A written request should be submitted to your local school district’s CST requesting an evaluation. This can be done as early as 120 days prior to a child’s third birthday (and any time thereafter). The letter should state the child’s age, program placement and suspected disability (you may also include any history of diagnosis, evaluations and/or treatment).
Once the referral has been made to the CST, a Case Manager is assigned and has twenty (20) calendar days (excluding school holidays) to schedule an Identification Meeting. The necessary personnel expected to attend this meeting include a social worker, psychologist, learning disabilities teacher-consultant, classroom teacher, speech & language specialist (if the suspected disability included that area or the child was age 3-5) and the parent (the parent IS part of the team). Your concerns are reviewed and it is determined whether an evaluation will take place. If yes, a minimum of two assessments are needed to determine eligibility for special education and related services (parental consent is required first). Each assessment must be conducted by a person who has appropriate training, or who is qualified to conduct the assessment through his or her professional license or certification.
The district then has 90 days to complete the necessary evaluations and hold an eligibility meeting, where the evaluations are interpreted and it is determined if the student is eligible for special education and/or related services. Families are required to receive the reports at least 10 days prior to the meeting.
If found eligible for special education and related services, an Individualized Education Program (IEP) will be developed. Placement must be within the least restrictive environment (LRE) based on identified educational needs. The IEP is a written plan describing detail of how your child currently performs and their specific instructional needs. The IEP will state the services to be received, duration, frequency as well as detailed and measurable annual goals and short-term objectives or benchmarks.
More information can be found below:
