Mineral Point School District | Parent and Child Rights

Joelle Doye | Posted November 6, 2013

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the Federal law concerning the education of students with disabilities, requires schools to provide parents of a child with a disability with a notice containing a full explanation of the procedural safeguards available under the IDEA and U.S. Department of Education regulations. A copy of this notice must be given to parents only one time a school year, except that a copy must be given to the parents:

upon initial referral or parent request for evaluation;
upon receipt of the first State complaint under 34 CFR 300.151 through 300.153 and upon receipt of the first due process complaint under 300.507 in a school year;
when a decision is made to take a disciplinary action that constitutes a change of placement; and
upon parent request. [34 CFR 300.504(a)]

This procedural safeguards notice must include a full explanation of all of the procedural safeguards available under 300.148 (unilateral placement at private school at public expense), 300.151 through 300.153 (State complaint procedures), 300.300 (consent), 300.502 through 300.503, 300.505 through 300.518, and 300.530 through 300.536 (procedural safeguards in Subpart E of the Part B regulations), and 300.610 through 300.625 (confidentiality of information provisions in Subpart F). This model form provides a format that
States and/or school districts may choose to use to provide information about procedural safeguards to parents. If you should have any questions about this document, or your procedural rights, please contact:

Dixie Dempsey
Mineral Point School District
611 Cothern Street
Mineral Point, WI 53565
(608) 987-0739 ext. 110

“Committed to Children, Committed to Community, Committed to Excellence”

If your native language or other mode of communication is not a written language, your school district must ensure that:

The notice is translated for you orally by other means in your native language or other mode of communication;
You understand the content of the notice; and
There is written evidence that 1 and 2 have been met.

Native Language (34 CFR 300.29)

Native language, when used with an individual who has limited English proficiency, means the following:

The language normally used by that person, or, in the case of a child, the language normally used by the child’s parents;
In all direct contact with a child (including evaluation of the child), the language normally used by the child in the home or learning environment. For a person with deafness or blindness, or for a person with no written language, the mode of communication is what the person normally uses (such as sign language, Braille, or oral communication).

Electronic Mail (34 CFR 300.505)

If your school district offers parents the choice of receiving documents by e-mail, you may choose to receive the following by e-mail:
1. Prior written notice;
2. Procedural safeguards notice; and
3. Notices related to a due process complaint.
Parental Consent – Definition (34 CFR 300.9)

Consent

Consent means:

You have been fully informed in your native language or other mode of communication (such as sign language, Braille, or oral communication) of all information about the action for which you are giving consent.
You understand and agree in writing to that action, and the consent describes that action and lists the records (if any) that will be released and to whom; and
You understand that the consent is voluntary on your part and you may withdraw your consent at anytime. Your withdrawal of consent does not negate (undo) an action that has occurred after you gave your consent and before you withdrew it.

Parental Consent (34 CFR 300.300)

Consent for initial evaluation

Your school district cannot conduct an initial evaluation of your child to determine whether your child is eligible under Part B of the IDEA to receive special education and related services without first providing you with prior written notice of the proposed action and without obtaining your consent as described under the heading Parental Consent.

Your school district must make reasonable efforts to obtain your informed consent for an initial evaluation to decide whether your child is a child with a disability. Your consent for initial evaluation does not mean that you have also given your consent for the school district to start providing special education and related services to your child. If your child is enrolled in public school or you are seeking to enroll your child in a public school and you have refused to provide consent or failed to respond to a request to provide consent for an initial evaluation, your school district may, but is not required to, seek to conduct an initial evaluation of your child by utilizing the Act’s mediation or due process complaint, resolution meeting, and impartial due process hearing procedures (unless required to do so or prohibited from doing so under State law). Your school district will not violate its obligations to locate, identify and evaluate your child if it does not pursue an evaluation of your child in these circumstances, unless State law requires it to pursue the evaluation.

Special rules for initial evaluation of wards of the State

If a child is a ward of the State and is not living with his/her parent — The school district does not need consent from the parent for an initial evaluation to determine if the child is a child with a disability if:

Despite reasonable efforts to do so, the school district cannot find the child’s parent;
The rights of the parents have been terminated in accordance with State law; or
A judge has assigned the right to make educational decisions and to consent for an initial evaluation to an individual other than the parent.

Ward of the State, as used in the IDEA, means a child who, as determined by the State where the child lives, is:

A foster child;
Considered a ward of the State under State law; or
In the custody of a public child welfare agency.

Ward of the State does not include a foster child who has a foster parent.

Parental consent for services

Your school district must obtain your informed consent before providing special education and related services to your child for the first time.

The school district must make reasonable efforts to obtain your informed consent before providing special education and related services to your child for the first time. If you do not respond to a request to provide your consent for your child to receive special education and related services for the first time, or if you refuse to give such consent, your school district may not use the procedural safeguards (i.e., mediation, due process complaint, resolution meeting, or an impartial due process hearing) in order to obtain agreement or a ruling that the special education and related services (recommended by your child’s IEP Team) may be provided to your child without your consent.

If you refuse to give your consent for your child to receive special education and related services for the first time, or if you do not respond to a request to provide such consent and the school district does not provide your child with the special education and related services for which it sought your consent, your school district:

Is not in violation of the requirement to make a free appropriate public education (FAPE) available to your child for its failure to provide those services to your child; and
Is not required to have an individualized education program (IEP) meeting or develop an IEP for your child for the special education and related services for which your consent was requested.

Parental consent for reevaluations

Your school district must obtain your informed consent before it reevaluates your child, unless your school district can demonstrate that:

It took reasonable steps to obtain your consent for your child’s reevaluation; and
You did not respond.

If you refuse to consent to your child’s reevaluation, the school district may, but is not required to, pursue your child’s reevaluation by using the mediation, due process complaint, resolution meeting, and impartial due process hearing procedures to seek to override your refusal to consent to your child’s reevaluation. As with initial evaluations, your school district does not violate its obligations under Part B of the IDEA if it declines to pursue the reevaluation in this manner.

Documentation of reasonable efforts to obtain parental consent

Your school must maintain documentation of reasonable efforts to obtain parental consent for initial evaluations, to provide special education and related services for the first time, to reevaluation and to locate parents of wards of the State for initial evaluations. The documentation must include a record of the school district’s attempts in these areas, such as:

Detailed records of telephone calls made or attempted and the results of those calls;
Copies of correspondence sent to the parents and any responses received; and
Detailed records of visits made to the parent’s home or place of employment and the results of those visits.

Other consent requirements

Your consent is not required before your school district may:

Review existing data as part of your child’s evaluation or a reevaluation; or
Give your child a test or other evaluation that is given to all children unless, before that test or evaluation, consent is required from all parents of all children.

Your school district may not use your refusal to consent to one service or activity to deny you or your child any other service, benefit, or activity. If you have enrolled your child in a private school at your own expense or if you are home schooling your child, and you do not provide your consent for your child’s initial evaluation or your child’s reevaluation, or you fail to respond to a request to provide your consent, the school district may not use its consent override procedures (i.e., mediation, due process complaint, resolution meeting, or an impartial due process hearing) and is not required to consider your child as eligible to receive equitable services (services made available to parentally-placed private school children with disabilities).

Independent Educational Evaluations (34 CFR 300.502)

General

As described below, you have the right to obtain an independent educational evaluation (IEE) of your child if you disagree with the evaluation of your child that was obtained by your school district. If you request an independent educational evaluation, the school district must provide you with information about where you may obtain an independent educational evaluation and about the school district’s criteria that apply to independent educational evaluations.

Definitions

Independent educational evaluation means an evaluation conducted by a qualified examiner who is not employed by the school district responsible for the education of your child.

Public expense means that the school district either pays for the full cost of the evaluation or ensures that the evaluation is otherwise provided at no cost to you, consistent with the provisions of Part B of the IDEA, which allow each State to use whatever State, local, Federal and private sources of support are available in the State to meet the requirements of Part B of the Act.

Parent right to evaluation at public expense

You have the right to an independent educational evaluation of your child at public expense if you disagree with an evaluation of your child obtained by your school district, subject to the following conditions:

If you request an independent educational evaluation of your child at public expense, your school district must, without unnecessary delay, either:
- File a due process complaint to request a hearing to show that its evaluation of your child is appropriate; or
- Provide an independent educational evaluation at public expense, unless the school district demonstrates in a hearing that the evaluation of your child that you obtained did not meet the school district’s criteria.
If your school district requests a hearing and the final decision is that your school district’s evaluation of your child is appropriate, you still have the right to an independent educational evaluation, but not at public expense.
If you request an independent educational evaluation of your child, the school district may ask why you object to the evaluation of your child obtained by your school district. However, your school district may not require an explanation and may not unreasonably delay either providing the independent educational evaluation of your child at public expense or filing a due process complaint to request a due process hearing to defend the school district’s evaluation of your child.

You are entitled to only one independent educational evaluation of your child at public expense each time your school district conducts an evaluation of your child with which you disagree.

Parent-initiated evaluations

If you obtain an independent educational evaluation of your child at public expense or you share with the school district an evaluation of your child that you obtained at private expense:

Your school district must consider the results of the evaluation of your child, if it meets the school district’s criteria for independent educational evaluations, in any decision made with respect to the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to your child; and
You or your school district may present the evaluation as evidence at a due process hearing regarding your child.

Requests for evaluations by hearing officers

If a hearing officer requests an independent educational evaluation of your child as part of a due process hearing, the cost of the evaluation must be at public expense.

School district criteria
If an independent educational evaluation 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 school district uses when it initiates an evaluation (to the extent those criteria are consistent with your right to an independent educational evaluation).

Except for the criteria described above, a school district may not impose conditions or timelines related to obtaining an independent educational evaluation at public expense.

Confidentiality of Information

Definitions (34 CFR 300.611)

As used under the heading Confidentiality of Information:

Destruction means physical destruction or removal of personal identifiers from information so that the information is no longer personally identifiable.
Education records means the type of records covered under the definition of ‘‘education records’’ in 34 CFR Part 99 (the regulations implementing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. 1232g (FERPA)).
Participating agency means any school district, agency or institution that collects, maintains, or uses personally identifiable information, or from which information is obtained, under Part B of the IDEA.

Personally Identifiable (34 CFR 300.32)

Personally identifiable means information that has:

Your child’s name, your name as the parent, or the name of another family member;
Your child’s address;
A personal identifier, such as your child’s social security number or student number; or
A list of personal characteristics or other information that would make it possible to identify your child with reasonable certainty.

Notice to Parents (34 CFR 300.612)

The State Educational Agency must give notice that is adequate to fully inform parents about confidentiality of personally identifiable information, including:

A description of the extent to which the notice is given in the native languages of the various population groups in the State;
A description of the children on whom personally identifiable information is maintained, the types of information sought, the methods the State intends to use in gathering the information (including the sources from whom information is gathered), and the uses to be made of the information;
A summary of the policies and procedures that participating agencies must follow regarding storage, disclosure to third parties, retention, and destruction of personally identifiable information; and
A description of all of the rights of parents and children regarding this information, including the rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and its implementing regulations in 34 CFR Part 99.

Before any major identification, location, or evaluation activity (also known as “child find”), the notice must be published or announced in newspapers or other media, or both, with circulation adequate to notify parents throughout the State of the activity to locate, identify, and evaluate children in need of special education and related services.

Access Rights (34 CFR 300.613)

The participating agency must permit you to inspect and review any education records relating to your child that are collected, maintained, or used by your school district under Part B of the IDEA. The participating agency must comply with your request to inspect and review any education records on your child without unnecessary delay and before any meeting regarding an individualized education program (IEP), or any impartial due process hearing (including a resolution meeting or a hearing regarding discipline), and in no case more than 45 calendar days after you have made a request.

Your right to inspect and review education records includes:

Your right to a response from the participating agency to your reasonable requests for explanations and interpretations of the records;
Your right to request that the participating agency provide copies of the records if you cannot effectively inspect and review the records unless you receive those copies; and
Your right to have your representative inspect and review the records. The participating agency may presume that you have authority to inspect and review records relating to your child unless advised that you do not have the authority under applicable State law governing such matters as guardianship, or separation and divorce.

Record of Access (34 CFR 300.614)

Each participating agency must keep a record of parties obtaining access to education records collected, maintained, or used under Part B of the IDEA (except access by parents and authorized employees of the participating agency), including the name of the party, the date access was given, and the purpose for which the party is authorized to use the records.

Records on More Than One Child (34 CFR 300.615)

If any education record includes information on more than one child, the parents of those children have the right to inspect and review only the information relating to their child or to be informed of that specific information.

List of Types and Locations of Information (34 CFR 300.616)

On request, each participating agency must provide you with a list of the types and locations of education records collected, maintained, or used by the agency.

Fees (34 CFR 300.617)

Each participating agency may charge a fee for copies of records that are made for you under Part B of the IDEA, if the fee does not effectively prevent you from exercising your right to inspect and review those records.

A participating agency may not charge a fee to search for or to retrieve information under Part B of the IDEA.

Amendment of Records at Parent’s Request (34 CFR 300.618)

If you believe that information in the education records regarding your child collected, maintained, or used under Part B of the IDEA is inaccurate, misleading, or violates the privacy or other rights of your child, you may request the participating agency that maintains the information to change the information.

The participating agency must decide whether to change the information in accordance with your request within a reasonable period of time of receipt of your request.

If the participating agency refuses to change the information in accordance with your request, it must inform you of the refusal and advise you of the right to a hearing for this purpose as described under the heading Opportunity For a Hearing.

Opportunity for a Hearing (34 CFR 300.619)

The participating agency must, on request, provide you an opportunity for a hearing to challenge information in education records regarding your child to ensure that it is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of your child.

Hearing Procedures (34 CFR 300.621)

A hearing to challenge information in education records must be conducted according to the procedures for such hearings under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Result of Hearing (34 CFR 300.620)

If, as a result of the hearing, the participating agency decides that the information is inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of the child, it must change the information accordingly and inform you in writing.

If, as a result of the hearing, the participating agency decides that the information is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of your child, it must inform you of your right to place in the records that it maintains on your child a statement commenting on the information or providing any reasons you disagree with the decision of the participating agency.

Such an explanation placed in the records of your child must:

Be maintained by the participating agency as part of the records of your child as long as the record or contested portion is maintained by the participating agency; and
If the participating agency discloses the records of your child or the challenged portion to any party, the explanation must also be disclosed to that party.

Consent For Disclosure of Personally Identifiable Information (34 CFR 300.622)

Unless the information is contained in education records, and the disclosure is authorized without parental consent under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), your consent must be obtained before personally identifiable information is disclosed to parties other than officials of participating agencies. Except under the circumstances specified below, your consent is not required before personally identifiable information is released to officials of participating agencies for purposes of meeting a requirement of Part B of the IDEA.

Your consent, or consent of an eligible child who has reached the age of majority under State law, must be obtained before personally identifiable information is released to officials of participating agencies providing or paying for transition services.

If your child is in, or is going to go to, a private school that is not located in the same school district you reside in, your consent must be obtained before any personally identifiable information about your child is released between officials in the school district where the private school is located and officials in the school district where you reside.

Safeguards (34 CFR 300.623)

Each participating agency must protect the confidentiality of personally identifiable information at collection, storage, disclosure, and destruction stages.

One official at each participating agency must assume responsibility for ensuring the confidentiality of any personally identifiable information.

All persons collecting or using personally identifiable information must receive training or instruction regarding your State’s policies and procedures regarding confidentiality under Part B of the IDEA and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Each participating agency must maintain, for public inspection, a current listing of the names and positions of those employees within the agency who may have access to personally identifiable information.

Destruction of Information (34 CFR 300.624)

Your school district must inform you when personally identifiable information collected, maintained, or used is no longer needed to provide educational services to your child.

The information must be destroyed at your request. However, a permanent record of your child’s name, address, and phone number, his or her grades, attendance record, classes attended, grade level completed, and year completed may be maintained without time limitation.

State Complaint Procedures

Difference Between Due Process Hearing Complaint and State Complaint Procedures

The regulations for Part B of IDEA set forth separate procedures for State complaints and for due process complaints and hearings. As explained below, any individual or organization may file a State complaint alleging a violation of any Part B requirement by a school district, the StateEducational Agency, or any other public agency. Only you or a school district may file a due process complaint on any matter relating to a proposal or a refusal to initiate or change the identification, evaluation or educational placement of a child with a disability, or the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to the child.

While staff of the State Educational Agency generally must resolve a State complaint within a 60- calendar-day timeline, unless the timeline is properly extended, an impartial due process hearing officer must hear a due process complaint (if not resolved through a resolution meeting or through mediation) and issue a written decision within 45-calendar-days after the end of the resolution period, as described in this document under the heading Resolution Process, unless the hearing officer grants a specific extension of the timeline at your request or the school district’s request. The State complaint and due process complaint, resolution and hearing procedures are described more fully below.

Adoption of State Complaint Procedures (34 CFR 300.151)

General

Each State Educational Agency must have written procedures for:

Resolving any complaint, including a complaint filed by an organization or individual from another State;
The filing of a complaint with the State Educational Agency;
Widely disseminating the State complaint procedures to parents and other interested individuals, including parent training and information centers, protection and advocacy agencies, independent living centers, and other appropriate entities.

Remedies for denial of appropriate services

In resolving a State complaint in which the State Educational Agency has found a failure to provide appropriate services, the State Educational Agency must address:

The failure to provide appropriate services, including corrective action appropriate to address the needs of the child; and
Appropriate future provision of services for all children with disabilities.

Minimum State Complaint Procedures (34 CFR 300.152)

Time limit; minimum procedures

Each State Educational Agency must include in its State complaint procedures a time limit of 60 calendar days after a complaint is filed to:

Carry out an independent on-site investigation, if the State Educational Agency determines that an investigation is necessary;
Give the complainant the opportunity to submit additional information, either orally or in writing, about the allegations in the complaint;
Provide the school district or other public agency with the opportunity to respond to the complaint, including, at a minimum: (a) at the option of the agency, a proposal to resolve the complaint; and (b) an opportunity for a parent who has filed a complaint and the agency to agreevoluntarily to engage in mediation;
Review all relevant information and make an independent determination as to whether the school district or other public agency is violating a requirement of Part B of the IDEA; and
Issue a written decision to the complainant that addresses each allegation in the complaint and contains: (a) findings of fact and conclusions; and (b) the reasons for the State Educational Agency’s final decision.

Time extension; final decision; implementation

The State Educational Agency’s procedures described above also must:

1. Permit an extension of the 60 calendar-day time limit only if: (a) exceptional circumstances exist with respect to a particular State complaint; or (b) the parent and the school district or other public agency involved voluntarily agree to extend the time to resolve the matter through mediation or alternative means of dispute resolution, if available in the State.

2. Include procedures for effective implementation of the State Educational Agency’s final decision, if needed, including: (a) technical assistance activities; (b) negotiations; and (c) corrective actions to achieve compliance.

State complaints and due process hearings

If a written State complaint is received that is also the subject of a due process hearing as described below under the heading Filing a Due Process Complaint, or the State complaint contains multiple issues of which one or more are part of such a hearing, the State must set aside the State complaint, or any part of the State complaint that is being addressed in the due process hearing until the hearing is over. Any issue in the State complaint that is not a part of the due process hearing must be resolved using the time limit and procedures described above.

If an issue raised in a State complaint has previously been decided in a due process hearing involving the same parties (you and the school district), then the due process hearing decision is binding on that issue and the State Educational Agency must inform the complainant that the decision is binding.

A complaint alleging a school district’s or other public agency’s failure to implement a due process hearing decision must be resolved by the State Educational Agency.

Filing a Complaint (34 CFR 300.153)

An organization or individual may file a signed written State complaint under the procedures described above.

The State complaint must include:

A statement that a school district or other public agency has violated a requirement of Part B of the IDEA or its regulations;
The facts on which the statement is based;
The signature and contact information for the complainant; and
If alleging violations regarding a specific child:
- (a) The name of the child and address of the residence of the child;
- (b) The name of the school the child is attending;
- (c) In the case of a homeless child or youth, available contact information for the child, and the name of the school the child is attending;
- (d) A description of the nature of the problem of the child, including facts relating to the problem; and
- (e) A proposed resolution of the problem to the extent known and available to the party filing the complaint at the time the complaint is filed.
The complaint must allege a violation that occurred not more than one year prior to the date that the complaint is received as described under the heading Adoption of State Complaint Procedures.

The party filing the State complaint must forward a copy of the complaint to the school district or other public agency serving the child at the same time the party files the complaint with the State Educational Agency.

Due Process Complaint Procedures

Filing a Due Process Complaint (34 CFR 300.507)

General

You or the school district may file a due process complaint on any matter relating to a proposal or a refusal to initiate or change the identification, evaluation or educational placement of your child, or the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to your child.

The due process complaint must allege a violation that happened not more than one year before you or the school district knew or should have known about the alleged action that forms the basis of the due process complaint.

The above timeline does not apply to you if you could not file a due process complaint within the timeline because:

The school district specifically misrepresented that it had resolved the issues identified in the complaint; or
The school district withheld information from you that it was required to provide you under Part B of the IDEA.

Information for parents

The school district must inform you of any free or low-cost legal and other relevant services available in the area if you request the information, or if you or the school district file a due process complaint.

Due Process Complaint (34 CFR 300.508)

General

In order to request a hearing, you or the school district (or your attorney or the school district’s attorney) must submit a due process complaint to the other party. That complaint must contain all of the content listed below and must be kept confidential. You or the school district, whichever one filed the complaint, must also provide the State Educational Agency with a copy of the complaint.

Content of the complaint

The due process complaint must include:

The name of the child;
The address of the child’s residence;
The name of the child’s school;
If the child is a homeless child or youth, the child’s contact information and the name of the child’s school;
A description of the nature of the problem of the child relating to the proposed or refused action, including facts relating to the problem; and
A proposed resolution of the problem to the extent known and available to you or the school district at the time.

Notice required before a hearing on a due process complaint
You or the school district may not have a due process hearing until you or the school district (or your attorney or the school district’s attorney), files a due process complaint that includes the information listed above.

Sufficiency of complaint
In order for a due process complaint to go forward, it must be considered sufficient. The due process complaint will be considered sufficient (to have met the content requirements above) unless the party receiving the due process complaint (you or the school district) notifies the hearing officer and the other party in writing, within 15 calendar days of receiving the complaint, that the receiving party believes that the due process complaint does not meet the requirements listed above.

Within five calendar days of receiving the notification the receiving party (you or the school district) considers a due process complaint insufficient, the hearing officer must decide if the due process complaint meets the requirements listed above, and notify you and the school district in writing immediately.

Complaint amendment

You or the school district may make changes to the complaint only if:

The other party approves of the changes in writing and is given the chance to resolve the due process complaint through a resolution meeting, described below; or
By no later than five days before the due process hearing begins, the hearing officer grants permission for the changes.

If the complaining party (you or the school district) makes changes to the due process complaint, the timelines for the resolution meeting (within 15 calendar days of receiving the complaint) and the time period for resolution (within 30 calendar days of receiving the complaint) start again on the date the amended complaint is filed.

Local educational agency (LEA) or school district response to a due process complaint

If the school district has not sent a prior written notice to you, as described under the heading Prior Written Notice, regarding the subject matter contained in your due process complaint, the school district must, within 10 calendar days of receiving the due process complaint, send to you a response that includes:

An explanation of why the school district proposed or refused to take the action raised in the due process complaint;
A description of other options that your child’s individualized education program (IEP) Team considered and the reasons why those options were rejected;
A description of each evaluation procedure, assessment, record, or report the school district used as the basis for the proposed or refused action; and
A description of the other factors that are relevant to the school district’s proposed or refused action.

Providing the information in items 1-4 above does not prevent the school district from asserting that your due process complaint was insufficient.

Other party response to a due process complaint

Except as stated under the sub-heading immediately above, Local educational agency (LEA) or school district response to a due process complaint, the party receiving a due process complaint must, within 10 calendar days of receiving the complaint, send the other party a response that specifically addresses the issues in the complaint.

Model Forms (34 CFR 300.509)

The State Educational Agency must develop model forms to help you file a due process complaint and a State complaint. However, your State or the school district may not require you to use these model forms. In fact, you can use this form or another appropriate model form, so long as it contains the required information for filing a due process complaint or a State complaint.

Mediation (34 CFR 300.506)

General

The school district must make mediation available to allow you and the school district to resolve disagreements involving any matter under Part B of the IDEA, including matters arising prior to the filing of a due process complaint. Thus, mediation is available to resolve disputes under Part B of the IDEA, whether or not you have filed a due process complaint to request a due process hearing as described under the heading Filing a Due Process Complaint.

Requirements

The procedures must ensure that the mediation process:

Is voluntary on your part and the school district’s part;
Is not used to deny or delay your right to a due process hearing, or to deny any other rights you have under Part B of the IDEA; and
Is conducted by a qualified and impartial mediator who is trained in effective mediation techniques.

The school district may develop procedures that offer parents and schools that choose not to use the mediation process, an opportunity to meet, at a time and location convenient to you, with a disinterested party:

Who is under contract with an appropriate alternative dispute resolution entity, or a parent training and information center or community parent resource center in the State; and
Who would explain the benefits and encourage the use of the mediation process to you.

The State must have a list of people who are qualified mediators and know the laws and regulations relating to the provision of special education and related services. The State Educational Agency must select mediators on a random, rotational, or other impartial basis.

The State is responsible for the cost of the mediation process, including the costs of meetings.%uFFFDEach meeting in the mediation process must be scheduled in a timely manner and held at a place that is convenient for you and the school district.

If you and the school district resolve a dispute through the mediation process, both parties must enter into a legally binding agreement that sets forth the resolution and that:

States that all discussions that happened during the mediation process will remain confidential and may not be used as evidence in any subsequent due process hearing or civil proceeding; and
Is signed by both you and a representative of the school district who has the authority to bind the school district.

A written, signed mediation agreement is enforceable in any State court of competent jurisdiction (a court that has the authority under State law to hear this type of case) or in a district court of the United States.

Discussions that happened during the mediation process must be confidential. They cannot be used as evidence in any future due process hearing or civil proceeding of any Federal court or State court of a State receiving assistance under Part B of IDEA.

Impartiality of mediator

The mediator:

May not be an employee of the State Educational Agency or the school district that is involved in the education or care of your child; and
Must not have a personal or professional interest which conflicts with the mediator’s objectivity.

A person who otherwise qualifies as a mediator is not an employee of a school district or State agency solely because he or she is paid by the agency or school district to serve as a mediator.

The Child’s Placement While the Due Process Complaint and Hearing are Pending (34 CFR 300.518)

Except as provided below under the heading PROCEDURES WHEN DISCIPLINING CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES, once a due process complaint is sent to the other party, during the resolution process time period, and while waiting for the decision of any impartial due process hearing or court proceeding, unless you and the State or school district agree otherwise, your child must remain in his or her current educational placement.

If the due process complaint involves an application for initial admission to public school, your child, with your consent, must be placed in the regular public school program until the completion of all such proceedings.

If the due process complaint involves an application for initial services under Part B of the IDEA for a child who is transitioning from being served under Part C of the IDEA to Part B of the IDEA and who is no longer eligible for Part C services because the child has turned three, the school district is not required to provide the Part C services that the child has been receiving. If the child is found eligible under Part B of the IDEA and you consent for the child to receive special education and related services for the first time, then, pending the outcome of the proceedings, the school district must provide those special education and related services that are not in dispute (those which you and the school district both agree upon).

Resolution Process (34 CFR 300.510)

Resolution meeting

Within 15 calendar days of receiving notice of your due process complaint, and before the due process hearing begins, the school district must convene a meeting with you and the relevant member or members of the individualized education program (IEP) Team who have specific knowledge of the facts identified in your due process complaint. The meeting:

Must include a representative of the school district who has decision-making authority on behalf of the school district; and
May not include an attorney of the school district unless you are accompanied by an attorney.

You and the school district determine the relevant members of the IEP Team to attend the meeting.

The purpose of the meeting is for you to discuss your due process complaint, and the facts that form the basis of the complaint, so that the school district has the opportunity to resolve the dispute. The resolution meeting is not necessary if:

You and the school district agree in writing to waive the meeting; or
You and the school district agree to use the mediation process, as described under the heading Mediation.

Resolution period

If the school district has not resolved the due process complaint to your satisfaction within 30 calendar days of the receipt of the due process complaint (during the time period for the resolution process), the due process hearing may occur.

The 45-calendar-day timeline for issuing a final decision begins at the expiration of the 30-calendar-day resolution period, with certain exceptions for adjustments made to the 30-calendar-day resolution period, as described below.

Except where you and the school district have both agreed to waive the resolution process or to use mediation, your failure to participate in the resolution meeting will delay the timelines for the resolution process and due process hearing until you agree to participate in a meeting.

If after making reasonable efforts and documenting such efforts, the school district is not able to obtain your participation in the resolution meeting, the school district may, at the end of the 30-calendar-day resolution period, request that a hearing officer dismiss your due process complaint.

Documentation of such efforts must include a record of the school district’s attempts to arrange a mutually agreed upon time and place, such as:

Detailed records of telephone calls made or attempted and the results of those calls;
Copies of correspondence sent to you and any responses received; and
Detailed records of visits made to your home or place of employment and the results of those visits.

If the school district fails to hold the resolution meeting within 15 calendar days of receiving notice of your due process complaint or fails to participate in the resolution meeting, you may ask a hearing officer to order that the 45-calendar-day due process hearing timeline begin.

Adjustments to the 30-calendar-day resolution period

If you and the school district agree in writing to waive the resolution meeting, then the 45-calendar-day timeline for the due process hearing starts the next day.

After the start of mediation or the resolution meeting and before the end of the 30-calendar-day resolution period, if you and the school district agree in writing that no agreement is possible, then the 45-calendar-day timeline for the due process hearing starts the next day.

If you and the school district agree to use the mediation process, at the end of the 30-calendar-day resolution period, both parties can agree in writing to continue the mediation until an agreement is reached. However, if either you or the school district withdraws from the mediation process, then the 45-calendar-day timeline for the due process hearing starts the next day.

Written settlement agreement

If a resolution to the dispute is reached at the resolution meeting, you and the school district must enter into a legally binding agreement that is:

Signed by you and a representative of the school district who has the authority to bind the school district; and
Enforceable in any State court of competent jurisdiction (a State court that has authority to hear this type of case) or in a district court of the United States or by the State Educational Agency, if your State has another mechanism or procedures that permit parties to seek enforcement of resolution agreements.

Agreement review period

If you and the school district enter into an agreement as a result of a resolution meeting, either party (you or the school district) may void the agreement within 3 business days of the time that both you and the school district signed the agreement.

Hearings on Due Process Complaints

Impartial Due Process Hearing (34 CFR 300.511)

General

Whenever a due process complaint is filed, you or the school district involved in the dispute must have an opportunity for an impartial due process hearing, as described in the Due Process Complaint and Resolution Process sections.

Impartial hearing officer

At a minimum, a hearing officer:

Must not be an employee of the State Educational Agency or the school district that is involved in the education or care of the child. However, a person is not an employee of the agency solely because he/she is paid by the agency to serve as a hearing officer;
Must not have a personal or professional interest that conflicts with the hearing officer’s objectivity in the hearing;
Must be knowledgeable and understand the provisions of the IDEA, and Federal and State regulations pertaining to the IDEA, and legal interpretations of the IDEA by Federal and State courts; and
Must have the knowledge and ability to conduct hearings, and to make and write decisions, consistent with appropriate, standard legal practice.

The State Educational Agency must keep a list of those persons who serve as hearing officers that includes a statement of the qualifications of each hearing officer.

Subject matter of due process hearing

The party (you or the school district) that requests the due process hearing may not raise issues at the due process hearing that were not addressed in the due process complaint, unless the other party agrees.

Timeline for requesting a hearing

You or the school district must request an impartial hearing on a due process complaint within one year of the date you or the school district knew or should have known about the issue addressed in the complaint.

Exceptions to the timeline

The above timeline does not apply to you if you could not file a due process complaint because:

The school district specifically misrepresented that it had resolved the problem or issue that you are raising in your complaint; or
The school district withheld information from you that it was required to provide to you under Part B of the IDEA.

Hearing Rights (34 CFR 300.512)

General

Any party to a due process hearing (including a hearing relating to disciplinary procedures) has the right to:

Be accompanied and advised by a lawyer and/or persons with special knowledge or training regarding the problems of children with disabilities;
Present evidence and confront, cross-examine, and require the attendance of witnesses;
Prohibit the introduction of any evidence at the hearing that has not been disclosed to that party at least five business days before the hearing;
Obtain a written, or, at your option, electronic, word-for-word record of the hearing; and
Obtain written, or, at your option, electronic findings of fact and decisions.

Additional disclosure of information

At least five business days prior to a due process hearing, you and the school district must disclose to each other all evaluations completed by that date and recommendations based on those evaluations that you or the school district intend to use at the hearing.
A hearing officer may prevent any party that fails to comply with this requirement from introducing the relevant evaluation or recommendation at the hearing without the consent of the other party.

Parental rights at hearings

You must be given the right to:

Have your child present;
Open the hearing to the public; and
Have the record of the hearing, the findings of fact and decisions provided to you at no cost.

Hearing Decisions (34 CFR 300.513)

Decision of hearing officer

A hearing officer’s decision on whether your child received a free appropriate public education (FAPE) must be based on substantive grounds.

In matters alleging a procedural violation, a hearing officer may find that your child did not receive FAPE only if the procedural inadequacies:

Interfered with your child’s right to a free appropriate public education (FAPE);
Significantly interfered with your opportunity to participate in the decision-making process regarding the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to your child; or
Caused a deprivation of an educational benefit.

Construction clause

None of the provisions described above can be interpreted to prevent a hearing officer from ordering a school district to comply with the requirements in the procedural safeguards section of the Federal regulations under Part B of the IDEA (34 CFR 300.500 through 300.536).

Separate request for a due process hearing

Nothing in the procedural safeguards section of the Federal regulations under Part B of the IDEA (34 CFR 300.500 through 300.536) can be interpreted to prevent you from filing a separate due process complaint on an issue separate from a due process complaint already filed.

Findings and decision to advisory panel and general public

The State Educational Agency after deleting any personally identifiable information, must:

Provide the findings and decisions in the due process hearing or appeal to the State special education advisory panel; and
Make those findings and decisions available to the public.

Appeals

Finality of Decision; Appeal; Impartial Review (34 CFR 300.514)

Finality of hearing decision

A decision made in a due process hearing (including a hearing relating to disciplinary procedures) is final, except that any party involved in the hearing (you or the school district) may appeal the decision by bringing a civil action, as described below.

Timelines and Convenience of Hearing and Reviews (34 CFR 300.515)

The State Educational Agency must ensure that not later than 45 calendar days after the expiration of the 30-calendar-day period for resolution meetings or, as described under the sub-heading Adjustments to the 30-calendar-day resolution period, not later than 45 calendar days after the expiration of the adjusted time period:

A final decision is reached in the hearing; and
A copy of the decision is mailed to each of the parties.

A hearing officer may grant specific extensions of time beyond the 45-calendar-day time period described above at the request of either party. Each hearing must be conducted at a time and place that is reasonably convenient to you and your child.

Civil Actions, Including the Time Period in Which to File Those Actions (34 CFR 300.516)

Any party (you or the school district) who does not agree with the findings and decision in the due process hearing (including a hearing relating to disciplinary procedures) has the right to bring a civil action with respect to the matter that was the subject of the due process hearing. The action may be brought in a State court of competent jurisdiction (a State court that has authority to hear this type of case) or in a district court of the United States without regard to the amount in dispute.

Time limitation

The party (you or the school district) bringing the action shall have 45 calendar days after the decision is mailed to you.

Additional procedures

In any civil action, the court:

Receives the records of the administrative proceedings;
Hears additional evidence at your request or at the school district’s request; and
Bases its decision on the preponderance of the evidence and grants the relief that the court determines to be appropriate.

Jurisdiction of district courts

The district courts of the United States have authority to rule on actions brought under Part B of the IDEA without regard to the amount in dispute.

Rule of construction

Nothing in Part B of the IDEA restricts or limits the rights, procedures, and remedies available under the U.S. Constitution, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Title V of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), or other Federal laws protecting the rights of children with disabilities, except that before the filing of a civil action under these laws seeking relief that is also available under Part B of the IDEA, the due process procedures described above must be exhausted to the same extent as would be required if the party filed the action under Part B of the IDEA. This means that you may have remedies available under other laws that overlap with those available under the IDEA, but in general, to obtain relief under those other laws, you must first use the available administrative remedies under the IDEA (i.e., the due process complaint, resolution meeting, and impartial due process hearing procedures) before going directly into court.

Attorneys’ Fees (34 CFR 300.517)

General

In any action or proceeding brought under Part B of the IDEA, if you prevail, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to you.

In any action or proceeding brought under Part B of the IDEA, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to a prevailing State Educational Agency or school district, to be paid by your attorney, if the attorney: (a) filed a complaint or court case that the court finds is frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation; or (b) continued to litigate after the litigation clearly became frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation; or In any action or proceeding brought under Part B of the IDEA, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to a prevailing State Educational Agency or school district, to be paid by you or your attorney, if your request for a due process hearing or later court case was presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass, to cause unnecessary delay, or to unnecessarily increase the cost of the action or proceeding.

Award of fees
A court awards reasonable attorneys’ fees as follows:

Fees must be based on rates prevailing in the community in which the action or hearing arose for the kind and quality of services furnished. No bonus or multiplier may be used in calculating the fees awarded.
Fees may not be awarded and related costs may not be reimbursed in any action or proceeding under Part B of the IDEA for services performed after a written offer of settlement to you if:
- The offer is not accepted within 10 calendar days; and
- The court or administrative hearing officer finds that the relief finally obtained by you is not more favorable to you than the offer of settlement.Despite these restrictions, an award of attorneys’ fees and related costs may be made to you if you prevail and you were substantially justified in rejecting the settlement offer.
Fees may not be awarded relating to any meeting of the individualized education program (IEP) Team unless the meeting is held as a result of an administrative proceeding or court action.
Fees also may not be awarded for a mediation as described under the heading Mediation.

A resolution meeting, as described under the heading Resolution meeting, is not considered a meeting convened as a result of an administrative hearing or court action, and also is not considered an administrative hearing or court action for purposes of these attorneys’ fees provisions.

The court reduces, as appropriate, the amount of the attorneys’ fees awarded under Part B of the IDEA, if the court finds that:

You, or your attorney, during the course of the action or proceeding, unreasonably delayed the final resolution of the dispute;
The amount of the attorneys’ fees otherwise authorized to be awarded unreasonably exceeds the hourly rate prevailing in the community for similar services by attorneys of reasonably similar skill, reputation, and experience;
The time spent and legal services furnished were excessive considering the nature of the action or proceeding; or
The attorney representing you did not provide to the school district the appropriate information in the due process request notice as described under the heading Due Process Complaint.

However, the court may not reduce fees if the court finds that the State or school district unreasonably delayed the final resolution of the action or proceeding or there was a violation under the procedural safeguards provisions of Part B of the IDEA.
Procedures When Disciplining Children with Disabilities

Authority of School Personnel (34 CFR 300.530)

Case-by-case determination

School personnel may consider any unique circumstances on a case-by-case basis, when determining whether a change of placement, made in accordance with the following requirements related to discipline, is appropriate for a child with a disability who violates a school code of student conduct.

General

To the extent that they also take such action for children without disabilities, school personnel may suspend a child with a disability who violates a code of student conduct for up to 5 school days in a row or for up to 10 school days in row if notice of expulsion is given. Also, if notice of expulsion is given and an IEP team determines the child’s conduct is not a manifestation, school personnel may suspend a child with a disability for up to 15 school days in a row.

School personnel may also impose additional removals of the child of not more than 10 school days in a row in that same school year for separate incidents of misconduct, as long as those removals do not constitute a change of placement (see Change of Placement Because of Disciplinary Removals for the definition, below).

Once a child with a disability has been removed from his or her current placement for a total of 10 school days in the same school year, the school district must, during any subsequent days of removal in that school year, provide services to the extent required below under the sub-heading Services.

Additional authority

If the behavior that violated the student code of conduct was not a manifestation of the child’s disability (see Manifestation determination, below) and the disciplinary change of placement would exceed 10 school days in a row, school personnel may apply the disciplinary procedures to that child with a disability in the same manner and for the same duration as it would to children without disabilities, except that the school must provide services to that child as described below under Services. The child’s IEP Team determines the interim alternative educational setting for such services.

Services

The services that must be provided to a child with a disability who has been removed from the child’s current placement may be provided in an interim alternative educational setting.

A school district is only required to provide services to a child with a disability who has been removed from his or her current placement for 10 school days or less in that school year, if it provides services to a child with