, general education teacher (s) and parents within 20 calendar days of written request, including summer breaks, but not school holidays, to determine if an evaluation is warranted. Parent must be given written notice of decision to evaluate to determine eligibility within 15 days of the meeting




All evaluations and the Evaluation Report must be completed within 60 calendar days of receiving written parental consent for the evaluation, not including summer break.

IEP developed within 30 calendar days after Evaluation Report is completed and IEP implemented within 10 school days after parent has approved IEP

Exceptions to timelines: If the parent repeatedly fails or refuses to produce the child for the evaluation, or moves to another district

Evaluations, determination of eligibility, and if eligible, development and implementation of the IEP for the child must be completed within 90 days of receiving written parental consent, including summer break but excluding school holidays

Exceptions to timelines: Same as Pennsylvania




Parent approves IEP by signing the Notice of Recommended Educational Placement/Prior Written Notice (NOREP/PWN)

For initial evaluations parent must sign the NOREP in order for the program to be implemented

For reevaluations, parent has 10 days to sign and return the NOREP noting approval or disapproval. If it is not returned, the IEP will be implemented

Parent approves IEP by signing IEP

For initial evaluations, parent must sign the initial IEP in order for the program to be implemented

For reevaluations, parent has 15 days to sign and return IEP page noting approval or disapproval . If it is not returned, the IEP will be implemented




If the school denies your request for an evaluation or reevaluation it must provide a Notice of Recommended Educational Placement/Prior Written Notice form which explains its decision not to evaluate your child

You then have the right to disagree with the district’s decision and can request mediation or due process in an attempt to have your child evaluated

Due process proceedings are held in front of a hearing office

Parent must be given written notice of decision not to evaluate or reevaluate within 15 days of the meeting held to determine is testing was warranted


Due process proceedings are held in front of an administrative law judge (ALJ)




Mandated every three years except students with intellectual disabilities (MR) (PARC Decree) specific to Pennsylvania

May be completed more frequently

Parent may waive reevaluation EXCEPT for students with intellectual disabilities

Mandated every three years for all students but can be done more frequently

Parent may waive reevaluation process




1. Parent can remove special education supports and services for their child at any time by putting request in writing to the school

2. Parents are not able to select the supports and services they wish to remove. ALL supports and services will be removed

3. The school may not challenge the decision via due process

4. Within 10 calendar days of receiving parent written request to remove services, the school will issue a NOREP/Prior Written Notice before stopping services to the student

5. The school is not obligated to amend the student’s records or remove any reference to special education

1-3. Same as Pennsylvania

4. Within 20 days of receiving written revocation of consent, the school district must notify parent that it received request. School district may schedule a meeting to discuss request

Parent has 15 days after receiving notice to revoke request

5. Same as Pennsylvania



If child is eligible for special education services, an IEP is developed by the IEP team:

– Must include all of the mandated components

and…

– Provide for the meaningful participation of the parent



Independent Evaluations (IEEs)

– If a parent is not satisfied with the outcome of the LEA’s evaluation, they now have the right to request an IEE of their child

– Public expense v. Insurance– More than just a second look– “appropriate”– When a district does not want to provide IEE– Always have the right to an Independent Evaluation

• Prior notice• “consider”

– One (1) IEE



Special Considerations / AT– Consider the need for assistive technology devices and services:

• To meaningfully participate in the general education curriculum• Participate in school and extra curricular activities• To access necessary educational/print materials• For written communication/computer access• For augmentative communication• To participate in state and local assessments

The law makes it clear that the purpose of AT is to improve the functional capabilities of the child with a disability



Special Considerations / AT

– The IEP team will:

• determine if the use of school purchased AT devices can be used in the home if needed for FAPE

• May include providing AT devices or software when needed for homework, or for functional skills necessary across environments, such as communication using an augmentative / alternative communication (AAC) device

It is the responsibility of the local educational agency (LEA) to provide the assistive technology and services identified in the IEP



Parent right to revoke supports/services

– Parents can remove special education supports and services for their child at any time by putting request in writing to the school

– Parents are not able to select the supports/services they wish to remove. All supports and services will be removed.

– The school may not challenge the decision via due process– Within 10 calendar days of receiving parent written request to

remove services NOREP issued– The school is not obligated to amend the student’s records or

remove any reference to special education



Moving from out of state:

– No requirement that a new “initial evaluation” be completed

– IEP must be comparable

– If IEP team determines that additional data is required, it would now be considered an initial evaluation and those rules would apply



Things to remember:

– Assessments must address all areas of suspected disabilities

– IEPs can be invalidated if they are not derived from appropriate evaluations

– IEP must be developed within 30 calendar days after evaluation or reevaluation report is completed

– Parents can revoke services at any time


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