Change in Consent for Transition Agency Participation

February 12th, 2015  

The signature line for parental consent for secondary transition agency participation has been moved from the IEP cover page to the meeting invitation. This change was made to align with the state’s IEP forms.

The new text reads:

  • This issue is not applicable to <student> (no signature required for this option).
  • I give my consent for agency participation.
  • I do not give my consent for agency participation.

Only options #2 and #3 require a parent signature.  You no longer need to list the specific agencies.  If a parent consents to one agency and not another, that can be documented in the Written Notice.

Because this is now on the meeting invitation rather than the cover page, please be sure that you have a printed copy of the invite available at the meeting so that the parent can sign.

Parents Couldn’t Make it to the Meeting? Follow Up!

January 7th, 2014  

You’ve emailed a student’s parents about an upcoming IEP meeting. You’ve left voicemail messages and sent invitations by regular and certified mail. You’ve visited the parents’ home in an attempt to speak to them in person. Still the parents do not attend the meeting. Take steps to address the parents’ concerns about the student’s proposed services and placement to ensure their participation in the development of the program.

bullet-point-image-7 Document all contacts with parents. IDEA regulations require districts to keep records of all telephone calls, correspondence, and home visits made to arrange an IEP meeting at a mutually agreeable time and place. This is why completing the meeting contact information section of our KPBSD meeting invitations is required.

bullet-point-image-7 Let parents know about alternate means of participation. Some parents may not be aware that they may participate in IEP meetings by phone or by other means. Including this information in your contacts with parents may influence their participation.

bullet-point-image-7 Take steps to follow up. In addition to sending parents prior written notice of the student’s program and placement, the district should provide contact information for employees who can address the parents’ concerns about the program. The district should follow up with the parents to make sure they received the notice and to ask about any concerns the parents might have.

-November 13, 2013.  Slater, Amy E., Esq., LRP Specialedconnection.com.

 

Change to Meeting Invites in Database

August 10th, 2012  

Those of you who are back to work already may have noticed a change to the Meeting Invites section of the Sped Database.

We have gotten rid of the “Name” fields in the database, and are requiring only the positions of those invited to the meeting.  This will hopefully help to eliminate situations where case managers must excuse staff members who were invited to a meeting, but unable to attend and subsequently send a counterpart in their place (ex. principals and vice principals).

This does not eliminate the need to excuse members who were not able to attend, and no one else attended to fill that role.

Please remember that Administrators, GenEd Teachers, and SpEd teachers CANNOT be excused from an IEP or ESER meeting.  

Snapshot of data entry screen for meeting invites

May 2012 FAQs

May 1st, 2012  

Q: I want to make sure that I invite all the right district team members to my students’ IEPs. How can I be sure I haven’t missed anyone?
A: It can be difficult when the student has many providers. There are a couple of suggestions that we would like to share:

1. Always check the Summary of Services page and invite any service that is listed as direct service or consult. Whether consult or direct, related services providers are required at the meeting.

2. Double check the student’s schedule in PowerSchool—just in case (especially helpful for secondary). Making sure that the correct people are at the meeting is critical for making a full, legal team for the  benefit of a student. Because providers service several schools, always give as much notice as possible. Ideally, you will contact all providers immediately after scheduling with the parent 10 days prior,

 

Q: What do I need to do when the IEP team requests an assessment for an area outside of the three-year re-evaluation process? For instance, a parent requested an OT assessment (or other assessment) and the team agrees to conduct it. Once the assessment is completed, what do we need to do?
A: The first step is to understand that this situation requires a consent for evaluation. After the  completion of the assessment, you would hold a meeting where the assessor will review their report and the team will determine eligibility for the particular area/service or potentially continued eligibility for special education. You would then continue to an IEP meeting to amend the IEP with this new information in the PLAAFP, and determine if goals and objectives and/ or program modifications/ accommodations are required. Finish with a Prior Written Notice summarizing the actions to be implemented.

The Ins and Outs of Meeting Invitations

April 1st, 2012  

A meeting invitation is the district’s official way of encouraging parent and student participation in the IEP process. There are several parts to a meeting invitation and each part is extremely important. Here they are part by part:

The demographic information at the top of the invitation needs to be accurate. The date in this section is the date that you are sending the invitation home.

This introductory paragraph of the invitation explains that the invitation is to the parent. It also explains that if the student is 16 and the meeting is regarding transition planning, the student has been invited to the meeting.

This section is for KPBSD to document who we have invited to the meeting to ensure a full, legal team. Because the invitation’s salutation is to the parents, you do not need to include the parents on the list of invitees. As a reminder for parents, please list the student if he/ she has been invited to the meeting. If you are inviting a representative from any outside agency for the purposes of secondary transition, the representative must be listed in this section.

For this section, you are to list only those members of the student’s team who have been invited to the meeting by KPBSD, keeping in mind the purpose of the meeting. You must include an administrator (district representative) and a special education teacher. For students who participate in the general education environment, you must include not less than one general education teacher of the child. It is rare that a student’s team will not include a general education teacher. It is acceptable to not include names of invitees, but rather focus on the position of those who have been invited. KPBSD is not responsible for listing those who are invited by the parent.

Though we would like to have notice when a parent has invited additional participants, they are not required to inform the school. We must welcome those additional members as a support to the parents and the student.

Planning ahead for the meeting is crucial for this section. The parent must be notified of what will be discussed at the meeting. Be certain to mark what the meeting will be regarding. If a topic isn’t marked, the topic shouldn’t be discussed.

Be sure to include the correct date and time (including am or pm) of the scheduled meeting in this section. The location will populate as the school which the student is enrolled. If this location is not correct, be sure to correct it. Be sure that the name of the person to contact to reschedule is accurate, and sign the invitation.

This is the section to document all contacts with the parent/guardian in setting up this meeting. If there was no answer the first time, you should document additional attempts. Parents must be invited to the meeting at least 10 school days in advance unless all agree to an earlier date. If this occurs, document this agreement on the “Other” line.

The Alaska State Special Education manual (revised in 2009 and currently under revision) states an IEP team member may be excused from an IEP meeting if the parent and the district agree that the member is not necessary because his/her area of the curriculum or related service will not be modified or discussed. If a member is excused, the parent and district must consent in writing, and the excused team member must submit, in writing to the parent and the IEP team, input into the development of the IEP PRIOR to the meeting.

KPBSD has determined that an administrator and at least one general education teacher must participate in the meeting. Excusals of other members must be planned as the excused member must submit written input to the team prior to the meeting. This should not be used for those members who didn’t show up or who had a conflicting appointment unless those members submitted input to the team in writing for the meeting. Effort must be made for an appropriate replacement of that member if that is the case. KPBSD has an obligation to ensure that members of the team whose service or curriculum will be discussed are at the meeting.

We want to ensure that meeting invitations are completed accurately so that parents are well informed about the meetings they are being asked to attend. If you have any questions, please contact your school’s program coordinator!