It's the Law - Special Education Action

Mediators: Know Who Constitutes an “Impartial Mediator”

§300.506(c)(1) states mediators may not be an employee of the state education agency (SEA) or local education agency (LEA) that is involved in the education or care of the child.

Makes you think that the mediator lined up for your mediation will be impartial—and won’t be an employee of the SEA or LEA—right?

That sort of thinking does make sense, but in this Bizarro World of special education regulations and laws and school divisions and lawyers and parents and kids . . . Things don’t always turn out as they should.

Samantha Hollins Prohibits Recording of Resolution Meeting; Hangs Up on Parent

July 13, 2020: Article first published. January 23, 2023: Republished with new introduction (see italics below).

January 24, 2020, Samantha Hollins, assistant superintendent of VDOE’s Department of Special Education and Student Services, provided incorrect guidance on the recording of resolution meetings.

She first indicated that there is a Virginia regulation prohibiting the recording of resolution meetings.

Not true.

Schools are Required to Provide Access to Education Records Prior to IEP Meetings

Parents have the right to access their child’s education record in advance of IEP meetings.

This access is key to ensuring parents are able to meaningfully participate during IEP meetings and provide informed consent (or refusal) to a school’s proposal/s.

Access to education records, meaningful participation, and informed consent are three rights afforded to parents under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

It’s the Law: Why Does VDOE Allow Vague Language in IEPs?

If you’ve read any of “The Language of IEPs and 504s” articles on this site, you know broad and vague language is a problem and it will slip by you from time to time.

Thankfully, it isn’t the parent’s job to create IEPs that are written with clear, concise language that ensures provision of a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). That’s the school division’s job.

And yet . . . Vague and broad language persists and the Virginia Department of Education has allowed this.

What Is Predetermination?

In the space of K-12 education, predetermination occurs when a local education agency (LEA) pre-determines decisions related to a student prior to the development of an IEP and regardless of any data and/or any other type of input from parents, which parents might provide during IEP meetings.

Privacy is a Right, NOT an Accommodation

A parent requested the following accommodation after his teachers repeatedly mentioned his Individualized Education Program (IEP) to the class:

“Teachers should not intentionally allow other students to know that XXXXXX has an IEP and receives special education services.”

The parent didn’t understand that privacy is a right, not an accommodation, simply because the privacy violations modeled by the teacher pointed in the opposite direction.

Who Attends IEP Meetings and What is an IEP Team?

A parent asks for an IEP meeting.

The IEP case manager for the parent’s child replies with a time and a date, and states that the child’s regular education teacher will not be a part of the IEP team.

The school’s proposed IEP team does not comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

If the parent agrees to the meeting, he or she will be attending a meeting, but not an IEP meeting with an IEP team as defined by IDEA.

It’s the Law: Confidentiality and Access of Student Records

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the confidentiality of student records and provides rights to parents and students to access those records.

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) there are additional confidentiality and access protections.

This article includes a few examples of noncompliance, with which you might not be familiar, as well as your go-to regulations should you need them.

Category: It’s the Law (page 2)