The most common type of meeting that I’m required to be in is call the IEP meeting. Good luck and join us in the Facebook group if you have questions. Showing up for an IEP meeting at your child’s school can feel intimidating, especially if you are the only person at the table who isn’t part of the school staff. If there is a lot of discussion and debate around an issue, it will often appear that this LEA has more influence than most other members of the IEP team. -Must have a signed Notice of Action. Site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be legal advice. Ensuring all disability-related needs and goals are addressed through some type of special education service. School teams should have processes in place to ensure data is collected on an ongoing basis in relation to each IEP goal. The position offered by a team member is usually only the “tip of the iceberg” and the LEA represented must dig deeper to learn the interests lying below the surface. An LEA is one of the required IEP team members, so if one wasn’t there, a meeting didn’t happen. Find me on Social Media or Visit our Discussion Forums. They state “Ensuring that all children, including children with disabilities, are held to rigorous academic standards and high expectations is a shared responsibility for all of us.” US Department of Education Dear Colleague Letter, November 16, 2015. In addition to the general education teacher, another required IEP team member, the LEA representative has similar responsibility to communicate grade level academic and functional expectations that apply to all students and assist the IEP team in understanding each student’s current levels of academic and functional performance and for students participating in the statewide alternate assessment, IEPs should be aligned with alternate academic standards. organization, social and emotional, etc.) In addition to special education staff, general education staff and families have  insights that may lead to identifying specific disability-related needs, that when supported, will improve student educational outcomes. To foster effective IEP teams, it is important that school districts focus on proactive training for the key school IEP team member responsible for ensuring proper process: The LEA Representative (LEA). Ensuring that any and all academic and functional achievement gaps identified in Step 1 have been discussed when discussing the student’s effects of disability and disability-related needs. IDEA is very specific about who are the mandated IEP team members. Encouraging the IEP team to explore areas and environments in which the student is achieving success to identify ways to capitalize on student strengths. LEA representatives should understand that DPI has emphasized a greater focus on Step 2 of the process to encourage IEP team discussion, reflection, and analysis, because this step is foundational for determining a student’s IEP goals and services. The parent can request an additional IEP Team meeting at any time and does not have to agree to excuse an IEP Team member. can changes be made to an iep document without holding an iep meeting? Upon request, a parent must be provided with a revised copy of the IEP … A parent’s agreement shall be in writing. (b) Educational service agencies and other public institutions or agencies. You can then request another IEP meeting. These IEPs are evaluated periodically and a meeting is held with the parents, teachers, student and administration to go over progress and goals. Assisting the team in understanding the academic standards and functional expectations that apply to all students. Presides over the IEP meeting; B. Determines which services are reasonable and necessary and will be provided by the district to the participating student; Wrightslaw: All About IEPs Chapter 2, p. 9. 300.321. parents can be actively engaged. I want to tell you something about words that I think is important. The Local Educational Agency (LEA) representative is an important and required team member of each student’s IEP Team. Fears of the unknown and fears of the known. IEP services must relate back to IEP goals identified in Step 3, and the student’s unique disability-related needs identified in Step 2. For more information on CCR IEPs, visit the DPI web page on CCR IEPs or review previous AWSA article on CCR IEPs. If a teacher, excluding PSTs, who is assigned as an LEA Representative, encounters a situation in which, during the meeting of the IEP Committee, the factors listed in paragraph 2 above arise, the LEA Representative will not have This is a long one!! §§ 115C-106 (b), 115C-110, 115C-113 (b) & (f), and that the rule is consistent with IDEA and its regulations. The parent(s)/guardian(s) is an important part of that team. Your district may be out of compliance as far as the date they hold your meeting. Regulations implementing the IDEA require that each IEP team include a representative of the public agency who: Is qualified to provide, or supervise the provision of, specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities; The LEA Rep represents the district and is responsible for ensuring that anything requested in the meeting (in terms of district resources) can be made available. Outside of the IEP meeting, DPI’s sample IEP forms I-5 and I-6 provide educators with templates to document interim reviews of IEP progress that should be provided to families as well as a format for the required Annual IEP review. The school district makes this decision. There are many people who touch the lives of students who receive special education services through an Individualized Education Program (IEP) as they journey through public education. The parent can request an additional IEP Team meeting at any time and does not have to agree to excuse an IEP Team member. In addition, general and special education staff should have a system to share information on the effectiveness of both general and special education instruction and supports. The US Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, recently released guidance confirming the expectation that students who receive special education be held to rigorous academic standards. Likewise, if a parent learns at the IEP Team meeting that a required participant will not be at the meeting, the parent can agree to continue with the meeting and request an additional meeting if more information is needed, or request that the meeting be … The Individuals with Disability Education Act (IDEA) 2004 identifies the LEA representative as someone who; (i) is qualified to provide, or supervise the provision of, specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities; (ii) is knowledgeable about the general education curriculum; and. Additional information that the Local Education Agency (LEA) has found to be u seful may also be included. For example, if the student has a reading goal, the IEP team must identify a measure of progress that directly relates to the specific reading skill that is being taught that matches the information documented for baseline and expected level of attainment. “We wish to discuss out of district placement at this IEP meeting, so please make sure that there is an LEA in attendance who can authorize this decision if the entire IEP team agrees.”, This comes up in various forms. It’s that moment when your child will be given a label if they don’t already have one. The LEA representative can facilitate a discussion in relation to the underlying interest, which is likely related to supporting a student’s disability-related need, so the IEP team might consider a variety of options that would address and meet the individual need of the student so that they can better access, engage, and make progress in grade level general education curriculum, instruction, and environment. View all comments. If the parent is not present at the meeting, or unable to be reached for consent to excuse the team member, a meeting should be scheduled in which all team members can attend. LEA is one of those special education acronyms that is more complex than it needs to be. Words are all we have, really. DPI recently released. Local educational agency or LEA means a public board of education or other public authority legally constituted within a State for either administrative control or direction of, or to perform a service function for, public elementary schools or secondary schools in a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision of a State, or for a combination of school districts or counties as are recognized in a State as an administrative agency for its public elementary schools or secondary schools. Ensuring no IEP team members make definitive statements such as (e.g., “We always...”; “We never...”) to ensure the IEP is based on the student’s individual needs. IDEA 2004 allows sections of an existing IEP program to be changed without convening an IEP meeting.The parent/legal guardian/adult student and LEA must agree to this arrangement prior to the change. No hiding it or going back. Such data should be analyzed regularly and is the basis for interim reports. By following the CCR IEP Five Step Process, LEA representatives can support IEP teams to develop IEPs that assist any student aged 3 through 21 who receive special education to be on track to graduate ready for further education, work, and living in the community. The IEP meeting should not be the only time that teachers, parents and other service providers discuss a child’s progress. IEP services enable the student to access, engage, and make progress in early childhood/grade level standards-based curriculum and instruction, other school-related activities, and environments. For students who have behavior related needs, it may be needed to conduct a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to better understand how to support an individual student. Students who are in a special education program are required to have an IEP. A member of the IEP team shall not be required to attend an IEP meeting, in whole or in part, if the parent of a child with a disability and the LEA agree that the attendance of such member is not necessary because the member’s area of the curriculum or related services is not being modified or discussed in the meeting. §§300.322(a), (c) and (d); 34 C.F.R. Then the IEP team uses root cause analysis to dig deep to determine “why” the student is not meeting early childhood/grade level academic standards and functional expectations. You are an advocate for your child,” says White. A member of the IEP Team may be excused from attending an IEP meeting, in whole or in part, when the meeting involves a modification to or discussion of the member’s area of the curriculum or related services, if the parent, in writing, and the local educational agency consent to the excusal, and the member submits, in writing to the parent and the IEP Team, input into the development of the IEP prior … Many times, parents want to exclude the LEA from their IEP meeting! Only required IEP team members, not additional IEP team members need to be excused in writing. Ensuring the student’s “Label” does not determine the student’s curriculum and environmental placement. For the IEP meeting, DPI’s sample IEP forms provide IEP teams with a templates to document annual review of IEP progress to ensure students are on track to meeting IEP goals. If not, talk to the trusted person you brought to the meeting, or contact one of the other IEP participants for clarification. that affect a student’s progress in reading. This person should know what resources are available to the district and have the authority to allocate such resources. Being prepared can help you go into them feeling confident and able to advocate for your child. What should you bring? Keep in mind that as the parent, you are an important part of the IEP team and you are also an expert in your child. If you have agreed to the IEP, review the agreed upon IEP to make sure you understand it. IEP team members must also have the confidence to speak up when its man-dates are not being followed. In step 1, Understand Achievement, the IEP team explores and documents the student’s current academic achievement and functional performance as it relates to access, engagement, and progress in relation to early childhood/grade-level academic standards and functional skill expectations. See, Letter to Diehl, 22 IDELR 734 (OSEP 1995). Ensuring that academic and functional performance of the student are described in relation to the expectations of grade level peers. Standards based IEPs start in Step 1 when the IEP team identifies how the individual student is performing compared to grade level peers. The term includes the following: (1) Educational service agency, defined as a regional public multi-service agency—, (i) Authorized by State law to develop, manage, and provide services or programs to LEAs; and. If you’re new to the process, you might wonder what IEP meetings are for. (a) General. What to do before the meeting SPED teacher contacts parents and student to invite them to IEP meeting Contact principal and other team members to see their availability Suggest meeting dates and times to parents Send home prior notice that includes the LEA proposes to provide FAPE through the IEP process. This sometimes isn’t the case, however, which is where a child advocate comes in. This State Board rule permits the LEA to designate, as the LEA Representative to serve on the IEP Team, a person — including but not limited to a principal — who meets the enumerated qualifications. The LEA Representative is a required member of the IEP Team, and therefore, must attend each IEP Team meeting. I thank you for hearing my words. A child advocate will help in reviewing the IEP. The idea behind having an LEA separate from the rest of the other team (presumably, most of whom are also employed by the school district) is so that those other folks could speak freely about the child’s interests rather than the district’s interest. It is important to note that a student may have either or both academic disability-related needs (e.g. Data from multiple sources is used, including information and viewpoints from the family and student, regarding strengths, interests, and areas of concern. 4. Step 4 is a critical step in the IEP process to meet the requirements set out in IDEA that requires students who receive special education through an IEP to receive a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). All content property of A Day in our Shoes, LLC. Either the parents or the school can ask at any time to hold an IEP meeting to revise the child's IEP. -->Can't have a meeting for an initial evaluation or an initial placement without the parent. “An IEP meeting brings together the entire IEP team assisting your child – educators, treatment providers, parents, the Local Education Agency (LEA) representative and others. To assist IEP teams in Step 3: Develop IEP Goals, the LEA representative can assist by: In Step 4, Align Services, the IEP teams determines the specially designed instruction, related services, supports, and accommodations needed to address disability-related needs, attain IEP goals, and ensure access to the general curriculum. I point this out only for reference. a specific service. In the role of an IEP team member, the required skills and abilities of the LEA representative coincide with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s (DPI) College and Career Ready (CCR) IEP framework. Allowing your child’s IEP meeting to be rushed so that the school staff can begin the next child’s IEP meeting. Ensuring that any IEP goals that did not show reasonable progress in light of a student’s circumstances are thoroughly discussed by the IEP team and that the IEP is revised as needed. Changes to the IEP may be made either by the entire IEP Team at an IEP Team meeting, or as provided in paragraph (a)(4) of this section, by amending the IEP rather than by redrafting the entire IEP. You have to agree to the time and place. In particular, when a parent asks for something that is costly like a 1:1 aide or a private out of district placement. It is a time when all of your child’s limits and obstacles will be written down. Under this unique circumstance, in the CDE's view it is not necessary for an LEA to convene an IEP team meeting, or propose an IEP amendment without a team meeting, for every student, solely for the purpose of discussing the need to provide services away from school, because that change must necessarily occur due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Providing an IEP agenda in advance and setting norms at the beginning of a meeting is recommended. But, notice the parent (s) are listed first. LEA is another one of those Special Education Acronyms that we as parents have to learn. This practice is particularly common at the end of the school year when educators are frantically trying to have IEP meetings for all the students who receive special education services. This individual is commonly referred to as the “Local Educational Agency Representative”. After the IEP meeting, how long will it take for my child to get help? If you want more time, ask them to continue the meeting to a later date. If there are significant concerns about a student’s progress and the team is unclear about next steps, a reevaluation may be needed. I-2 Agreement on IEP Team Participant Attendance at IEP Meeting Under certain conditions, and with the written agreement or consent of the parent and the LEA, IDEA permits a required IEP team participant to be excused from attending an IEP team meeting in whole or in part. Ample room for all team members to sit and space to take notes. Yes, it’s true. IF THE PARENTS AND LEA AGREE, A WRITTEN DOCUMENT CAN BE ADDED TO THE IEP TO AMEND THE DOCUEMENT -- ONCE THE ANNUAL IEP HAS BEEN HELD. Understanding and reminding IEP team members that disability-related needs go beyond eligibility criteria and impairment label(s). Finally, the IEP team summarizes the student’s disability-related needs that will be addressed by IEP goals and services. This entry was posted in Question and tagged I by Community. 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