What to do if you Disagree with your District?

1. What to do if you Disagree with your District? Sean Cronin, Associate Education Consultant, CSDE Jennifer Lussier, Parent Consultant, CPAC Deborah Richards, Director of Student Services, CREC

2. Defining Terms • Involvement– one way, parental or school initiative • Relationship – two-way effective communication • Partnership-respectful, trusting relationships with shared vision, goals and responsibility

3. Causes of Conflict • Design conflicts arise when stakeholders have differing understandings or ideas about special education services • Examples: • eligibility for services; • methodology of intervention; • perceptions about student needs; • the scope of the IDEA entitlement; • educational placement.

4. Causes of Conflict • Delivery problems are those associated with implementing an IEP that has been agreed upon by the family and the school district. • Examples: • provider competence, • scheduling, • transportation, • coordination of services, • procedural requirements, • privacy, and/or confidentiality.

5. Causes of Conflict: • Relationships are perhaps the most important but elusive source of disputes between school districts and parents. • Examples: • loss of trust, • breakdowns in communication, • cultural differences.

6. Barriers to Building Parent-School Relationships • Lack of time • Insufficient or inaccurate information • Miscommunication • Legal or organizational mandates • Family resistance • Educator resistance

7. If Disagreements Occur First, try informal methods to resolve differences Outside of the PPT process • Increase communication on the problem issues • Verbally (but) • Put your concerns in writing • Get a neutral party involved • Contact a parent organization (CPAC) • Contact the Bureau of Special Education • Contact the special education teacher or the case manager • Contact the building administrator • Contact the central office special education director

8. When Disagreements Occur, Increase Communication Efforts • Make sure you reach someone at the school district • If there is no response to your emails or phone calls after several tries, try someone else • Use “confirmation” emails • What am I missing? • Put Your Concerns in Writing • Write a letter for your PPT • Bring your concerns in writing to the meeting • copies for each team member • Before the meeting? • Document every conversation – don’t rely on your memory

9. When you are in conflict • Conflict can create a positive change if handled in the right way • If emotions are high, the ability to listen is low • Challenge your perception • If you are angry, do not call or email the person with whom you are angry • Do not threaten legal proceedings or lawyers • Call a friend, relative, or CPAC • If you make a mistake, don’t be afraid to apologize • When the team works with you to resolve the issue, a “Thank You!” will go a long way

10. Request a PPT – Strategies within the PPT Process • Ask district to review your Procedural Safeguards – ask questions if you do not understand • Understand your right to Prior Written Notice • Use Page 4 of the IEP to provide input – review this after the PPT to make sure your concerns are recorded • Provide input on the vision or priorities for your child, or articulated by the student at the meeting – don’t be afraid to share your concerns or worst nightmares – help set the stage for the bigger, long term picture

11. Parents should receive the Procedural Safeguards Notice at least annually AND when the following occurs: • The first time you or the school district asks for an evaluation. • You ask for a copy of these procedural safeguards. • The first time in a school year you request a due process hearing or file a state complaint. • A decision is made to take a disciplinary action against your child that is a change in placement.

12. Right to Prior Written Notice Written notice must be given to parents before the public agency proposes or refuses to initiate or change • Educational Placement • Identification • Evaluation • Provision of FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education)

13. Right to Prior Written Notice The School district must put in writing • Why they propose or refuse such action • The data used as a basis for this decision • Other options that were considered • Why other options were rejected

16. What can you do if you disagree with an evaluation? • Collaborate with your PPT, your child’s case-manager, the evaluator. • Discuss your concerns; make sure the district is aware and understands your concerns. • What questions did you want answered about your child through the evaluation? • Work with the district to resolve your disagreement. • Request an Independent Educational Evaluation at Public Expense. • CSDE Link: https://portal.ct.gov/SDE/Special-Education/Guidance-for-Independent-Educational-Evaluations-and-In-School-Observations • Please note: The district has to consider the recommendations of an IEE, but the PPT may make a decision not to implement some or all of the recommendations.

18. Staying Organized • Create a binder for current IEP and other important documents such as: • Behavior Intervention Plan • Recent Evaluations • Restraint and Seclusion Reports • Document • Contact Log for important correspondence • Follow up phone calls/meetings with an email • Missing documents? Request in writing

19. Right to Access Records34 CFR 300.613; Connecticut Regulations Section 10-76d-18 • Personally Identifiable 34 CFR 300.32 • Personally identifiable means information that includes: 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 of student number; or • a list of personal characteristics or other information that would make it possible to identify your child with reasonable clarity.

20. Right to Access Records • Section 10-76d-18 of the Connecticut regulations: • District must allow you to inspect educational records no later than 10 school days after request • Parents may obtain one free copy of educational records upon written request

21. Disagreement over records • Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act – FERPA • Parents may request to correct the record that is “inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the privacy rights of the student.” • FERPA Hearing - Request attached to the record

23. More Formal Dispute Resolution Processes • Special Education Complaint Resolution Process • Mediation • Due Process Hearing • Expedited Hearing • Advisory Opinion

24. How Often are Dispute Resolution Processes Used In CT (17-18)? • Complaints filed: 169 • Complaints with reports issued: 77 • Reports with findings of non-compliance: 45 • Mediations requested: 288 • Mediations held: 202 • Total number of Due Process complaints filed: 236 • Resolution meetings: 112 • Settlements through Resolution meetings: 64 • Fully adjudicated hearings: 9 • Expedited Due Process complaints filed: 10 • Fully adjudicated expedited hearings: 1 • https://portal.ct.gov/SDE/Special-Education/Special-Education-Hearing-Decisions

25. Special Education Complaint Resolution Process • Who can initiate the process? Any individual or organization • What issues? Allegation, with supporting facts, that the district has violated a state or federal special education law • Time limits: One year from date of alleged violation (take the filing date and look back 1 year) • Timeline: 60 calendar days from when the BSE received the complaint

26. Examples of the type of issues you can file a complaint about • Your child is not receiving the services agreed to in the IEP • Your child's behavior intervention plan has not been implemented • Evaluations were not completed within state/federal timelines • Your district refused to evaluate your child for special education until they completed interventions identified by the child study team • Your child’s special education services did not begin in the new school year until October

27. Examples of issues you cannot file a complaint about • You don’t like the speech pathologist working with your child • You want your child placed in a different classroom or with a specific teacher

28. Mediation • Who can initiate the process? Parent or School District, but must be voluntary for both • What issues? Any matter under the IDEA • Time limits: None • Timeline: None

29. Mediation • Mediation is voluntary for both parties • An impartial, trained mediator will be assigned by the BSE • The mediator will try to help you and the district reach an agreement • If you reach agreement, a written agreement will be developed • If you don’t reach agreement, the lack of agreement will be documented • Discussions at mediation are confidential • You may bring an advocate or an attorney at your own cost

31. Due Process Hearing • Who can initiate the process? Parent or School District, or student who has reached the age of majority • What issues? Any matter relating to the identification, evaluation or educational placement or provision of FAPE • Time limits: Two years from when the parent knew or should have known of the alleged problem • Timeline: No more than 45 days from the end of the resolution period (maximum of 30 days). School district must convene a resolution meeting within 15 days of receipt of the parent’s complaint, unless the parents agree to waive it or agree to mediate (other factors may affect timelines)

32. Due Process Hearing • An impartial hearing officer will be assigned by the BSE • You and the school district may present evidence and have witnesses attend and testify • You and the school district have the right to cross-examine witnesses • You have the right to hire an attorney to represent you • You may bring an advocate with you, but the advocate cannot represent you • The hearing officer will provide a written decision with findings of fact and conclusions of law • The decision is appealable to state or federal court

33. Expedited Hearing • Who can initiate the process? Parent or School District, or student who has reached the age of majority • What issues? Only for disagreement about disciplinary placement or disagreement with manifestation determination • Time limits: Two years from when the parent knew or should have known of the alleged problem • Timeline: No more than 30 school days (20 school days from the hearing and 10 school days to write the decision) from the end of the resolution period (maximum 15 calendar days). No extensions permitted

34. Advisory Opinion (CT Specific) • A non-binding agreement issued by a hearing officer after consideration of a brief presentation of information by both the parents and the school district • You may then choose to bring the matter to a full due process hearing or to settle the dispute • Each side has 45 minutes to present their case to the hearing officer • You will have 15 minutes to respond to the other side’s presentation • The hearing officer will give an oral opinion, no record is kept

35. Where do I get more information? • Due Process Unit at the BSE • https://portal.ct.gov/SDE/Special-Education/Special-Education-Legal-and-Due-Process (Forms, Complaint Resolution Process, List of Hearing Officers, List of Mediators)

36. CPAC Effective Conversations Program • Lower level dispute resolution option • Aims to support the Planning and Placement Team to work more effectively as a collaborative team to plan and program for the student • Not Advocacy, but communication facilitation and partnership building • Parent or District may request

37. Contacts • Jennifer Lussier – CPAC – 860-739-3089 jlussier@cpacinc.org www.cpacinc.org • Sean Cronin – CSDE – Bureau of Special Education – 860-471-0618 sean.p.cronin@ct.gov https://portal.ct.gov/SDE • Deborah Richards – CREC – 860-524-4025 – derichards@crec.org • CADRE – The Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education www.cadreworks.org