Disagree with the District’s evaluation/results? Let's talk Independent Educational Evaluations (IEE)

Monday's Parent Phone Call: Did you disagree with the District’s evaluation/results? Did you request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE)?

When this parent disagreed with the school’s findings, the District - paraphrased - replied over the course of TWO weeks with the following questions:

4 days after request: “What do you disagree with?" (Parent kindly responds).

8 days later: “What exactly are you looking for?” (A: More testing to rule out Dyslexia).

9 days after 2nd email: “Well, we disagree with your request. We see nothing wrong and will not fund an IEE.”

Does it end here? Answer: No.

If parents disagree with an initial or re-evaluation findings by the District, parents may request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) at public expense. The IEE is an evaluation conducted by a qualified examiner who is NOT an employee of the public agency, i.e. the District. When a District receives this request, it must, within five school days, either agree to pay for the IEE or file a Hearing Request with the BSEA in order to establish that its evaluation was comprehensive and appropriate.

When presented with an IEE request by a parent who does not meet the income eligibility requirements under Massachusetts law or declined to disclose their financial information, the District has two choices: file for a hearing within 5 days OR consent to the IEE. When a parent requests an IEE, the school *may ask for reasons why you object to the District’s evaluation/findings. The parent in this scenario was polite by doing so, however you are *not required* to provide any explanation other than you do not believe/agree that the findings adequately describe the difficulties your child has and/or does not enable your Team to develop an appropriate IEP. The school is free to email and call you with questions and concerns. However, the District’s questions and emails cannot unreasonably delay either providing the IEE at public expense or filing a due process complaint to defend their evaluation. Emails and phone calls do not “restart” the timeline.

The Parent’s Notice of Procedural Safeguards is (should be) provided at every IEP meeting and Special Education community humor is that Parents could “wallpaper a house” with this document, however it truly does contain many informative nuggets for Parents. Here is the link (IEE found pg. 5-6 (Question 4), pdf also provided below. This information can be confusing and overwhelming - I get it! Please do not hesitate to call. I am happy to take any phone call or answer any email. Likewise, there are so many fantastic and helpful Advocates, Attorneys & Advocacy Agencies in our State providing help and I am happy to provide recommendations! #iephelp #IEE #specialeducationadvocate #SPECIALEDUCATION #iepgoals #specialeducationlaw https://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/prb/pnps.docx