Evaluations vs. IEP Meetings – A Very Important Distinction

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A client recently told me they received a notice for an “evaluation meeting”.  Huh?  I asked, do you mean an IEP meeting?  The client wasn’t sure because the notice said just that – evaluation meeting. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN EVALUATION MEETING! Since I figured school districts are trying to confuse parents by […]

What documents should be in your child’s special education binder?

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If you are a parent of a special education student or advocating for one, do yourself a favor and . . . PRINT OUT THIS ARTICLE (or at least the plan below). Not only will this article save you time and lots of money, it will help you understand how best to help your child […]

Aggravation in trying to access student records

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As you may know if you have been reading my 2 Things: Special Education Law Tips Newsletter, there are laws which grant access rights to parents of their student’s educational records.  This is especially true when the student is a child with a disability.  Such rights are granted by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act […]

Top Ten Special Ed Law Tips

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Sometimes you just need some quick tips to help you through the maze that is special education law.  Fair enough.  Here are my Top Ten tips for parents and advocates: 1.  Put everything in writing!  Document every single thing you do as it will only help your child and help if you find yourself in a […]

What’s a FERPA letter?

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For those of you who are new to education law or are in a battle with your school district to make sure your disabled student is getting a “Free Appropriate Public Education”, you may have heard the term “FERPA” or been told to send a “FERPA letter“.  And you’re probably wondering “What the heck is […]

Pass the IEP, please!

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You remember at the dinner table (perhaps most notably the Thanksgiving Dinner table) when you would ask someone to pass something along?  Maybe it was the stuffing bowl; maybe it was the cranberry sauce; maybe it was the dinner rolls; or maybe it was the fruit cake (OK, I know it wasn’t the fruit cake […]