Wyo. Code R. 206-0002-7
General Agency, Board or Commission Rules
Chapter 7: Services for Children with Disabilities
Effective Date: 12/30/1999 to 04/28/2000
Rule Type: Expired Emergency Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 206.0002.7.12301999
(a) The purpose of this section is to outline the Wyoming Department of Education Special Education Rules governing services for children with disabilities under the amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 (IDEA) 20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq. It should be noted that the Wyoming Rules, for the most part, follow the federal requirements found in 34 CFR Parts 300 and 303 and 20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.
(b) The policies and procedures mentioned in these regulations are further clarified in the Wyoming State Plan and various Wyoming Department of Education (WDE) guidance documents.
(c) School districts and other agencies providing services for children with disabilities can require additional process and procedures as long as they do not conflict with the WDE and federal IDEA regulations.
(d) The outcomes for these rules are to:
(i) ensure all Wyoming Children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education (FAPE) that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs and prepare them for employment and independent living;
(ii) ensure that the rights of children with disabilities and parents of such children are protected;
(iii) assist school districts and other agencies to provide for the education of all children with disabilities;
and
(iv) lead to positive results for children with disabilities in Wyoming.
(e) For additional information, please contact the:
Wyoming Department of Education 2300 Capitol Avenue Hathaway Bldg., 2nd Floor Cheyenne, WY 82002-0050 Phone: (307) 777-7690 FAX: (307) 777-6234 Website: http://www.k12.wy.us
(a) The Wyoming rules are authorized by W.S. § 21-2-202(a)(xviii) and have been adopted by the Wyoming State Superintendent of Public Instruction as authorized by the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, W.S. § 16-3-101 through 16-3-115.
(b) These rules govern the operation of all special education programs and services provided to children with disabilities by any school district or agency within the State of Wyoming.
(c) The Wyoming State Plan, developed by the WDE and approved by the United States Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) contains further written policies and procedures covering the requirements described in these rules.
(d) All provisions under IDEA, 20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq. and regulations apply to each political subdivision of the State, irrespective of whether the subdivision received any Part B funds. The requirements of IDEA are binding on each school district or agency that has direct or delegated authority to provide special education and related services in Wyoming. This does not limit the responsibility of any agency for providing or paying appropriate costs for a free appropriate public education (FAPE) for children with disabilities in Wyoming. The WDE will ensure that Part B funds are spent in accordance to IDEA and that funds are recovered for services to any child determined to be erroneously classified and counts.
(e) These rules are effective as provided by W.S. § 16-3-104 and govern entitlement and programs for the 1999-2000 school year and each year thereafter.
(f) The Wyoming Department of Education's Full Educational Opportunity Goal is for all eligible children with disabilities ages birth to twenty-one to be provided full educational opportunities.
(a) 'Act' means the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended P.L. 105-17.
(b) 'Age of majority' means the age the youth with a disability acts on his/her own behalf (18 years), unless found to be incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(c) 'Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)' (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. Protection is extended to the community and employment areas.
(d) 'Assistive technology device' means any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability.
(e) 'Assistive technology service' means any service that directly assists a child with a disability in the selection, acquisition or use of an assistive technology device. The term includes:
(i) the evaluation of the needs of a child with a disability, including a functional evaluation of the child in the child's customary environment;
(ii) purchasing, leasing or otherwise providing for the acquisition of assistive technology devices for children with disabilities;
(iii) selecting, designing, fitting, customizing, adapting, applying, maintaining, repairing or replacing assistive technology devices;
(iv) coordinating and using other therapies, interventions or services with assistive technology devices, such as those associated with existing education and rehabilitation plans and programs;
(v) training or technical assistance for a child with a disability or, if appropriate, that child's family; and training or technical assistance for professionals (including individuals providing education or rehabilitation services), employers, or other individuals who provide services to, employ, or are otherwise substantially involved in the major life functions of that child.
(f) 'At no cost' means that all specially designed instruction is provided without charge, but does not preclude incidental fees that are normally charged to nondisabled students or their parents as a part of the regular education program.
(g) 'Child with a disability' means a child evaluated as having autism, deaf-blindness, deafness, developmental disability, emotional disability, hard of hearing, learning disability, mental disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, or visual impairment including blindness, and who by reason thereof, needs special education and related services. If it is determined, through an appropriate evaluation, that a child has one of the disabilities above, but only needs a related service and not special education, the child is not a child with a disability under these rules. If the related service required by the child is considered special education rather than a related service under State standards, the child would be determined to be a child with a disability.
(h) “Consent” means the following:
(i) the parent has been fully informed of all information relevant to the activity for which consent is sought, in his or her native language, or other mode of communication;
(ii) the parent understands and agrees in writing to the carrying out of the activity for which his or her consent is sought, and the consent describes that activity and lists the records (if any) that will be released and to whom; and
(iii) the parent understands that the granting of consent is voluntary on the part of the parent and may be revoked at anytime. If a parent revokes consent, that revocation is not retroactive (i.e., it does not negate an action that has occurred after the consent was given and before the consent was revoked).
(i) “Controlled substance” means a drug or other substance identified under schedules I, II, III, IV, or V in Section 202 ( c ) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 912 ( c
(j) “Day; business day; school day.” These terms mean:
(i) “day” means calendar day unless otherwise indicated as business day or school day;
(ii) “business day” means Monday through Friday, except for federal and state holidays unless holidays are specifically included in the designation of business day; and
(iii) “school day” means any day, including a partial day that children are in attendance at school for instructional purposes. The term “school day” has the same meaning for all children in school, including children with and without disabilities.
(k) “Destruction” means physical destruction or removal of personal identifiers from information so that the information is no longer personally identifiable.
(l) “Division of Developmental Disabilities” means a division within the Wyoming Department of Health through which services for preschool children with disabilities are provided.
(m) “Education record” means the type of records covered under the definition of “education records” in the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974.
(n) “Educational performance” means what must be adversely affected to establish eligibility for special education and related services, and may encompass all areas of educational development.
(o) “Educational Service Agency (ESA)” means a regional public multiservice agency authorized by state law to develop, manage and provide services or programs to LEAs; and recognized as an administrative agency for purposes of the provision of special education and related services provided within public elementary and secondary schools of the state; includes any other public institution or agency having administrative control and direction over a public elementary or secondary school.
(p) “Educational surrogate parent” means an individual appointed to protect the rights of the child who may represent the child in all matters relating to a free appropriate public education including identification, evaluation, eligibility, individualized education program (IEP) and educational placement. A foster parent can serve as an education surrogate if there is no conflict of interest.
(q) “Equipment” means machinery, utilities, and built-in equipment and any necessary enclosures or structures to house the machinery, utilities or equipment; and all other items necessary for the functioning of a particular facility as a facility for the provision of educational services, including items such as instructional equipment and necessary furniture; printed, published and audio-visual instructional materials; telecommunications, sensory and other technological aids and devices; and books, periodicals, documents and other related materials.
(r) 'Evaluation' means procedures used to determine whether a child has a disability and the nature and extent of the special education and related services that the child needs. The term means procedures used selectively with an individual child and does not include basic tests administered to or procedures used with all children in a school, grade, or class.
(s) 'Extended school year (ESY)' means any extension of the school year beyond the traditional length of the school year for non-disabled children; during which services are provided for children with disabilities as required on their IEP. ESY may also include extension of the traditional school day or week.
(t) 'Family Education Rights Privacy Act (FERPA)' means special education and related services that are provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction and without charge; meet the standards of the State of Wyoming, including the requirements of IDEA; include preschool, elementary school, or secondary school education in the state; and are provided in conformity with and IEP that meets the state requirements.
(u) 'Home-based educational program' means a program of educational instruction provided to a child by the child's parent or legal guardian or by legal guardian or by a person designated by the parent or legal guardian.
(v) 'Illegal Drug' means a controlled substance unless it is legally possessed or used under the supervision of licensed health-care professional.
(w) 'Individualized education program (IEP)' is the specially designed education program for the eligible child developed by the IEP team.
(x) 'Individualized education program team (IEP team)' means a group of individuals responsible for developing, reviewing or revising an IEP for a child with a disability.
(y) 'Individualized family service plan (IFSP)' is the specially designed program for the eligible child under 3 years of age.
(z) 'Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)' (P.L. 105-17) is the federal law that governs the provisions of special education.
(aa) 'LEA' means local education agency or school district.
(bb) 'Least restrictive environment (LRE)' means that to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are educated with children without disabilities, and that special classes, separate schooling or other removal from the regular educational environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the disabilities is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.
(cc) 'Major life activity' means functions such as caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working.
(dd) 'Native language,' if used with reference to an individual of limited English proficiency, means the following:
(i) the language normally used by that individual, or, in case of a child, the language normally used by the parents of the child.
(ii) in all direct contact with a child (including evaluation of the child), the language normally used by the child in the home or learning environment.
(iii) for an individual with deafness or blindness, or for an individual with no written language, the mode of communication is that normally used by the individuals such as sign language, Braille or oral communication.
(ee) 'Parent' means:
(i) a natural or adoptive parent of a child;
(ii) a guardian, but not the state if the child is a ward of the state;
(iii) a person acting in the place of a parent (such as a grandparent or stepparent with whom the child lives, or a person who is legally responsible for the child’s welfare.)
(ff) “Participating agency” means any agency or institution that collects, maintains or uses personally identifiable information, or from which information is obtained under these rules.
(gg) “Personally identifiable” means the name of the child, the child’s parent(s) or other family member; the address of the child; a personal identifier, such as the child’s social security number or student number; or a list of personal characteristics or other information that would make it possible to identify the child with reasonable certainty.
(hh) “Physical education” means the development of physical and motor fitness; fundamental motor skills and patterns; skills in aquatics, dance and individual and group games and sports (including intramural and lifetime sports); and includes special physical education, adapted physical education, movement education and motor development.
(ii) “Private school” is any nonpublic, elementary or secondary school providing a basic academic education programs for children and may include parochial and church or religious schools and home-based educational programs.
(jj) “Qualified personnel” means personnel who have met state-approved or recognized certification, licensing, registration or other comparable requirements that apply to the area in which the individuals are providing special education or related services.
(hh) “Related services” means transportation and such developmental, corrective and other supportive services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education; and includes speech-language pathology and audiology services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation, including therapeutic recreation, early identification and assessment of disabilities in children, counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. The term also includes school health services, social work services in schools and parent counseling and training. Listed below are definitions of some selected related services:
“audiology” includes:
(A) identification of children with hearing loss;
(B) determination of the range, nature and degree of hearing loss, including referral for medical or other professional attention for the rehabilitation of hearing;
(C) provision of rehabilitative activities, such as language habilitation, auditory training, speech reading (lip-reading), hearing evaluation and speech conservation;
(D) creation and administration of programs for prevention of hearing loss;
(E) counseling and guidance of children, parents and teachers regarding hearing loss; and
(F) determination of children’s needs for group and individual amplification, selecting and fitting an appropriate aid and evaluating the effectiveness of amplification;
(ii) “counseling services” means services provided by qualified social workers, psychologists, guidance counselors or other qualified personnel.
(iii) “early identification and assessment of disabilities in children” means the implementation of a formal plan for identifying a disability as early as possible in a child’s life.
(iv) “medical services” means services provided by a licensed physician to determine a child’s medically related disability that results in the child’s need for special education and related services.
(v) “occupational therapy (OT)” means services provided by a qualified occupational therapist that include:
(A) improving, developing or restoring functions impaired or lost through illness, injury or deprivation;
(B) improving ability to perform tasks for independent functioning if functions are impaired or lost; and
(C) preventing, through early intervention, initial or further impairment or loss of function;
(vi) “orientation and mobility services” refer to services provided to blind or visually impaired children by qualified personnel to enable those children to attain systematic orientation to and safe movement within their environments in school, home and community; and includes teaching children the following, as appropriate:
(A) spatial and environmental concepts and use of information received by the senses (such as sound, temperature and vibrations) to establish, maintain or regain orientation and line of travel (e.g., using sound at a traffic light to cross the street);
(B) to use the long cane to supplement visual travel skills or as a tool for safely negotiating the environment for children with no available travel vision;
(C) to understand and use remaining vision and distance low vision aids; and
(D) other concepts, techniques and tools.
(vii) “parent counseling and training” means assisting parents in understanding the special needs of their child; providing parents with information about child development; and help parents to acquire the necessary skills that will allow them to support the implementation of their child’s IEP or IFSP.
(viii) “physical therapy (PT)” means services provided by a qualified physical therapist.
(ix) “psychological services” includes:
(A) administering psychological and educational tests and other assessment procedures;
(B) interpreting assessment results; obtaining, integrating and interpreting information about the child’s behavior and conditions relating to learning;
(C) consulting with other staff members in planning school programs to meet the special needs of children as indicated by psychological tests, interviews and behavioral evaluations;
(D) planning and managing a program of psychological services, including psychological counseling for children and parents; and
(E) assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.
(x) “recreation” includes:
(A) assessment of leisure function;
(B) therapeutic recreation services;
(C) recreation programs in schools and community agencies; and leisure education.
(xi) “rehabilitation counseling services” means services provided by qualified personnel in individual or group sessions that focus specifically on career development, employment preparation, achieving independence and integration in the workplace and community of a child with a disability. The term also includes vocational rehabilitation services provided to a child with disabilities by vocational rehabilitation programs funded under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
(xii) “school health services” means services provided by a qualified school nurse or other qualified person.
(xiii) “social work services in schools” includes preparing a social or developmental history on a child with a disability; group and individual counseling with the child and family; working in partnership with parents and others on those problems in a child’s living situation (home, school and community) that affect the child’s adjustment in school; mobilizing school and community resources to enable the child to learn as effectively as possible in his or her educational program; and assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.
(xiv) “speech-language pathology services” includes:
(A) identification of children with speech or language impairments;
(B) diagnosis and appraisal of specific speech or language impairments;
(C) referral for medical or other professional attention necessary for the habilitation of speech or language impairments;
(D) provision of speech and language services for the habilitation or prevention of communicative impairments; and
(E) counseling and guidance of parents, children and teachers regarding speech and language impairments.
(xv) “transportation” includes:
(A) travel to and from school and between schools;
(B) travel in and around school buildings; and
(C) specialized equipment (such as special or adapted buses, lifts and ramps), if required to provide special transportation for a child with a disability.
(ii) “Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973” is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability.
(jj) “Secondary school” means a nonprofit institutional day or residential school that provides secondary education, as determined under state law, except that it does not include any education beyond grade (12) twelve.
(kk) “Special education” means specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. The term includes speech pathology, vocational education or any related service, if the service consists of specially designed instruction at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of the child with disabilities.
(ll) “Special Education Advisory Panel” refers to an advisory body to the WDE as required by IDEA. The group provides advice to the WDE regarding critical special education issues.
(mm) “Specially-designed instruction” means adapting, as appropriate to the needs of an eligible child under these rules, the content, methodology or delivery of instruction to address the unique needs of the child that result from the child’s disability; and to ensure access of the child to the general curriculum, so that he or she can meet the educational standards within the jurisdiction of the school district or agency that apply to all children.
(nn) “Summer school” means a program during summer, which provides supplementary services not, required on the child’s IEP. (This is not the same as extended school year (ESY) services.)
(oo) “Supplementary aids and services” means aids, services and other supports that are provided in regular education classes or other education-related settings to enable children with disabilities to be educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate.
(pp) “Transition services” means a coordinated set of activities for a child with a disability that:
(i) is designed within an outcome-oriented process, that promotes movement from school to post-school activities, including post-secondary education, vocational training, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living or community participation;
(ii) is based on the individual child’s needs, taking into account the child’s preferences and interests;
(iii) includes instruction, related services, community experiences, the development of employment and other post-school adult living objectives; and if appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation; and
(iv) transition services for children with disabilities may be special education, if provided as specially designed instruction, or related services, if required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education.
(qq) “Travel training” means providing instruction, as appropriate, to children with significant cognitive disabilities, and any other children with disabilities who require this instruction, to enable them to develop an awareness of the environment in which they live; and learn the skills necessary to move effectively and safely from place-to-place within that environment (e.g., in school, in the home, at work and in the community).
(rr) “Vocational education” means organized educational programs that are directly related to the preparation of individuals for paid or unpaid employment, or for additional preparation for a career requiring other that a baccalaureate or advanced degree.
(ss) “Weapon” means dangerous weapon as described in section 930 of 18 U.S.C.
(a) A copy of the procedural safeguards available to the parents of a child with a disability must be given to the parents, at a minimum:
(i) upon initial referral for evaluation;
(ii) upon each notification of an IEP meeting;
(iii) upon reevaluation of the child; and
(iv) upon receipt of a request for due process hearing.
(b) Contents of the Parental Rights brochure shall include information on:
(a) Independent educational evaluation means an evaluation conducted by a qualified examiner who is not employed by the school district or agency responsible for the education of the child in question.
(b) Public expense means that the school district or agency either pays for the full cost of the evaluation or ensures that the evaluation is otherwise provided at no cost to the parent.
(c) The parent(s) of a child with a disability have the right to request an independent education evaluation of the child.
(i) each school district or agency shall provide to parents, upon request for an independent educational evaluation, information about where an independent educational evaluation may be obtained and the school district or agency criteria applicable for independent education evaluations.
(ii) a parent has the right to an independent educational evaluation at public expense if the parent disagrees with an evaluation obtained by the school district or agency.
(iii) if a parent requests an independent educational evaluation at public expense, the school district or agency must, without unnecessary delay, either initiate a hearing to show that its evaluation is appropriate, or ensure that an independent educational evaluation is provided at public expense, unless the school district or agency demonstrates in a hearing that the evaluation obtained by the parent did not meet school district or agency criteria.
(iv) if the school district initiates a hearing and the final decision is that the school’s evaluation is appropriate, the parent still has the right to an independent educational evaluation, but not at public expense.
(v) if a parent requests an independent educational evaluation, the school district or agency may ask for the parent’s reason why he or she objects to the public evaluation. However, the explanation by the parent may not be required and the school district or agency may not unreasonably delay either providing the independent educational evaluation at public expense or initiating a due process hearing to defend the public evaluation.
(vi) if the parent obtains an independent educational evaluation at private expense, the results of the evaluation:
(A) must be considered by the school district or agency, if it meets school district or agency criteria, in any decision made with respect to the provision of FAPE to the child; and
(B) may be presented as evidence regarding the child.
(vii) if a hearing officer requests an independent educational evaluation as part of a hearing, the cost of the evaluation must be at public expense.
(viii) if an independent education evaluation is at public expense, the criteria under which the evaluation is obtained, including the location of the evaluation and the qualifications of the examiner, must be the same as the criteria that the school district or agency uses when it initiates an evaluation, to the extent those criteria are consistent with the parent's rights to an independent educational evaluation.
(ix) except for the criteria described above, a school district or agency may not impose conditions or timelines related to obtaining an independent educational evaluation at public expense.
(a) Written notice must be given to the parents of a child with a disability within a reasonable time before the school district or agency:
(i) proposes to initiate or change the identification, evaluation or educational placement of the child or the provision of FAPE to the child; or
(ii) refuses to initiate or change the identification, evaluation or educational placement of the child or the provision of FAPE to the child.
(b) The content of the notice must include:
(i) a description of the action proposed or refused by the school district or agency;
(ii) an explanation of why the school district or agency proposes or refuses to take the action;
(iii) a description of any other options that the school district or agency considered and the reasons why those options were rejected;
(iv) a description of each evaluation procedure, test, record or report the school district or agency used as a basis for the proposed or refused action;
(v) a description of any other factors that are relevant to the school district or agency's proposal or refusal;
(vi) a statement that the parents of a child with a disability have protection under the procedural safeguards; and
(vii) sources for parents to contact to obtain assistance in understanding the rules.
(c) The written notice must be:
(i) written in language understandable for parents;
(ii) provided in the native language or other mode of communication used by the parent, unless it is clearly not feasible to do so; and
(iii) if the native language or other mode of communication of the parent is not a written language, the school district or agency shall take steps to ensure that the notice is understood and translated orally or by other means to the parent in his or her native language or other mode of communication.
(d) Graduation from high school with a regular diploma constitutes a change in placement, requiring prior written notice.
(e) If a proposed action also requires consent, notice may be given at the same time consent is requested.
(a) Informed parental consent must be obtained before:
(i) conducting an initial evaluation or reevaluation; and
(ii) initial provision of special education and related services to a child with a disability.
(b) Consent for initial evaluation may not be construed as consent for initial placement.
(c) Parental consent is not required before reviewing existing data as part of an evaluation or a reevaluation; or administering a test or other evaluation that is administered to all children unless, before administration of that test or evaluation, consent is required of parents of all children.
(d) If the parents of a child with a disability refuse consent for initial evaluation or a reevaluation, the school district or agency may continue to pursue those evaluations by using the due process procedures or the mediation procedures.
(e) Informed parental consent need not be obtained for reevaluation if the school district or agency can demonstrate that it has taken reasonable measures to obtain that consent and the child's parent has failed to respond. Reasonable measures include detailed records of telephone calls, visits or copies of correspondence.
(f) A parent's refusal to consent to one service may not be used to deny any other service.
(a) Each school district and participating agency must take steps to ensure that information and educational records for children with disabilities remain confidential.
(i) each school district or participating agency shall give notice that is adequate to fully inform parents about the requirement of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) including:
(A) a description of the extent that the notice is given in the native languages of the various population groups in the state;
(B) a description of the children on whom personally identifiable information is maintained, the types of information sought, the methods Wyoming intends to use in gathering the information (including the sources from whom information is gathered) and the uses to be made of the information;
(C) a summary of the policies and procedures that school districts and participating agencies must follow regarding storage, disclosure to third parties, retention and destruction of personally identifiable information; and
(D) a description of all of the rights of parents and children regarding this information, including the rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974.
(E) before any major identification, location or evaluation activity, the notice must be published or announced in newspapers or other media, or both, with circulation adequate to notify parents throughout the state of the activity.
(ii) each school district or participating agency shall provide the parent(s) of a child with a disability the opportunity to inspect and review their child's educational record with respect to identification, evaluation, eligibility, IEP, educational placement and provision of FAPE.
(iii) each school district or participating agency must comply, without unnecessary delay, to each parent request to inspect and review their child's educational records, including requests prior to IEP team meetings or hearing relating to identification, evaluation, placement or the provision of FAPE to the child. In all cases, the school district or participating agency shall respond within forty-five (45) calendar days of the request.
(iv) parental rights to inspect and review educational records include:
(A) a response from the school district or participating agency to reasonable requests for explanations and interpretations of the educational records;
(B) request that the school district or participating agency provide copies of the education records containing the information if failure to provide those copies would effectively prevent the parent(s) from exercising the right to inspect and review the educational records (school districts or agencies must comply with copyright laws);
(C) have a representative of the parent(s) inspect and review the educational records.
(v) each school district or participating agency may presume that the parent has authority to inspect and review educational records relating to the child unless the school district or participating agency has been advised that the parent does not have the authority under applicable Wyoming state law governing such matters as guardianship, separation and divorce.
(vi) if any educational record includes information on more than one child, a parent has the right to inspect and review only the information relating to his or her child or to be informed of that specific information.
(vii) each school district or participating agency shall provide the parent(s), on request, a list of the types and locations of educational records collected, maintained or used by the school district or participating agency.
(viii) with the exception of the IEP, the school district or participating agency may charge a fee for copies of educational records which are made for the parent(s) if the fee does not effectively prevent the parent(s) from exercising their right to inspect and review their child's educational records.
(ix) parents who believe that information in their child's educational record is inaccurate or misleading or violates the privacy or other rights of the child may request the school district or participating agency amend the information. Upon receiving a written parental request to amend a child's record, the school district or participating agency shall decide whether to amend the information as requested.
(A) if the school district or participating agency decides to amend the record, the record shall be amended within a reasonable period of time following receipt of the parent request.
(B) if the school district or participating agency refuses to amend the information, the school district or participating agency shall inform the parents of the refusal and advise the parent(s) of the right to a hearing in accordance with the requirements of the FERPA. If the parent(s) so request(s), the school district or participating agency shall provide a hearing for resolution of the request.
(x) if, as a result of the hearing, the school district or participating agency decides that the information in the child's record is inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other right of the child, the school district or participating agency shall amend the information accordingly and inform the parent(s) in writing.
(xi) if, as a result of the hearing, the school district or participating agency decides that the information is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of the child, the school district or participating agency shall inform the parent(s) of their right to place in the child's educational records a statement commenting on information in the record or setting forth reasons for disagreeing with the decision of the school district or participating agency.
(xii) if a parent chooses to place a statement in the child's record, the school district or participating agency must, as long as the record or contested portion of the record is maintained by the school district or participating agency, disclose the parental statement regarding the contested portion to any party requesting the record.
(xiii) each school district or participating agency shall obtain written parental consent before using personally identifiable information for any purpose other than officials of participating agencies collecting or using information for the purposes of the activities described in these rules.
(xiv) each school district or participating agency may release information from educational records to participating agencies without formal parental approval only when the disclosure is consistent with all applicable federal statutes. School districts or agencies may release information without written parental consent to a receiving school district or participating agency or as the result of a court order as long as parental notification requirements are met.
(xv) each school district or participating agency must keep a record of parties obtaining access to educational records (except access by parents and authorized employees of the school or agency) including the name of the party, the date of access and the purpose of the authorized use.
(xvi) each school district or participating agency shall protect the confidentiality of personally identifiable information at collection, storage, disclosure and destruction stages and designate one person by position to assume responsibility for ensuring the confidentiality of any personally identifiable information.
(A) any person collecting or using personally identifiable information shall receive training and instruction regarding policies and procedures set forth in this section and FERPA.
(B) each school district or participating agency shall maintain for public inspection, a current list of names and positions of employees who have access to personally identifiable information.
(xvii) each school district or participating agency shall inform the parent(s) when personally identifiable information collected, maintained or used under this section is no longer needed to provide educational services to the child and may be destroyed.
(A) if the parent(s) request destruction of their child's educational records, the school district or participating agency may keep a permanent record of the child's name, address, phone number, grades, attendance record, classes attended, grade level completed and year completed and it may be maintained without time limitation.
(xviii) the parent(s) represent their child with disabilities in all matters covered by these regulations. Any child who has reached the age of majority and has not been declared incompetent by a Wyoming court is afforded the same rights as those of the parent(s).
(a) Each school district or participating agency shall ensure that procedures are established and implemented to allow parties to disputes involving any matter to resolve the disputes through a mediation process that, at a minimum, must be available whenever a hearing is requested.
(b) The procedures must ensure that the mediation process:
(i) is voluntary on the part of the parties;
(ii) is not used to deny or delay a parent's right to a due process hearing, or to deny any other rights afforded by the law; and (iii) is conducted by a qualified and impartial mediator who is trained in effective mediation techniques.
(c) The WDE maintains a list of individuals who are qualified mediators and knowledgeable in laws and rules regarding special education regulations and related services.
(d) The parties may jointly select and recommend a mediator to the WDE.
(e) The WDE shall bear the cost of the mediation process. Each session in the mediation process must be scheduled in a timely manner and must be held in a location that is convenient to the parties to the dispute.
(f) An agreement reached by the parties to the dispute in the mediation process must be set forth in a written mediation agreement.
(g) Discussions that occur during the mediation process must be confidential and may not be used as evidence in any subsequent due process hearings or civil proceedings, and the parties to the mediation process may be required to sign a confidentiality pledge prior to the commencement of the process.
(h) An individual who serves as an impartial mediator:
(i) may not be an employee of any school district or any Wyoming State agency.
(ii) must not have a personal or professional conflict of interest; and
(iii) a person who otherwise qualifies as a mediator is not an employee of a school district or state agency solely because he or she is paid by the school district or agency to serve as a mediator.
(i) A school district or participating agency may establish procedures to require parents who elect not to use the mediation process to meet, at a time and location convenient to the parents, with a disinterested party:
(i) who is under contract with a parent training and information center or community parent resource center in the state, or an appropriate alternative dispute resolution entity; and
(ii) who would explain the benefits of the mediation process and encourage the parents to use the process.
(j) A school district or agency may not deny or delay a parent’s rights to a due process hearing if the parent fails to participate in the meeting.
(k) The following applies to the WDE mediation process:
(i) within five (5) business days of receiving a written request for a due process hearing, the WDE shall initiate steps to conduct a mediation conference, unless either party refuses to participate in the mediation conference;
(ii) the WDE shall select on a random basis and appoint a trained mediator to conduct all mediation activities. The WDE may appoint a trained mediator jointly recommended by the parties to conduct all mediation activities;
(iii) mediation shall be completed within fifteen (15) days of WDE’s receipt of the written request for the hearing;
(iv) either party to a mediation conference may request that the mediator grant a continuance. A continuance, granted upon a show of good cause, shall not extend the forty-five (45) day maximum for completion of the due process hearing and rendering of the final administrative decision, unless the party initiating the request for the hearing agrees to such an extension. In such circumstances, the continuance extends the time for rendering a final administrative decision for a period only equal to the length of the continuance;
(v) any resolution reached through mediation must be satisfactory to both parties. Satisfaction with the resolution is indicated by the signatures of both parties on the written resolution; and (vi) a copy of the written resolution shall be mailed by the mediator to the WDE and to each party within five (5) days of the mediation conference.
(a) In filing a complaint, an organization or individual may file a signed, written complaint. The complaint must include:
(i) a statement that a school district or participating agency has failed to meet a compliance responsibility;
(ii) the facts on which the statement is based; and
(iii) allege a violation that occurred not more than one year prior to the date that the complaint is received unless a longer period is reasonable because the violation is continuing, or the complainant is requesting compensatory services for a violation that occurred not more than three years prior to the date of the complaint.
(b) If the WDE determines that an investigation is necessary, it must be completed within thirty (30) days and:
(i) give the complainant the opportunity to submit additional information, either orally or in writing, about the allegations in the complaint;
(ii) review all relevant information and make an independent determination as to whether the school district or participating agency is violating a requirement of Part B or the Act or of this part;
(iii) issue a written decision to the complainant that addresses each allegation in the complaint and contains findings of fact and conclusions and the reasons for the WDE’s final decision;
(iv) permit an extension of the time limit only if exceptional circumstances exist with respect to a particular complaint up to sixty (60) days;
(v) assure effective implementation of the WDE’s final decision, if needed, by such means as technical assistance activities, negotiations and corrective actions to achieve compliance;
(vi) if a written complaint is received that is also the subject of a due process hearing or contains multiple issues, of which one or more are part of that hearing, the WDE must set aside any part of the complaint that is being addressed in the due process hearing, until the conclusion of the hearing. However, any issue in the complaint that is not a part of the due process action must be resolved using the time limit and procedures described;
(vii) if an issue is raised in a complaint filed that has previously been decided in a due process hearing involving the same parties the hearing decision is binding and the WDE must inform the complainant to that effect;
(viii) a complaint alleging a school district or participating agency’s failure to implement a due process decision must be resolved by the WDE;
(ix) if a corrective action plan is required, the WDE will monitor the completion of the requirements as outlined in the corrective action plan to ensure compliance.
(a) The parent(s) of a child with a disability or suspected of having a disability (or a child who has reached the age of majority and has not been declared incompetent by a Wyoming court) or a school district or a participating agency may request a due process hearing using the following procedures:
(i) the parent(s), school district or participating agency may request a hearing when the school district or participating agency proposes or refuses to initiate or change the identification, evaluation or educational placement or the provision of FAPE to the child;
(ii) a school district or participating agency may request a hearing when a parent fails to provide written parental consent for a proposed action or provides formal disapproval;
(iii) the individual or school district or participating agency requesting a hearing shall submit a written request to the Wyoming State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Wyoming Department of Education, 2300 Capitol Avenue, Hathaway Building 2nd Floor, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002-0050.
(A) the written request must include:
(I) the name and address of the child;
(II) the name of the school the child attends;
(III) a description of the nature of the problem of the child relating to the proposed or refused initiation or change, including facts relating to the problem; and
(IV) a proposed resolution of the problem to the extent know and available to the parent(s) at the time.
(B) the party requesting the hearing must provide a copy of the request to the other party.
(iv) the individual may request a hearing verbally if unable to utilize written forms of communication.
(v) upon documentation of verbal or written request for a hearing, the WDE shall:
(A) encourage both parties to exhaust local administrative remedies including mediation;
(B) inform both parties of mediation procedures and their right to waive mediation; and
(C) provide written information to the person requesting the hearing regarding low-cost legal services as well as other services relevant to mediation or a due process hearing and the right to waive the mediation conference.
(vi) the WDE shall ensure that within forty-five (45) days after receipt of a written hearing request, the hearing will be completed, including any mediation, and a final decision is issued; unless a continuance has been granted.
(vii) during mediation, due process hearings or judicial proceedings, the child involved shall remain in the child's present educational placement unless the school district or agency and the parents agree otherwise. If the hearing involves an application for initial admission to a school district or participating agency, the child, with consent of the parent(s), shall be placed in a school district or participating agency program until all proceedings are completed. If a conclusion of a hearing, the hearing officer decides a change of placement is appropriate, the placement must be considered an agreement of all parties.
(viii) pre-hearing procedures: if either party refuses to participate in a mediation conference or other proposed mediation steps, or if mediation efforts fail to settle differences between two parties, the WDE shall appoint a trained independent hearing officer.
(A) independent hearing officers: the hearing officers shall conduct hearing activities in conformance with the WDE hearing procedures. The following people are excluded from acting as qualified independent hearing officers:
(I) any person who is an employee of a school district or participating agency involved in the education or care of children with disabilities; or
(II) any person who, with respect to the particular hearing, has any personal or professional bias or interest which might conflict with his or her objectivity toward either of the parties in the hearing or any of the issues to be decided in the hearing.
(B) either party to a hearing may object to the assignment of a hearing officer by submitting a written objection to the WDE within ten (10) days of notification of the appointment of the hearing officer. The written objection must include information supporting a claim of personal or professional bias or interest leading to lack of objectivity. Within ten (10) days of receipt of such a written objection, the WDE shall rule on the objection and:
(I) appoint another person from the list of qualified independent hearing officers (if another hearing officer is appointed, the procedures for objecting also applies to the newly appointed hearing officer); or
(II) verify that the individual originally proposed is qualified.
(C) a hearing officer may at any point withdraw from consideration or from service in any hearing in which the hearing officer believes a personal or professional bias or interest in any of the issues to be decided in the hearing might conflict with the hearing officer's objectivity.
(D) notification: within a reasonable time the independent hearing officer shall provide the parent(s) and the school district or participating agency written notice of the date, time and place of the hearing, ensuring that the hearing is conducted at a time and place reasonably convenient to the parent(s) and the child involved.
(E) pre-hearing conference: at the discretion of the hearing officer or upon request of either party, a pre-hearing conference shall be held; in no event is a pre-hearing conference held later than five (5) days prior to the hearing.
(F) disclosure: each party discloses to the other the full name, title, occupation and place of employment of each witness, a capsule summary of each witnesses' testimony and any other evidence to be presented. These disclosures must be made at least five (5) business days prior to the hearing.
(G) explanation of hearing procedures: during a pre-hearing conference or through delivery of a written notice, the independent hearing officer shall ensure that the parent(s) are provided a full explanation of the hearing procedures.
(ix) at least five (5) business days prior to a hearing, each party shall disclose to all other parties all evaluations completed by that date and recommendations based on the offering party's evaluations that the party intends to use at the hearing. A hearing officer may bar any party that fails to comply from introducing the relevant evaluation or recommendation at the hearing without consent of the other party.
(x) conduct of the hearing: the hearing officer shall conduct the hearing in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act W.S. § 16-3-101 through 16-3-115.
(A) the hearing officer shall ensure that each party to the hearing is afforded an opportunity to:
(I) be accompanied and advised by counsel and by individuals with special knowledge or training regarding children with disabilities;
(II) present evidence, confront, cross-examine and compel the attendance of witnesses;
(III) obtain a written or at the option of parents, electronic record of the hearing, findings of fact and decisions;
(IV) the record of the hearing, the findings of fact and decisions shall be provided at no cost to parents; and
(V) obtain the written decision of the hearing officer.
(B) attendance: the hearing officer shall permit attendance of the child at a hearing and open the hearing to the public only upon approval of the child's parent(s).
(C) prohibition of undisclosed information: the hearing officer shall prohibit introduction of any evidence offered by a party, which has not been disclosed to the other party consistent with the requirements.
(D) record: the WDE shall ensure that a written or electronic verbatim record of the hearing is prepared.
(E) continuance: either party to a hearing may request in writing that the hearing officer grant a continuance. A continuance is granted upon a show of good cause. Any continuance extends the time for rendering a decision by the independent hearing officer for a period only equal to the length of the continuance.
(F) within forty-five (45) days after the WDE's receipt of the written request for the hearing, the hearing officer shall render a written decision and findings of fact concerning all matters at issue in the hearing. The hearing officer mails or personally delivers a written copy of the findings of fact and the decision to each of the parties and to the WDE. The hearing officer also mails or delivers a record of the hearing (verbatim or electronic transcript) to the WDE. The decision of a hearing officer is binding upon both parties unless the decision is appealed.
(G) copies of findings: the WDE, after deleting any personally identifiable information, provides a copy of the findings of fact and the decision to the State Special Education Advisory panel and to the public upon written request.
(xi) appeal of a hearing decision: any party who feels aggrieved by the findings and decisions of a hearing officer may appeal to a district court of the State of Wyoming pursuant to Rule 12 of the Wyoming Rules of Appellate Procedure or may bring a civil action in the United States Court for Wyoming under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
(a) In any action or proceeding brought under Section 615 of the Act, the court, in its discretion may award reasonable attorneys' fees as part of the costs to the parents of a child with a disability who is the prevailing party. A court awards reasonable attorneys' fees consistent with the following:
(i) determination of amount of attorneys' fees. Fees awarded must be based on rates prevailing in the community in which the action or proceeding arose for the kind and quality of services furnished. No bonus or multiplier may be used in calculating the fees awarded under this subsection.
(ii) prohibition of attorneys' fees and related costs for certain services.
(iii) attorneys' fees may not be awarded and related costs may not be reimbursed in any action or proceeding for services performed subsequent to the time of a written offer of settlement to a parent if:
(A) the offer is made within the time prescribed by Rule 68 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or, in the case of an administrative proceeding, at any time more than ten (10) days before the proceeding begins;
(B) the offer is not accepted within ten (10) days; and
(C) the court or administrative hearing officer finds that the relief finally obtained by the parent(s) is not more favorable to the parent(s) than the offer of settlement.
(b) Attorneys' fees may not be awarded relating to any meeting of the IEP team unless the meeting is convened as a result of an administrative proceeding or judicial action, or at the discretion of the state, for a mediation that is conducted prior to the filing of a request for due process.
(c) Exception to prohibition on attorneys' fees and related costs. An award of attorneys' fees and related costs may be made to a parent who is the prevailing party and who was substantially justified in rejecting the settlement offer.
(d) Reduction of amount of attorneys' fees. The court reduces the attorneys' fees awarded if the court finds that:
(i) the parent, during the course of the action or proceeding, unreasonable protracted the final resolution of the controversy;
(ii) the amount of the attorneys' fees otherwise authorized to be awarded unreasonably exceeds the hourly rate prevailing in the community for similar services by attorneys of reasonably comparable skill, reputation and experience;
(iii) the time spent and legal services furnished were excessive considering the nature of the action or proceeding; or
(iv) the attorney representing the parent did not provide to the school district the appropriate information in the due process complaint.
(e) Exception to reduction in amount of attorneys' fees. The provisions of paragraph (C)(4) of this section do not apply in any action or proceeding if the court finds that the state or local agency unreasonably protracted the final resolution of the action or proceeding or there was a violation of Section 615 of the Act.
(a) School districts/agencies must implement Child Find to identify, locate and evaluate all children with disabilities; this includes children in private schools.
(i) the requirement applies to highly mobile children with disabilities, such as migrant and homeless children; and
(ii) children who are suspected of having a disability and in need of special education, even though they are advancing from grade to grade.
(a) School districts/agencies shall ensure that free appropriate public education (FAPE) is available to all children with disabilities, aged birth to twenty-one (21), residing in Wyoming, including those who have been suspended or expelled from school.
(b) The services provided to children address all of the identified special education and related services needs, even when a child is advancing from grade to grade.
(c) IEP teams determine the services and placement needed by each child with a disability to receive a FAPE based on the child's unique educational needs and not on the child's disability.
(d) School districts/agencies are not obligated to provide FAPE to students who have graduated with a regular high school diploma. This exception does not apply to students who have graduated, but have not been awarded a regular high school diploma.
(a) Each school district or agency shall ensure that the rights of a child with a disability are protected if:
(i) no parent can be identified;
(ii) the school district or agency, after reasonable efforts, cannot discover the whereabouts of a parent; or
(iii) the child with a disability is a ward of the state under Wyoming State law.
(b) The duty of a school district or agency includes the assignment of an individual to act as an educational surrogate for the parents. This must include a method:
(i) for determining whether a child with a disability needs an education surrogate parent; and
(ii) for assigning an educational surrogate parent to the child.
(c) The school district or agency shall select an educational surrogate parent based on the following criteria:
(i) the individual is not an employee of the WDE, the school district or any other agency that is involved in the education or care of the child;
(A) a surrogate parent is not considered an employee solely because he or she received compensation as a surrogate.
(ii) the individual has no interest that conflicts with the interest of the child her or she represents;
(iii) the individual has knowledge and skills that ensure adequate representation of the child with a disability;
(iv) a school district or agency may select as an educational surrogate a person who is an employee of a public agency that only provides non-educational care for the child and who meets the above criteria, paragraph (c) (ii) and (iii) of this section; and
(v) a foster parent can serve as an educational surrogate parent if they meet the above requirements.
(d) The educational surrogate parent may represent the child with a disability in all matters relating to the identification, evaluation, eligibility, programming and educational placement of the child; and the provision of FAPE to the child with a disability.
(a) Each school/agency shall conduct a full and individual initial evaluation to determine eligibility before providing special education and related services to children with a disability. The following are general evaluation requirements:
(i) tests and other evaluation materials used to assess a child are selected and administered so as not to be discriminatory on a racial or cultural basis and are provided and administered in the child's native language or other mode of communication, unless it is clearly not feasible to do so;
(ii) evaluation materials and procedures used to assess a child with limited English proficiency are selected and administered to ensure that they measure the extent to which the child had a disability and needs special education, rather than measuring the child's English language skills;
(iii) a variety of assessment tools and strategies are used to gather relevant functional and developmental information about the child, including information provided by the parent and information related to enabling the child to be involved in and progress in the general curriculum (or for a preschool child, to participate in appropriate activities), that may assist in determining whether the child has a disability;
(iv) any standardized tests that are given to a child have been validated for the specific purpose for which they are used, and are administered by trained and knowledgeable personnel in accordance with any instructions provided by the producer of the tests;
(v) if an assessment is not conducted under standard conditions, a description of the extent to which it varied from standard conditions (e.g., the qualifications of the person administering the test, or the method of test administration) must be included in the evaluation report;
(vi) tests and other evaluation materials include those tailored to assess specific areas of educational need and not merely those that are designed to provide a single general intelligence quotient;
(vii) tests are selected and administered so as best to ensure that if a test is administered to a child with impaired sensory, manual or speaking skills, the test results accurately reflect the child's aptitude or achievement level or whatever other factors the test purports to measure, rather than reflecting the child's impaired sensory, manual or speaking skills (unless those skills are the factors that the test purports to measure);
(viii) no single procedure is used as the sole criterion for determining whether a child has a disability and for determining an appropriate educational program;
(ix) the child is assessed in all areas related to the suspected disability, including, if appropriate, health, vision, hearing, social and emotional status, general intelligence, academic performance, communicative status and motor abilities;
(x) in evaluating each child with a disability, the evaluation is sufficiently comprehensive to identify all of the child's special education and related services needs, whether or not commonly linked to the disability category in which the child has been classified;
(xi) the school district or agency uses assessment tools and strategies that provide relevant information that directly assist persons in determining the educational needs of the child.
(b) These additional evaluation procedures are used in determining a learning disability:
(i) the school district or agency shall ensure that at least one team member other than the child's regular teacher shall observe the child's academic performance in the regular classroom setting, or in the case of a child out of school, a team member shall observe the child in an environment appropriate for a child that age; and
(ii) the school district or agency shall ensure the written report includes a statement of the following: whether the child has a learning disability, the basis for the determination, relevant behavior noted during the observation and the relationship of that behavior to the child's academic functioning, relevant medical findings if any, whether there is a severe discrepancy between achievement and ability that is not correctable without special education and related services, determination of the team concerning the effects of environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage, and team members shall certify whether the report reflects his or her conclusion and submit a separate statement if the conclusions do not reflect his or her conclusion.
(c) As part of an initial evaluation (if appropriate) and as part of any reevaluation, the IEP team shall:
(i) review existing evaluation data on the child, including evaluations and information provided by the parents of the child; current classroom-based assessments and observations; and observations by teachers and related services providers. The review of evaluation can occur without a meeting; and
(ii) on the basis of that review, and input from the child's parent(s), identify what additional data, if any, are needed to determine:
(A) whether the child has a particular category of disability, or, in case of reevaluation of a child, whether the child continues to have such a disability;
(B) the present levels of performance and educational needs of the child;
(C) whether the child needs special education and related services, or in the case of a reevaluation of a child, whether the child continues to need special education and related services; and
(D) whether any additions or modifications to the special education and related services are needed to enable the child to meet the measurable annual goals set out in the IEP of the child and to participate, as appropriate, in the general curriculum.
(iii) the school district or agency shall administer tests and other evaluation materials as may be needed to produce the data within a reasonable amount of time;
(iv) if the determination is that no additional evaluation data are needed to determine whether the child continues to be a child with a disability, the school district or agency shall notify the child's parent(s) of that determination and the reasons for it; and of the right of the parents to request an evaluation to determine whether, for purposes of services, the child continues to be a child with a disability; and
(v) the school district or agency is not required to conduct the additional assessment unless requested to do so by the child's parent(s).
(a) Upon completing the administration of tests and gathering evaluation materials, a group of qualified professionals and the parent of the child must determine whether the child has a disability. The school district or agency must provide a copy of the evaluation report and the documentation of determination of eligibility to the parent.
(i) a child may not be determined to be eligible if the determinant factor for that eligibility determination is:
(A) lack of instruction in reading or math; or
(B) limited English proficiency; and
(C) the child does not otherwise meet the eligibility criteria.
(ii) a school district must evaluate a child with a disability before determining that the child no longer has a disability. The evaluation is not required before the termination of a child's eligibility due to graduation with a regular high school diploma, or exceeding the age eligibility for FAPE under Wyoming State law.
(b) In interpreting evaluation data for the purpose of determining if a child has a disability and establishing the educational needs, each school district or agency shall:
(i) draw upon information from a variety of sources, including aptitude and achievement tests, parent input, classroom teacher recommendations, physical condition, social or cultural background and adaptive behavior;
(ii) ensure that information obtained from all of these sources is documented and carefully considered; and
(iii) if a determination is made that a child has a disability and needs special education and related services, an IEP must be developed for the child.
(a) 'Autism' means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communications and social interaction, generally evident before age three (3) that adversely affects a child's educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines and unusual responses to sensory experiences. The term does not apply if a child's educational performance is adversely affected primarily because the child has an emotional disability.
(i) autism eligibility criteria: criteria A through G are required:
(A) impaired communication: the child is unable to use expressive and receptive language for social communication in a developmentally appropriate manner; lacks nonverbal communication skills, or uses abnormal nonverbal communication, uses abnormal form or content when speaking and/or is unable to initiate or sustain conversation with others.
(B) inappropriate relationships: the child exhibits deficits relating to people, marked lack of awareness of other's feelings, abnormal seeking of comfort at times of distress, absent or abnormal social play and/or inability to make friends. The child does not relate to or use objects in an age appropriate or functional manner.
(C) abnormal sensory processing: the child exhibits unusual, repetitive, non-meaningful responses to auditory, visual, olfactory, taste, tactile and/or kinesthetic stimuli.
(D) impaired cognitive development: the child has difficulty with concrete versus abstract thinking, awareness, judgement and/or the ability to generalize. The child may exhibit preservative thinking or impaired ability to process symbolic information.
(E) abnormal range of activities: the child shows a restricted repertoire of activities, interests and imaginative development evident through stereotyped body movements, persistent preoccupation with parts of objects, distress over trivial changes in the environment, unreasonable insistence on routines, restricted range of interests or preoccupations with one narrow interest.
(F) only a licensed clinical psychologist, school psychologist, psychiatrist or other physician qualified to diagnose autism may diagnose the child, accompanied by a report with recommendations for instruction.
(G) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that educational performance is adversely affected and is not primarily due to an emotional disability.
(b) 'Deaf-blindness' means concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of, which causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for child with deafness or children with blindness.
(i) deaf-blindness eligibility criteria: criteria A through C are required:
(A) meet eligibility criteria for deafness;
(B) meet eligibility criteria for visual impairment; and
(C) the child's current level of performance indicates significant problems with motor functioning, communication, self-help/adaptive skills, social skills and/or pre-academic or academic skills.
(c) 'Deafness' means a hearing impairment that is so severe that the child is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without an assistive device (e.g., hearing aid(s); cochlear implant(s)) that adversely affects a child's educational performance.
(i) deafness eligibility criteria: criteria A through C are required:
(A) the child's residual hearing with or without amplification is essentially non-functional to the extent that prevents the auditory channel from being the primary mode of processing linguistic information.
(B) the hearing loss adversely affects educational performance and interferes with the student's ability to function in an educational program using traditional materials and techniques. The results and analysis of a current assessment of language skills as measured by standardized tests or professionally recognized scales appropriate to age level.
(C) the presence of these criteria are determined through a comprehensive hearing evaluation by a certified/licensed audiologist and a comprehensive language evaluation by personnel familiar with the assessment of students with hearing impairment.
(d) 'Developmental disability' means a significant delay in physical, cognitive, social/emotional, communication, motor or adaptive development that adversely affects the child's performance. Developmental disability is a category available to children ages three until the child enrolls in a public school program, who do not qualify in other categories, but meet the developmental disability criteria.
(i) prior to or upon a preschool child's registration for a public school program, the preschool is responsible for assuring reevaluation, which shows whether or not the child is eligible in one of the other disability categories.
(ii) developmental disability eligibility criteria: criteria A and C or B and C are required:
(A) the child's performance is significantly below the mean (two or more standard deviations) performance expected of children of comparable chronological age in one area (physical, cognitive, social/emotional, communication, motor or adaptive functioning);
(B) the child's performance is markedly (1.5 standard deviations) below the mean performance expected of children of comparable chronological age in two or more areas (physical, cognitive, social/emotional, communication, motor or adaptive functioning); and
(C) confirmation of a developmental disability through observation data and information obtained from the child's parent(s), teachers and/or primary caregiver(s).
(e) 'Emotional disability' is defined as follows:
(i) the term means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child's educational performance:
(A) an inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory or health factors;
(B) an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers;
(C) inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances;
(D) a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression;
(E) a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems;
(F) the term includes schizophrenia;
(G) the term does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disability.
(ii) emotional disability eligibility criteria: criteria A through C are required:
(A) despite regular education interventions to modify behaviors, evidence shows the child continues to exhibit behavioral or emotional responses in school programs so different from appropriate age, cultural or ethnic norms that the responses adversely affect educational performance, including academic, social, vocational and/or personal social areas including the following:
(I) inability to build and maintain interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; and/or
(II) inappropriate types of behaviors or feelings under normal circumstances; and/or
(III) a general mood of unhappiness or depression; and/or
(IV) a tendency to develop physical symptoms, pain or fears associated with personal or school problems; and/or
(V) more than a temporary, expected response to stressful events in the environment.
(B) persistent, consistent and chronic inappropriate behavior or emotional responses in a variety of settings, at least one of which is school related;
(C) patterns of behavior, which cannot be attributed primarily to physical, sensory or intellectual deficits.
(iii) only a licensed clinical psychologist, school psychologist or psychiatrist may diagnose the child, accompanied by a report with recommendations for instruction.
(f) 'Hard of hearing' means an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child's educational performance, but that is not included under the definition of deafness.
(i) hard of hearing eligibility criteria: criteria A and B or A and C are required:
(A) hearing difficulties adversely affect the child's educational performance; and
(B) the child fails to respond in either ear to pure tone stimuli at 20 decibels in the speech range (1000 Hz, 2000 Hz or 4000 Hz); or
(C) impedance measures in either ear are greater than $-200\text{mmH}_2\text{O}$, or $+100\text{mmH}_2\text{O}$ middle ear pressure or the child exhibits an abnormal tympanogram on at least two occasions.
(g) 'Learning disability' means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or to do mathematical calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia and developmental aphasia.
(i) disorders not included: the term does not include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing or motor disabilities, of mental disability, of emotional disability or of environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage.
(ii) learning disability eligibility criteria: criteria A through D and E or F are required. To receive services in a specific area, (i.e. oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation or mathematical reasoning), a child must qualify in that specific area.
(A) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that educational performance is adversely affected;
(B) evidence that after receiving support and remedial help in regular education specific to the child's identified learning problem(s), the child's learning is still significantly impaired;
(C) assurance that the child's learning problems are not primarily the result of visual, hearing or motor disabilities, mental disability or emotional disability;
(D) assurance that the child's learning problems are not primarily the result of :
(I) inadequate instruction or curriculum for the child's age and/or ability level;
(II) lack of educational opportunity;
(III) emotional stress at home or school;
(IV) a temporary crisis situation;
(V) environmental, cultural or economic disadvantages; or
(VI) lack of motivation.
(E) evidence of a severe discrepancy between achievement and ability.
(I) the child's performance shows a severe discrepancy between expected achievement (derived from a measure of intellectual ability) and obtained achievement (derived from a standard achievement measure) in one or more of the following areas: oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation or mathematical reasoning.
(II) a severe discrepancy exists when application of the WDE formula results in a difference between expected and actual achievement greater than or equal to 1.5 standard deviations and a 1.0 standard deviation for continuing eligibility. (See Appendix A)
(F) if results do not yield a number, which reflects a severe discrepancy, and the IEP team believes the child has a learning disability, the school district or agency shall use the following override procedure:
(I) if child does not meet the criterion for a severe discrepancy, yet the IEP team nonetheless determines the child is learning disabled, the school district or agency writes a specific justification for such a decision, including the basis for concluding that a severe discrepancy exists. The IEP team documents the child's inability to progress adequately in one or more of the following areas: oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation or mathematical reasoning.
(h) 'Mental disability' means significantly sub-average general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period that adversely affects a child's educational performance.
(i) mental disability eligibility criteria: criteria A through D are required:
(A) evidence that the child's intellectual functioning is two or more standard deviations below the mean, taking into consideration the standard error of measurement. The child's profile of intellectual functioning indicates sub-average performance in a majority of areas;
(B) evidence on an individually administered test of academic or pre-academic skills is consistent with performance expected of a child of comparable intellectual functioning; behavioral observations or criterion-referenced tests may be used when a child's level of functioning cannot be appropriately measured by standardized tests;
(C) evidence that the child's level of adaptive behavior is significantly below behaviors expected of a child his or her age;
(D) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that the educational performance is adversely affected.
(i) 'Multiple disabilities' means concomitant impairments (such as mental disability-blindness, mental disability-orthopedic impairment, etc.), the combination of which causes such severe educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments. The term does not include deaf-blindness.
(i) multiple disability eligibility criteria: criteria A through C are required:
(A) meet eligibility criteria for mental disability;
(B) meet eligibility criteria for one of the following disability categories: deafness, deaf-blindness, other health impaired, hard of hearing, orthopedic impairment or visual impairment;
(C) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that educational performance is affected by the concomitant disability and that the student's needs cannot be served based solely on one of the disability conditions.
(j) 'Orthopedic impairment' means a severe orthopedic impairment that adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term includes impairments caused by congenital anomaly (e.g., clubfoot, absence of some member, etc.), impairments caused by disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis, etc.), and impairments from other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations and fractures or burns that cause contractures).
(i) orthopedic impairment eligibility criteria: criteria A, B and D or A, c and D are required:
(A) evidence that the child’s impaired motor functioning significantly interferes with educational performance;
(B) evidence that the child exhibits deficits in muscular or neuromuscular functioning that significantly limits the child’s ability to move about, sit or manipulate materials required for learning;
(C) evidence that the child’s bone, joint or muscle problems affect ambulation, posture or gross and fine motor skills.
(D) a signed, written report of a medical examination conducted by a physician within the previous twelve (12) months.
(k) 'Other health impaired” means having limited strength, vitality or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment, that is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever and sickle cell anemia and adversely affects a child’s educational performance.
(i) other health impaired eligibility criteria: criteria A, B and C are required:
(A) physician verification within the previous twelve (12) months of an acute or chronic health problem;
(B) educational performance is adversely affected due to acute or chronic limited strength, vitality or alertness; and
(C) major life activities are substantially limited.
(l) “Speech or language impairment” means a communication disorder, such as stuttering, impaired articulation, language impairment or a voice impairment, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.
(i) “articulation impairment” means speech sound production or phonological errors atypical of a child of comparable age and development. Criteria A, E and H or criteria B through H or criteria F, G and H are required:
(A) evidence that the child exhibits one or more errors of speech sound production beyond the age at which 80% of peers have achieved mastery (based on current developmental norms);
(B) evidence that the child’s performance on a standardized evaluation instrument indicates the presence of significant impairment;
(C) evidence that the child misarticulates sounds consistently in a representative speech sample;
(D) evidence that the child is under the specified age on current norms and is not stimulable on the error sounds;
(E) evidence that the child’s articulation errors cannot be attributed to dialect or cultural differences or the influence of a foreign language;
(F) evidence that the child’s speech is highly unintelligible;
(G) evidence that the child’s scores are at a moderate, severe or profound rating on phonological evaluation instruments;
(H) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that the speech impairment adversely affects educational performance.
(ii) “fluency impairment” means abnormal flow of speech evident in interruptions by repetitious or prolongation of sounds, syllables or articulary positions or by avoidance and struggle behaviors. Criteria A and C or B and C are required:
(A) evidence that the child demonstrates at least a mild rating or its equivalent on a formal fluency rating scale;
(B) evidence that the child exhibits stuttering on 5% or more of words spoken in a representative language sample;
(C) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that the speech impairment adversely affects educational performance.
(iii) “language impairment” means a deficiency in language comprehension or production evident in the content, form or use of oral communication or its equivalent. This may include phonological problems; Criteria A through C and F or criteria A, D, E and F are required:
(A) evidence that the child understands and uses morphologic, syntactic, semantic or pragmatic patterns that fall below or are different from those expected, considering the child’s chronological age, developmental and cognitive level, evident in a representative oral language sample of at least five minutes or a minimum of fifty utterances;
(B) evidence that the child’s language patterns cannot be attributed to dialectal or cultural differences or the influence of a foreign language;
(C) evidence that when standardized instruments are appropriate, the child’s performance falls below the 12th percentile on a standardized measure related to the problems identified in the language sample and at or below the 16th percentile for continuing eligibility.
(D) evidence that the child’s speech is highly unintelligible;
(E) evidence that the child’s scores are at a moderate, severe or profound rating on phonological evaluation instruments;
(F) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that the speech impairment adversely affects educational performance.
(iv) “voice impairment” means a significant deviation in pitch, intensity or quality which consistently interferes with communication, draws unfavorable attention, adversely affects the speaker or listener(s), or is inappropriate for the age, sex or culture of the child. Criteria A through D are required:
(A) evidence that the child exhibits abnormal voice quality, pitch, resonance, loudness or duration;
(B) evidence that the condition is evident on two separate occasions, two weeks apart, at different times of the day;
(C) evidence that there are no medical contraindications to therapy, determined by a physician (the physician may determine if a contraindication exists or refer the child for a special examination); and
(D) the IEP team uses multiple sources of information to determine that the speech impairment adversely affects educational performance.
(m) 'Traumatic brain injury' means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term applies to open or closed head injuries resulting in impairments in one or more areas, such as cognition, language, memory, attention, reasoning, abstract thinking, judgement, problem-solving, sensory, perceptual, motor abilities, psychosocial behavior, physical functions, information processing and speech. The term does not apply to brain injuries that are congenital or degenerative or to brain injuries induced by birth trauma.
(i) traumatic brain injury eligibility criteria: criteria A and B are required:
(A) medical report from a physician and/or neural specialist indicating that the child has sustained:
(I) a brain trauma (e.g. skull fracture, contusions and/or bullet wound, etc.) resulting in the onset of impairment; or
(II) a change in cognitive ability due to change in medical status (tumor and/or encephalitis, etc.); and
(B) evidence that the traumatic brain injury adversely affects the child's educational performance in one or more of the following areas: cognitive ability, social behavior, use of adaptive skills, physical ability, vision, hearing and/or ability to communicate.
(n) 'visual impairment, including blindness,' means an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness.
(i) visual impairment eligibility criteria: criteria A and one of the following, B through F, are required:
(A) evidence of loss of vision which adversely affects the child's educational performance and requires the use of specialized texts, techniques, materials or assistive technology devices; and
(B) evidence of visual acuity in the better eye with best possible correction of:
(I) 20/200 or less (blind); or
(II) 20/70 or less (partially sighted); or
(C) evidence of tunnel vision, in which the peripheral field is so contracted that the widest diameter of the field covers an angular distance no greater than 20 degrees and that the reduced peripheral field affects the child's ability to learn; or
(D) evidence of a progressive loss of vision which may, in the future, affect the child's ability to learn; or
(E) evidence of blindness resulting from an active disease process; or
(F) visual acuity which cannot be measured but in which the child is functionally blind.
(a) The school or agency shall develop and implement an IEP for each child ages 3 to 21 with a disability served by the school or agency and ensure that an IEP is developed and implemented for each eligible child placed in or referred to a private school or facility by the school district or agency.
(b) At the beginning of each school year, or by the child's third birthday, each school district or agency shall have an IEP in effect for each child with a disability within its jurisdiction;
(c) School districts and preschools will participate in transition planning conferences for children moving from preschools to school districts.
(a) The school district or agency shall ensure that the IEP team for each child with a disability includes:
(i) if appropriate, the child;
(ii) the parents of the child;
(iii) at least one regular education teacher of the child (if the child is, or may be, participating in the regular education environment);
(iv) at least one special education teacher of the child, or if appropriate at least one special education provider of the child;
(v) a representative of the school district or agency who is qualified to provide, or supervise the provision of, specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities, is knowledgeable about the general curriculum and is knowledgeable about the availability of resources of the school district or agency;
(vi) an individual who can interpret the instructional implications of evaluation results; and
(vii) at the discretion of the parent or the school district or the agency, other individuals who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child, including related services personnel at appropriate.
(b) the determination of the knowledge or special expertise of any individual shall be made by the party (parents or school district or agency) who invited the individual to be a member of the IEP.
(a) A school district or agency may designate another member of the IEP team to also serve as the district or agency representative.
(b) Each school district or agency shall take steps to ensure that one or both of the parents of a child with a disability are present at each IEP meeting or are afforded the opportunity to participate, including:
(i) notifying parents of the meeting early enough to ensure that they will have an opportunity to attend; and
(ii) scheduling the meeting at a mutually agreed time and place. The notice required must indicate the purpose, time and location of the meeting and who will be in attendance and inform the parents of the provisions relating to the participation of other individuals on the IEP team who have knowledge or special expertise about the child:
(A) for a child with a disability beginning at age 14 or younger, if appropriate, the notice must also indicate that a purpose of the meeting will be the development of a statement of the transition services needs of the child and indicate that the school district or agency will invite the child;
(B) for a child with a disability beginning at age 16 or younger, if appropriate, the notice must also indicate that a purpose of the meeting is the consideration of needed transition services for the child; indicate that the school district or agency will invite the child; and identify any other school district or agency that will be invited to send a representative.
(iii) if neither parent can attend, the school district or agency shall use other methods to ensure parent participation, including individual or conference telephone calls.
(iv) a meeting may be conducted without a parent in attendance if the school district or agency is unable to convince the parents that they should attend. In this case the school district or agency must have a record or its attempts to arrange a mutually agreed on time and place, such as detailed records of telephone calls made of attempted and the results of those calls; copies of correspondence sent to the parents and any responses received; and detailed records of visits made to the parent's home or place of employment and the results of those visits.
(v) the school district or agency shall take whatever action is necessary to ensure that the parent understands the proceedings at the IEP meeting, including arranging for an interpreter for parents with deafness or whose native language is other than English.
(a) Each school district or agency is responsible for initiating and conducting meetings for the purpose of developing, reviewing and revising the IEP of a child with a disability.
(b) Each school district or agency shall ensure that an evaluation is completed within a reasonable period of time following the school district or agency's receipt of parent consent for an initial evaluation of a child.
(c) After the child is evaluated and determined eligible, special education and related services are made available after the IEP team conducts a meeting.
(d) A meeting to develop an IEP for the child must be conducted within thirty (30) days of a determination that the child needs special education and related services.
(e) The school district or agency shall give the parent a copy of the child's IEP at no cost to the parent.
(f) A meeting does not include informal, unscheduled conversations regarding teaching methodology, lesson plans, service coordination or preparatory activities to develop proposals for a later meeting.
(a) A statement of the child's present levels of educational performance shall include:
(i) how the child's disability affects the child's involvement and progress in the general curriculum (i.e., the same curriculum as for nondisabled children); or
(ii) for preschool children, as appropriate, how the disability affects the child's participation in appropriate activities;
(iii) a statement of measurable annual goals, including short-term objectives, related to;
(A) meeting the child's needs that result from the child's disability to enable the child to be involved in and progress in the general curriculum (i.e., the same curriculum as for nondisabled children), or for preschool children, as appropriate, to participate in appropriate activities; and
(B) meeting each of the child's other educational needs that result from the child's disability;
(iv) a statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids and services to be provided to the child, or on behalf of the child and a statement of the program modifications or supports for school personnel that will be provided for the child:
(A) to advance appropriately toward attaining the annual goals;
(B) to be involved and progress in the general curriculum and to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities; and (C) to be educated and participate with other children with disabilities and nondisabled children in the activities.
(v) an explanation of the extent, if any, to which the child will not participate with nondisabled children in the regular class and in the activities outlined above in A, B and C;
(vi) a statement of any individual modifications in the administration of state or district-wide assessments of child achievement that are needed in order for the child to participate in the assessment. If the IEP team determines that the child will not participate in a particular state or district-wide assessment of child achievement (or part of an assessment), a statement of why that assessment is not appropriate for the child; and the child will be assessed;
(vii) the projected date for the beginning of the services and the anticipated frequency, location and duration of those services and modifications; and
(viii) a statement of how the child’s progress toward the annual goals will be measured; and how the child’s parents will be regularly informed (through such means as periodic report cards), at least as often as parents are informed of their nondisabled children’s progress, of their child’s progress toward the annual goals; and the extent to which that progress is sufficient to enable the child to achieve the goals by the end of the year.
(a) The IEP team shall consider and document, if necessary, on the IEP to address the following issues;
(i) the strengths of the child and the concerns of the parents for enhancing the education of their child;
(ii) the results of the initial or most recent evaluation of the child;
(iii) as appropriate, the results of the child’s performance on any general state, district-wide or alternate assessment programs;
(iv) in the case of a child whose behavior impedes his or her learning or that of others, consider, if appropriate, strategies including positive behavioral interventions, strategies and supports to address that behavior;
(v) in the case of a child with limited English proficiency, consider the language needs of the child as those needs relate to the child’s IEP;
(vi) in the case of a child who is blind or visually impaired, provide for instruction in Braille and the use of Braille, unless the IEP team determines, after an evaluation of the child’s reading and writing skills, needs, and appropriate reading and writing media (including an evaluation of the child’s future needs for instruction in Braille or the use of Braille), that instruction in Braille or the use of Braille is not appropriate for the child;
(vii) the communication needs of the child, and in the case of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, consider the child’s language and communication needs, opportunities for direct communications with peers and professional personnel in the child’s language and communication mode, academic level and full range of needs, including opportunities for direct instruction in the child’s language and communication mode; and
(viii) whether the child requires assistive technology devices and services. Each public agency must permit a child on a case-by-case basis the use of school-purchased assistive technology devices in a child’s home or in other settings, if the IEP team determines that the child needs access to those devices in order to receive FAPE.
(a) Each school district or agency shall ensure that an IEP:
(i) is in effect before special education and related services are provided to an eligible child;
(ii) is implemented as soon as possible following the meetings;
(iii) the child's IEP is accessible to each general education teacher, special education teacher, related services provider and other service provider who is responsible for its implementation; and
(iv) each teacher and provider is informed of his or her specific responsibilities related to implementing the child's IEP; and the specific accommodations, modifications and supports that must be provided for the child in accordance with the IEP.
(a) Each school district or agency must provide special education and related services to a child with a disability in accordance with the child's IEP; and make a good faith effort to assist the child to achieve the goals and objectives listed in the IEP.
(b) These rules do not require that any school district/agency, teacher or other person be held accountable if a child does not achieve the growth projected in the annual goals or objectives.
(c) Nothing limits a parent's right to ask for revisions of the child's IEP or to invoke due process procedures if the parent feels that the efforts in (a) of this section are not being met.
(a) Each school district or agency shall ensure that the IEP team:
(i) reviews the child's IEP periodically, but not less than annually, to determine whether the annual goals for the child are being achieved and revises the IEP as appropriate to address:
(A) any lack of expected progress toward the annual goals, and in the general curriculum, and also if appropriate;
(B) the results of any reevaluation conducted;
(C) information about the child provided to or by the parents; and
(D) the child's anticipated needs or other matters.
(ii) reviews the special considerations from Section 11 at each meeting to review or revise the IEP.
(a) For each child with a disability beginning at age 14 or younger, if determined appropriate by the IEP team) and updated annually, a statement of the transition service needs of the child under the applicable components of the child's IEP that focuses on the child's courses of study (such as participation in advanced-placement courses or a vocational education program); and
(b) For each child beginning at age 16 (or younger, if determined appropriate by the IEP team), a statement of needed transition services for the child, including, if appropriate, a statement of the interagency responsibilities or any needed linkages.
(c) Transition services IEP team participants:
(i) the school district or agency shall invite a child with a disability of any age to attend his or her IEP meeting if a purpose of the meeting will be the consideration of the child's transition services needs and/or the needed transition services for the child;
(ii) if the child does not attend the IEP meeting, the school district or agency shall take other steps to ensure that the child's preferences and interests are considered; in implementing the requirements, the school district or agency shall also invite a representative of any other school district or agency that is likely to be responsible for providing or paying for transition services; and (iii) if a school district or agency invited to send a representative to a meeting does not do so, the school district or agency shall take other steps to obtain participation of the other school or agency in the planning of any transition services.
(d) School district or agency responsibilities for transition services:
(i) if a participating school district or agency, other than the home school district or agency, fails to provide the transition services described in the IEP, the school district or agency shall reconvene the IEP team to identify alternative strategies to meet the transition objectives for the child set out in the IEP; and
(ii) nothing relieves any participating school district or agency, including a state vocational rehabilitation school district or agency, of the responsibility to provide or pay for any transition service that the school district or agency would otherwise provide to children with disabilities who meet the eligibility criteria of that school district or agency.
(a) Beginning at least one year before a child reaches the age of majority, the child's IEP must include a statement that the child has been informed of his or her rights that will transfer to the child on reaching the age of majority.
(b) When a child with a disability reaches the age of majority, that applies to all children (except for a child with a disability who has been determined to be incompetent by a Wyoming court of law);
(i) the child's IEP must include a statement that the child was informed of his or her rights upon the child reaching the age of majority;
(ii) the school district or agency shall provide written notice to both the individual and the parent(s) that all other educational rights accorded to the parent(s) transfer to the child;
(iii) all other rights accorded to the parent(s) under these rules transfer to the child;
(iv) all rights accorded to the parent(s) transfer to children who are incarcerated in an adult or juvenile, state or local correctional institution; and
(v) whenever the state transfers rights, the school district or agency shall notify the individual and the parent(s) of the transfer of rights;
(a) Each school district or agency shall ensure:
(i) that to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are educated with children who are nondisabled;
(ii) that special classes, separate schooling or other removal of children with disabilities from the general educational environment occurs only if the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily; and
(iii) that the parent(s) of each child with a disability are members of any group that make decisions on the educational placement of their child:
(A) if parent(s) cannot participate in a meeting in which a decision is to be made relating to the educational placement of their child, the school district or agency shall use other methods to ensure their participation, including individual or conference telephone calls, or video conferencing;
(B) a placement decision may be made by a group without the involvement of the parent(s), if the school district or agency is unable to obtain the parent(s) participation in the decision. In this case, the school district or agency must have a record of its attempt to ensure their involvement; and (C) the school district or agency shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that the parents understand and are able to participate in any group discussions relating to the educational placement of their child, including arranging for an interpreter for parents with deafness, or whose native language is other than English.
(iv) That a continuum of alternative placements are available to meet the needs of children with disabilities for special education and related services.
(A) The continuum required must:
(I) include the alternative placements including instruction in regular classes, special classes, special schools, home instruction and instruction in hospitals and institutions; and
(II) make provision for supplementary services such as resource room or itinerant instruction to be provided in conjunction with regular class placement;
(v) the placement decision is made by a group of persons, including the parent(s) and other persons knowledgeable about the child, the meaning of the evaluation data, the placement options; and
(A) is made in conformity with the LRE provisions;
(B) is determined at least annually;
(C) is based on the child’s IEP;
(D) is as close as possible to the child’s home;
(E) unless the IEP of a child with a disability requires some other arrangement, the child is educated in the school that he or she would attend if nondisabled;
(F) in selecting the service location, consideration is given to any potential harmful effect on the child or on the quality of services that he or she needs; and
(G) a child with a disability is not removed from education in age-appropriate regular classrooms solely because of needed modifications in the general curriculum.
(vi) In providing or arranging for the provision of nonacademic and extracurricular services and other activities, each school district or agency shall ensure that each child with a disability participates with nondisabled children in those services and activities to the maximum extent appropriate to the needs of that child.
(a) Each school or agency shall ensure that extended school year services are available as necessary to provide FAPE.
(b) Extended school year services must be provided only if a child’s IEP team determines, on an individual basis, that the services are necessary for the provision of FAPE to the child.
(c) In implementing the requirements, a school or agency may not:
(i) limit extended school year services to particular categories of disability; or
(ii) unilaterally limit the type, amount or duration of those services.
(d) Extended school year services means special education and related services:
(i) are provided to a child with a disability beyond the normal school year of the school or agency;
(A) in accordance with the child's IEP;
(B) at no cost to the parent(s) of the child; and
(C) meet the standards of the State Education Agency (SEA).
(a) A reevaluation of each child is conducted if conditions warrant a reevaluation or if the child's parent(s) or teacher(s) request a reevaluation, but at least once every three (3) years.
(a) For purposes of removals of a child with a disability from the child's current educational placement, a change of placement occurs if:
(i) the removal is for more than ten (10) consecutive school days; or
(ii) the child is subjected to a series of removals that constitute a pattern because they cumulate to more than ten (10) school days in a school year, and because of factors such as the length of each removal, the total amount of time the child is removed and the proximity of the removals to one another.
(a) School personnel may order to the extent removal would be applied to children without disabilities, the removal of a child with a disability from the child's current placement for not more than ten (10) consecutive school days for any violation of school rules and additional removals or not more than ten (10) consecutive school days in that same school year for separate incidents of misconduct (as long as those removals do not constitute a change of placement).
(b) If a child with a disability has been removed from his or her current placement for more than ten (10) school days in the same school year, during any subsequent days of removal the public agency must provide services.
(c) School may order a change in placement of a child with a disability to an appropriate interim alternative educational setting for the same amount of time that a child without a disability would be subject to discipline, but not for more than forty-five (45) days if:
(i) the child carries a weapon to school or to a school function under the jurisdiction of a state or a local educational agency; or
(ii) the child knowingly possesses or uses illegal drugs or sells or solicits the sale of a controlled substance while at school or a school function.
(d) Either before or not later than ten (10) business days after either first removing the child for more than ten (10) school days in a school year or commencing a removal that constitutes a change of placement.
(i) if the school district or agency did not conduct a functional behavioral assessment and implement a behavioral intervention plan for the child before the behavior that resulted in the removal, the school district or agency shall convene an IEP meeting to develop an assessment plan.
(ii) if the child already has a behavioral intervention plan, the IEP team shall meet to review the plan and its implementation and modify the plan and its implementation as necessary to address the behavior.
(e) As soon as practicable after developing the plan and completing the assessments required by the plan, the school district or agency shall convene an IEP meeting to develop appropriate behavioral interventions to address the behavior and shall implement those interventions;
(f) If subsequently, a child with a disability who has a behavioral intervention plan and who has been removed from the child's current educational placement for more than ten (10) school days in a school year is subjected to a removal that does not constitute a change of placement, the IEP team members shall review the behavioral intervention plan and its implementation to determine if modifications are necessary.
(g) If one or more of the IEP team members believe that modifications are needed, the IEP team shall meet to modify the plan and its implementation to the extent the team determines necessary.
(a) A hearing officer may order a change in the placement of a child with a disability to an appropriate interim alternative educational setting for not more than forty-five (45) days if the hearing officer, in an expedited due process hearing:
(i) determines that the school district or agency has demonstrated by substantial evidence that maintaining the current placement of the child is substantially likely to result in injury to the child or to others;
(ii) considers the appropriateness of the child’s current placement;
(iii) considers whether the school district or agency has made reasonable efforts to minimize the risk of harm in the child’s current placement, including the use of supplementary aids and services; and
(iv) determines that the interim alternative educational setting is proposed by school personnel who have consulted with the child’s special education teacher;
(v) the term “substantial evidence” means beyond a preponderance of the evidence.
(a) The interim alternative educational setting must be determined by the IEP team.
(b) Any interim alternative educational setting in which a child is placed must be selected so as to enable the child to continue to progress in the general curriculum, although in another setting, and to continue to receive those services and modifications, including those described in the child’s current IEP, that will enable the child to meet the goals set out in that IEP; and include services and modifications to address the behaviors that are designed to prevent the behavior from recurring.
(a) A manifestation determination review is required when:
(i) a child with a disability carries a weapon to school or to a school function; or
(ii) a child with a disability knowingly possesses or uses illegal drugs or sells or solicits the sale of a controlled substance while at school or at a school function.
(A) not later than the date on which the decision to take disciplinary action is made, the parent(s) must be notified of that decision and provided the procedural safeguards notice; and
(B) immediately, if possible, but in no case later than ten (10) school days after the date on which the decision to take disciplinary action is made, a review must be conducted of the relationship between the child’s disability and the behavior subject to the disciplinary action. A review must be conducted by the IEP team and other qualified personnel in a meeting. The review may be conducted at the same time as and IEP meeting.
(b) In carrying out a review, the IEP team and other qualified personnel may determine that the behavior of the child was not a manifestation of the child’s disability only if the IEP team and other qualified personnel first consider, in terms of the behavior subject to disciplinary action, all relevant information, including:
(i) evaluation and diagnostic results, including the results or other relevant information supplied by the parent(s) of the child;
(ii) observations of the child; and (iii) the child's IEP and placement; and then determine that:
(A) in relationship to the behavior subject to disciplinary action, the child's IEP and placement were appropriate and the special education services, supplementary aids and services, and behavior intervention strategies were provided consistent with the child's IEP and placement;
(B) the child's disability did not impair the ability of the child to understand the impact and consequences of the behavior subject to disciplinary action; and
(C) the child's disability did not impair the ability of the child to control the behavior subject to disciplinary action.
(c) If the IEP team and other qualified personnel determine that any of the standards stated above in (A), (B) and (C) were not met, the behavior must be considered a manifestation of the child's disability.
(d) If, in the review, a school district or agency identifies deficiencies in the child's IEP or placement or in their implementation, it must take immediate steps to remedy those deficiencies.
(a) If as a result of the review, a determination is made that the behavior of the child with a disability was not a manifestation of the child's disability, the relevant disciplinary procedures applicable to children without disabilities may be applied to the child in the same manner in which they would be applied to children without disabilities.
(b) If the school district or agency initiates disciplinary procedures applicable to all children, the school district or agency shall ensure that the special education and disciplinary records of the child with a disability are transmitted for consideration by the person or persons making the final determination regarding the disciplinary action.
(a) If the child's parent(s) disagrees with a determination that the child's behavior was not a manifestation of the child's disability or with any decision regarding placement, the parent(s) may request a hearing.
(b) The school or agency shall arrange for an expedited hearing if a hearing is requested by the parent(s).
(c) In reviewing a decision with respect to the manifestation determination, the hearing officer shall determine whether the school district or agency has demonstrated that the child's behavior was not a manifestation of the child's disability.
(d) The hearing officer shall apply the standards as outlined in Section 3 of this Part.
(a) If a parent requests a hearing or an appeal regarding a disciplinary action to challenge the interim alternative educational setting or the manifestation determination, the child must remain in the interim alternative education setting pending the decision of the hearing officer, unless the parent and the state agency or local educational agency agree otherwise.
(b) If a child is placed in an interim alternative educational setting and school personnel propose to change the child's placement after expiration of the interim alternative placement, during the pendency of any proceeding to challenge the proposed change in placement, the child must remain in the current placement (the child's placement prior to the interim educational setting).
(c) If school personnel maintain that it is dangerous for the child to be in the current placement (placement prior to removal to the interim alternative educational setting) during the pendency of the due process proceedings, the school district may request an expedited due process hearing.
(d) In determining whether the child may be placed in the alternative educational setting or in another appropriate placement ordered by the hearing officer, the hearing officer shall apply the standards outlined in the rules.
(e) A placement ordered may not be longer than forty-five (45) days.
(f) An expedited due process may be requested as often as is necessary.
(a) A child who has not been determined to be eligible for special education and related services and who has engaged in behavior that violated any rule or code of conduct of the local educational agency may assert any of the protections provided for if the school district had knowledge that the child was a child with a disability before the behavior that precipitated the disciplinary action occurred.
(b) A school district must be deemed to have knowledge that a child is a child with a disability if:
(i) the parent of the child has expressed concern in writing (or orally if the parent does not know how to write or has a disability that prevents a written statement) to personnel of the appropriate educational agency that the child is in need of special education and related services;
(ii) the behavior or performance of the child demonstrates the need for these services;
(iii) the parent of the child has requested an evaluation of the child; and
(iv) the teacher of the child, or other personnel of the school district or agency, has expressed concern about the behavior or performance of the child to the director of special education of the agency or to other personnel in accordance with the agency’s established child find or special education referral system.
(c) A school district or agency would not be deemed to have knowledge if the school district agency either:
(i) conducted an evaluation and determined that the child was not a child with a disability under this part;
or
(ii) determined that an evaluation was not necessary; and
(iii) provided notice to the child’s parents of its determination.
(d) If a school district does not have knowledge that a child is a child with a disability prior to taking disciplinary measures as measures applied to children without disabilities who engaged in comparable behaviors.
(e) If a request is made for an evaluation of a child during the time period in which the child is subjected to disciplinary measures, the evaluation must be conducted in an expedited manner:
(i) until the evaluation is completed, the child remains in the educational placement determined by school authorities, which can include suspension or expulsion without educational services;
(ii) if the child is determined to be a child with a disability, taking into consideration information from the evaluation conducted by the agency and information provided by the parents, the agency shall provide special education and related services.
(a) Expedited due process hearings must:
(i) be conducted by an independent due process hearing officer;
(ii) require a written decision be mailed to the parties within forty-five (45) days of the school district or agency's receipt of the request for the hearing, without exceptions or extensions;
(iii) have the same timeline for hearings requested by parents or public agencies; and
(iv) have evidence, evaluations and recommendations disclosed at least two (2) business days prior to the expedited hearing.
(b) The decisions as a result of the expedited due process hearings are appealable.
(a) Nothing in these rules prohibits a school or agency from reporting a crime committed by a child with a disability to appropriate authorities or to prevent state law enforcement and judicial authorities from exercising their responsibilities with regard to the application of federal and state law to crimes committed by a child with a disability.
(b) A school district or agency reporting a crime committed by a child with a disability shall ensure that copies of the special education and disciplinary records of the child are transmitted for consideration by the appropriate authorities to whom it reports the crime.
(c) A school district or agency reporting a crime may transmit copies of the child's special education and disciplinary records only to the extent that the transmission is permitted by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
(a) Before a school district or agency places a child with a disability in, or refers a child to, a private school or facility, the agency shall initiate and conduct a meeting to develop an IEP for the child, including ways to effectively implement least restrictive environment requirements.
(b) The school district or agency shall ensure that a representative of the private school or facility attends the meeting. If the representative cannot attend, the school district or agency shall use other methods to ensure participation by the private school or facility, including individual or conference telephone calls.
(c) After a child with a disability enters a private school or facility, any meetings to review and revise the child's IEP may be initiated and conducted by the private school or facility at the discretion of the school district or agency:
(i) if the private school or facility initiates and conducts these meetings, the school district or agency shall ensure that the parents and a school district or agency representative:
(A) are involved in any decision about the child's IEP; and agree to any proposed changes in the IEP before those changes are implemented;
(B) even if a private school or facility implements a child's IEP, responsibility for compliance with this part remains with the school district or agency and the WDE.
(d) A child with a disability who is placed in a private school by a public agency has all the rights of a child with a disability who is served by the public agency.
(a) Private school children with disabilities means children with disabilities enrolled by their parent(s) in private schools or facilities:
(i) the school district is not required to pay for the cost of education, including special education and related services, of a child with a disability at a private school or facility if the school district or agency made FAPE available to the child and the parents elected to place the child in a private school or facility;
(ii) disagreements between the parent(s) and a school district or agency regarding the availability of a program appropriate for the child, and the questions of financial responsibility, are subject to a due process hearing;
(iii) if the parent(s) of a child with a disability, who previously received special education and related services under the authority of a school district or agency, enroll the child in a private preschool, elementary or secondary school without the consent of or referral by the school district or agency, a court or a hearing officer may require the agency to reimburse the parents for the cost of that enrollment if the court of hearing officer finds that the agency had not made FAPE available to the child in a timely manner prior to that enrollment and that the private placement is appropriate; a parental placement may be found to be appropriate by a hearing officer or a court even if it does not meet the state standards that apply to education provided by the state and school districts;
(iv) the cost of reimbursement may be reduced or denied if at the most recent IEP meeting that the parent(s) attended prior to removal of the child from the public school, the parent(s) did not inform the IEP team that they were rejecting the placement proposed by the school district or agency to provide FAPE to their child, including stating their concerns and their intent to enroll their child in a private school at public expense; or at least ten (10) business days (including any holidays that occur on a business day) prior to the removal of the child from the public school, the parents did not give written notice to the school district or agency; and
(A) the cost of reimbursement may not be reduced or denied if the parent is illiterate, notice would likely result in physical or emotional harm to the child, the school prevented notice or the parents were not informed of the notice requirement;
(v) if, prior to the parents' removal of the child from the public school, the school district or agency informed the parent(s), through the notice requirements of its intent to evaluate the child (including a statement of the purpose of the evaluation that was appropriate and reasonable), but the parent(s) did not make the child available for the evaluation; or upon a judicial finding of unreasonableness with respect to actions taken by the parents.
(a) Each school district shall locate, identify and evaluate all private school children with disabilities, including religious-school children residing in the jurisdiction of the school district. The activities undertaken to carry out this responsibility for private school children with disabilities must be comparable to activities undertaken for children with disabilities in public schools.
(b) Each school district shall consult with appropriate representatives of private school children with disabilities on how to carry out child find activities.
(a) To the extent consistent with their number and location in the state, provision must be made for the participation of private school children with disabilities in the program by providing them with special education and related services.
(b) Special education and related services provided to private school children with disabilities must be comparable to those services received by public school children.
(c) The state shall ensure a service plan is developed and implemented for each private school child with a disability who has been designated to receive special education and related services under this part.
(a) Each school district must at a minimum spend money on providing special education and related services to private school children with disabilities:
(i) for children aged 3 to 21, an amount that is the same proportion of the school district's total subgrant under Section 619(g) of the Act as the number of private school children with disabilities aged 3 to 21 residing in its jurisdiction is to the total number of children with disabilities in its jurisdiction aged 3 to 21; and
(ii) for children aged 3 through 5, an amount that is the same proportion of the school district's total subgrant under Section 619(g) of the Act as the number of private school children with disabilities aged 3 through 5 residing in its jurisdiction is to the total number of children with disabilities in its jurisdiction aged 3 through 5.
(a) Each school district shall consult with representatives of private school children in deciding how to conduct the annual count of the number of private school children with disabilities; and ensure that the count is conducted on December 1 of each year.
(b) The child count must be used to determine the amount that the school district must spend on providing special education and related services to private school children with disabilities in the next subsequent fiscal year.
(c) Expenditures for child find activities may not be considered in determining whether the school district has met the requirements.
(d) State and local educational agencies are not prohibited from providing services to private school children with disabilities in excess or those required, consistent with state law or local policy.
(a) No private school child with a disability has an individual right to receive some or all of the special education related services that the child would receive if enrolled in a public school.
(b) Decisions about the services that will be provided to private school children with disabilities will be made in consultation with representatives of private school children with disabilities.
(c) Each school district shall consult, in a timely and meaningful way, with appropriate representatives of private school children with disabilities, the number of private school children with disabilities, the needs of private school children with disabilities, and their location to decide:
(d) Each school district shall give appropriate representatives of private school children with disabilities an opportunity to express their view regarding each matter that is subject to the consultation requirements.
(e) The consultation must occur before the school district makes any decision that affects the opportunities of private school children with disabilities to participate in services.
(f) The school district shall make the final decisions with respect to the services to be provided to eligible private school children.
(g) If a child with a disability is enrolled in a religious or other private school and will receive special education or related services from a school district, the school district shall:
(i) initiate and conduct meetings to develop, review and revise a services plan for the child; and
(ii) ensure that a representative of the religious or other private school attends each meeting; if the representative cannot attend, the school district shall use other methods to ensure participation by the private school, including individual or conference calls.
(a) The services provided to private school children with disabilities must be provided by personnel meeting the same standards as personnel providing services in the public schools.
(b) Private school children with disabilities may receive a different amount of services than children with disabilities in public schools.
(c) No private school child with a disability is entitled to any service or to any amount of a service the child would receive if enrolled in a public school.
(d) Each private school child with a disability who has been designated to receive services must have a services plan that describes the specific special education and related services that the school district will provide to the child in light of the services that the school district has determined it will make available to private school children with disabilities.
(e) The services plan must, to the extent appropriate:
(i) meet the IEP content requirements, with respect to the services provided; and
(ii) be developed, reviewed and revised consistent with IEP requirements.
(a) Services provided to private school children with disabilities may be provided on-site at a child’s private school, including a religious school, to the extent consistent with law.
(b) If necessary for the child to benefit from or participate in the services, a private school child with a disability must be provided transportation:
(i) from the child’s school or the child’s home to a site other than the private school; and from the service site to the private school, or to the child’s home, depending on the timing of the services;
(ii) school districts are not required to provide transportation from the child’s home to the private school; and
(iii) the cost of the transportation may be included in calculating whether the school district has met the private school funding requirements.
(a) A school district may not use funds available for classes that are organized separately on the basis of school enrollment or religion of the children if the classes are at the same site; and the classes include children enrolled in public schools and children enrolled in private schools.
(a) The procedures in Part 2, Sections 1, 4, 6, 8 & 9 do not apply to complaints that a school district has failed to meet the requirements of Part 5, Sections 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8, including the provision of services indicated on the child’s service plan.
(b) The procedures in Part 2, Sections 1, 4, 6, 8 & 9 do apply to complaints that a school district has failed to meet the requirements of Part 5, Section 3, including the requirements of Part 3, Sections 4, 5, 6 & 8.