DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY
What is Required
Developmental Delay (“DD”) applies to a student between the ages of 3 through 9 years of age who is evaluated by a multidisciplinary team for at least one disability category under the IDEA 0and whose evaluation data indicates a need for special education and related services and shows evidence of, but does not clearly confirm, the presence of the suspected disability(ies) due to the child’s young age. The ARD Committee may determine that data supports identification of developmental delay in one or more of the following areas: physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development.
Districts may, but are not required to, identify eligible students under the DD category during the 2024-2024 school year. Beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, students must be identified as DD instead of NCEC. Any eligible student who begins the 2025-2026 school year with an NCEC eligibility can maintain this eligibility, however, until the required re-evaluation before the age of 6.
Additional Procedures
Beginning the 2024-2025 school year, a student may be eligible for special education services based on the Developmental Delay disability category if the student is (1) between the ages of 3 and 9, (2) evaluated by a multidisciplinary team for at least one of the IDEA disabilities categories, and (3) whose evaluation data indicates a need for special education and related services and shows evidence of, but does not clearly confirm, the presence of the suspected disability(ies) due to the child’s young age.
A student will only be eligible under this category if the ARD Committee determines that data indicates the presence of a developmental delay in at least one of the following areas: physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development. The ARD Committee must also review multiple sources of data that support the presence of a developmental delay, including but not limited to performance on appropriate norm-references measures and/or multiple direct and indirect sources, such as play-based assessments, parent input and interviews, observations, work samples, etc. that demonstrate a pattern of atypical development that is significantly impacting the student’s performance and progress in the school setting.
The ARD Committee shall not identify any student as eligible for special education under the Noncategorical Early Childhood classification beginning the 2025-2026 school year. The ARD Committee may consider whether the student meets criteria for the Developmental Delay criteria beginning the 2024-2025 school year but is not required to do so. If a student is already identified as Noncategorical Early Childhood at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year, the ARD committee shall remove the Student’s Noncategorical Early Childhood eligibility following completion of the required re-evaluation before the age of 6 and determine if the Student is eligible under another category, such as Developmental Delay.
Evidence of Implementation
• Notice of Evaluation
• Consent for Evaluation
• Referral Information
• Assessment Plan
• FIE
• Disability Report - DD
• ARD/IEP
• Documentation for the state in TSDS, PEIMS, and SPP
Resources
Technical Assistance: Child Find and Evaluation- Texas Education Agency
Developmental Delay - Partners Resource Network
Citations
34 CFR 300.30(c)(4); 19 TAC 89.1040(b), 89.1050(c)