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Eligibility Determination Meeting
Once the school district has completed the evaluation of your child, it must schedule a meeting to determine eligibility. This meeting, known as an initial IEP (Individualized Education Program) meeting, an eligibility meeting or some other term used by your state, must be scheduled for a time that is convenient for both you and school staff. (If the proposed time isn't convenient for you, feel free to ask for a more convenient time.) The eligibility decision must be made by a team of qualified professionals and by the parent of the student.
[New] Meetings do not have to be face-to-face. IDEA 2004 allows for alternative ways of meeting, such as through telephone conference calls or video conferences. If you are unable to attend a meeting at the proposed time, ask about these alternatives.
Who attends the meeting?
You will receive a written notice about this meeting which will include the school staff members who will be attending. As the child's parent, you have the right to bring other individuals to the meeting. However, IDEA states that these other individuals must have knowledge or special expertise regarding your child. Individuals appropriate to bring with you to an eligibility meeting might include educational advocates, private evaluators, private tutors and/or other professionals who have experience with your child. Bringing individuals with knowledge of your child and the special education process can provide you with additional support during the eligibility meeting.
IDEA requires that the eligibility determination be made by a group of qualified professionals and the student's parents. Who attends on behalf of the school will vary depending on your state or school district. Individuals likely to attend would include a school principal, school psychologist, special education teacher, general education teacher and others involved in the evaluations and assessments conducted as part of the evaluation process. A translator should also be present if you need one.
What happens at the meeting?
The initial IEP meeting to determine eligibility will generally include:
- Introductions of those attending
- A review of the results of your child's evaluation (Remember, you should have already received a copy of the evaluation report prior to this meeting. If you have not received the evaluation report prior to the meeting, you must be given a copy at the meeting.)
- A review of any material that you, as the parent, want to have included as part of the determination. This may include results of private screening or testing, reports from a family doctor, or information from private tutors. It is best to provide these materials to school personnel before the meeting so they have an opportunity to review them.
- Discussion of the evaluation results
- Determination of eligibility and the educational needs of the student.
Eligibility Determination: A Two-Pronged Test
It is important to understand that establishing eligibility for services under IDEA is a two-pronged process. The team of qualified professionals and the parent must determine that the student meets both of these criteria in order to be eligible for special education services:
- Prong One: The student must be determined to have one (or more) of the 13 disabilities listed in the IDEA; and
- Prong Two: The student must, as a result of that disability, need special education in order to make progress in school and in order to receive benefit from the general educational program.
Given this two-pronged test, it is possible that a student could be determined to have a disability (Prong One), such as a Specific Learning Disability or Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), yet not be in need of special education (Prong Two).
In such cases, the student may be eligible under other disability categories of IDEA, or an optional designation known as developmental delay which is designed to enable states to provide special education services to young children (ages three through nine) who are experiencing developmental delays but do not satisfy the criteria for a disability category. Lastly, educational assistance may be available to the student under another federal law, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
In making the eligibility decision, IDEA requires that the team of qualified professionals and the parent draw upon a variety of information about the student, including relevant functional, developmental and academic information provided by the evaluation process. Any additional information provided by the parent must also be considered. The team is not allowed to rely on any single measure or assessment as the sole basis for determining eligibility.
