Palos West Services and
Parental Information

Definition:

The individualized education program (IEP) is a written plan describing the provision of special education and related services for a student with a disability. This written document describes your child and what you and the school will do to give your child the extra help and attention needed. Since parents help to write IEPs for their children, it is important that you know what goes into an IEP. You should also understand what will happen at IEP meetings and what will happen after the IEP is written.

Once you and the other members of the eligibility conference decide that your child is eligible and special education services are needed, an IEP must be developed. The IEP may be completed immediately following the eligibility conference or a second meeting may be held to develop, review, or revise the IEP. The IEP meeting must occur within 30 days of the determination of your child’s eligibility for special education and no more than 60 school days from the date of the referral.

Participants:

Your participation at the IEP meeting is very important. The school district will send you a written notice at least 10 days before the proposed date of the IEP meeting. The notice will tell the time, date, location, purpose of the meeting, and who will attend. If you cannot attend the IEP meeting, you should let the district know so the meeting can be rescheduled at a mutually convenient time. If it is not possible for you to attend, the district must try to secure your participation, at least two more times, by other means such as telephone conference calls or visits to the home and your place of employment. A meeting may be conducted without you in attendance if the school district has a record of attempts made to mutually arrange a time and place, but is unable to obtain your participation.

Annual Review:

An Individualized Education Program (IEP) can be in effect for up to one calendar year. Near the end of that year another conference will be held to review your child’s education and to develop an IEP for the coming year. This conference, referred to as an Annual Review, is for the purposes of:

· reviewing the educational status of your child and his/her involvement and progress in the general curriculum

· determining the extent to which your child has met his/her goals and objectives/benchmarks

· developing new goals and objectives/benchmarks

· determining if further evaluation is needed

· addressing the continued special education placement of your child