IEPs - parents

First IEP

• Legally as the parent/guardian you must be told where and when the IEP meeting will be held. The IEP team will try to accommodate your schedule, within reason.

• The meeting must be held within thirty days after determining your child is eligible for special education.

• Who attends: you, your child's general education teacher, your child's special education teacher, a school representative - usually principal or vice principal, other expert(s) like the psychologist or social worker.

• What is discussed: your child's present level of performance, annual goals, services, accommodations, and modifications.

Annual IEP

• After an IEP is in effect, there must be an IEP meeting held once per year.

• The annual IEP exists to check in on how things are going, make new goals, and add appropriate accommodations as educational expectations change.

• It is your legal right to challenge an IEP if you disagree with the school about what is best for your child.

• Who attends and what is discussed is the same as initial IEP meetings.

Here is more information about rights you have as a parent of a student with an IEP.

Here is a list of terms that are helpful to understanding an IEP.

Resources

What's an IEP meeting? Understood. (n.d.). Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://www.understood.org/en/articles/the-iep-meeting-an-overview