Getting Started in Special Education: First Steps
August 1, 2011 in Ask the Special Ed Lawyer, Featured, Insider Insight, Latest Articles by dianaglick
This first published in May 2010. It was Diana Glick’s 2nd article for us and it’s a terrific reminder right now – before regular session school starts – to start educating ourselves about the basics. If you get a chance read all of Diana’s articles from the start. Especially helpful is the one about what your legal team will need from you; should you ever have the need for one..
On a personal note, about Diana. She contacted me from my personal blog Kidneys and Eyes after I’d posted something about my son’s IEP. It was just a little advice; something to keep him mind. I wrote her back, thanked her and promptly asked her if she’d be willing to contribute to the site and she agreed without hesitation. Why? Why would a busy attorney want to write for a site like ours? Pure desire to educate parents navigating the maze of special education.
Thank you Diana!
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By Diana Glick
If you have decided to seek special education services for your child, you have likely traveled a long and often difficult journey already. Your child may have a longstanding medical diagnosis, or you may have been concerned about her performance in school and tried other interventions before getting to this point.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that I discussed in my introductory column has two major categories of services for disabled children: Part B and Part C. Part B will encompass the majority of our discussion of the legal perspective as it applies to school-age children; however, if you are the parent of a very young child with an already diagnosed disability, you should know that services are available to children aged 0-3 under Part C.
Early Intervention
Part C, also referred to as Early Intervention, is available to children with developmental and other disabilities from 0-36 months of age, and includes assessments and services. The services under Part C are provided in accordance with an Individualized Family Service Plan. Part C programs are available in all 50 states, but eligibility criteria vary significantly. If you are interested in seeking out programs for a child under three, the best place to start is at the website for the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities. This website contains information about what is available under Part C and provides Early Intervention contact information for each state.
After Early Intervention
Part B of the IDEA encompasses special education services for children ages 3 through 21, which are administered by local school districts. If you suspect that your child needs special education services, the first step is to request an assessment. It is best to make this request of the school principal and to do so in writing. Each state has different timelines for assessment. For example, in California, once the school receives a request for assessment, they have 15 days to provide parents with a written assessment plan. This is not the case in Ohio, where the school has up to 30 days to respond to a request for assessment. Federal law provides that the District must obtain your written consent to proceed with testing, which is typically done with an “assessment plan.” Once you have signed and returned the assessment plan, the District has 60 calendar days to conduct the assessments and convene and IEP meeting to discuss their findings, unless state law provides a different timeline.
Getting a response
What should you do if you make a written request and get no response? As an attorney, I often hear stories of difficult communication with schools and school district personnel. The last thing you want to do is get off on a bad foot with people who are there to help your child. On the other hand, it is frustrating to be ignored. If you are not getting a response from your child’s teachers or the school principal, the next step is to contact the school district’s special education director. This person is sometimes housed in the Student Services or the Special Services department. It is also important to conduct communication in writing and to start a binder with your child’s special education documentation. A well-organized binder helps you track your child’s course through special education and safeguard important documents. If you are having difficulty getting a response from the District to requests for an assessment, I recommend keeping a copy of all of your communications and having a school secretary or administrative assistant initial and date your copy to confirm the date of receipt.
In my next column, I will discuss the various eligibility categories and what parents can do when there is a disagreement about eligibility among the members of the IEP team. In future columns, I will also discuss alternatives to an IEP, such as 504 plans.
We are also interested in hearing from you! Feel free to suggest topics for further discussion; just keep in mind that I cannot provide legal advice for your specific situation.



This is a rather cynical title. But, in case you ever need to seek the advice of an attorney or bring litigation against the school district over your child’s special education program, there are certain documents that you will want to be able to locate and present to an attorney. On a less cynical note, it’s always good to have an organized binder with your child’s important documentation. There are professional organizers who comment on this blog about organizing your life when you have a child with special needs and nothing in this column should be construed as going against their advice. This is more of an attempt to piggy-back on the concept of organization from a legal perspective.

In the ideal IEP meeting, each of the following occurs:
Sometimes, parents are intimidated by the committee of experts facing them in the meeting (those kid-sized chairs don’t help either!). I try to empower my clients and remind them that they are the parents—who knows their child better? No one! It’s always important to listen to the assessors, teachers and other service providers who are working with your child, but let your gut be your guide. This means that you should feel confident about asking questions and expressing any disagreements you have about your child’s abilities and needs. For example, an IEP will indicate your child’s “present levels of performance.” If a blanket statement is made such as, “Sam is a delightful child with many friends,” and you happen to know that Sam is a delightful child with such a severe language disorder that he cannot participate in age-appropriate conversations and therefore does not have many friends, speak up about this.
