This is his annual review. I realize that this is his once a year meeting. Since this is only the 2nd IEP meeting I'll be attending I just assumed it would be 12 months after the first one which was May of 2006. THe notice states that it's his IEP for the 2007/2008 school year. It doesn't seem like it's appropriate to decide in February what he'll need in September. Well I'm new to all of this. I'm going to try to reschedule it anyway because the case manager for his home ABA program is going to attend and she can't make it that day. Also, I want to request any reports they are going to present at the meeting and review them ahead of time.
One of his ABA therapists is a spec ed teacher and she said they have to give 10 business days notice - I guess they did.
5 business days in New York. This might vary from state to state. I ALWAYS reschedule if I think I might not be ready or I have a very good reason, like the one you have. The IEP meeting can be as late as the day before school starts in Sept., but that wouldn't be wise given some of the lead times to get therapists, etc. As I said in the PP, you need to check out the ESY situation, informally, ahead of this meeting. You don't want ESY options to be limited based on your having had the annual review late. But, unless there's an ESY deadline, I'd thinkg that having the meeting later is better than sooner. And the ABA therapist's not being able to make it makes things easy.
Mama, this IEP goes into effect when you sign it, or two weeks from the date it is written. This means they are planning if February for what his needs in February- not next September. This is why I like the middle of the school year better than May. In May, they are not planning for September, they are planning for May, June, July, August, then September. The thing is - I can guarantee they won't work on those goals all through the summer even if he got ESY.Thanks, Tzoya. I talked to the case manager today. They want to do it early because they have a lot of IEPs that expire the same time as Anthony's and they are trying to space them out so they aren't bombarded at the end of the year. Sounds reasonable to me. They're very flexible about the date. ESY services are at the school and it seems that every kid who has an IEP qualifies for ESY.The IEP in NY does not have to be signed (except if it is the first one), and all our 2007-2008 annual reviews happen starting in February. Most are done by the end of May or early June. These IEPs all go into effect July 1, the beginning of the school year in N.Y. ESY is always written into the next school year's IEP, since it happens after July 1. One of the big reasons for having such early annual reviews here is that many of the ESY programs are not conducted in the schools the kids go to from Sept. to June but in special schools run by a state system called BOCES. In order to hire summer school teachers and make all the appropriate arrangements for summer school, BOCES requires school districts to pay in full for summer ESY by April 1. So kids who need to go to BOCES summer school but who are in regular school districts during the regular school year need to have their annual reviews EARLY. However, I've handled this in the past by agreeing to meet to determine ESY only and tabling the rest of the IEP development for a later date. The annual IEP goes into effect the first day of the school year it is written to cover. The current IEP stays in effect until then or until a meeting is called to rewrite it before the end of the school year. But then that IEP is only in effect until the end of that school year. A new one has to be developed for the next school year, even if it is the same. I actually don't know if this is for NY only, but it is the way things are done here, Any new IEP that is written DURING the school year does go into effect in two weeks or earlier, if possible.
[QUOTE=tzoya]The annual IEP goes into effect the first day of the school year it is written to cover. The current IEP stays in effect until then or until a meeting is called to rewrite it before the end of the school year. But then that IEP is only in effect until the end of that school year. A new one has to be developed for the next school year, even if it is the same. I actually don't know if this is for NY only, but it is the way things are done here, Any new IEP that is written DURING the school year does go into effect in two weeks or earlier, if possible.
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All IEPs are annual documents, everywhere in the country. This means that all kids who have special education services are to be covered by a current IEP at all times. An IEP that starts July 1 goes into effect July 1 not on the first day of the next school year. The reason this is included in IDEA is so that the federal government has some guidelines for funding. Funding is provided according to federal child count (the number of kids in a district with active IEPs) not by the number or types of services they receive.
Any IEP that is written goes into effect in two weeks, in every state, provided it is not the initial one. Initial IEPs need a signature.
Case managers are welcome to have planning meetings early, before the due date, provided they have the new IEP in effect before the old one expires.
Sorry if I messed up the quote feature, I never use it...
If, during the summer, it seems as though something should be subtracted or added to Anthony's IEP, you can always call another IEP meeting. Usually there is a period in mid-summer when no such meetings are scheduled, but there will be LOTS held in August. Or you can wait until Anthony's been in his new class for awhile and if you still think there's something in his IEP that's out of date, all these months later, you can call a meeting. My guess is that having the meeting this early won't have any negative affect, but if you think the IEP needs updating, you can call a new meeting any time.IEPs must be done at least once a year but can be done more frequently. Often schools will schedule them early to be able to arrange all of the meetings, IEPs, evaluations, etc on the caseload, or to plan for transitions, upcoming services, etc.
They must notify you in writing 5 days prior to the meeting.
May is not an ideal time for an IEP in my opinion. All of the goals get written, and then often the staff does not see the child until September and lots can change over the summer... progress, regressions, etc.
A notice came home today notifying us that Anthony's IEP is scheduled for February 6th. The notice is dated Jan 22nd. Last year his IEP was done in May. It was his first IEP. I thought they were done every 12 months. Was I wrong? Did they give me enough notice?MONDAY WE HAVE A ARD FOR DANIEL WE PLAN TO DENY ANY OF THERE RECEMENDATIONS. HE IS JUST FINE IN THE CURRENT IEP AND CLASS HE IS IN.
THE WANT TO KEEP HIM MAINSTREAM NO WAY IT DIDN'T WORK FOR 3 YEARS.
FInd out why you are having this meeting. If it is for annual review, this IS his once a year meeting. One of the BIG reasons for having an annual review so early is that school districts have to plan for ESY. Here in N.Y., many kids get their summer services outside their school districts at BOCES programs. BOCES requires that school districts pay for the ESY children by April 1. That means than any child who might be getting ESY thru BOCES have his annual review before that time since ESY is not NEXT year's IEP. The school year starts July 1 and ends the last day of June. At least that's true in NY. I think each state sets its own school year, tho I think most have the July to June calendar.
Just FYI:Our IEP's are dated from one date of one year to the that date of the next year. For example, if an IEP was written today it would be good from Feb. 2, 2007 to Feb. 2, 2008. There is a clause written in under these dates that states services will not be given during summer months unless ESY services are given. This is the big thing about dating an IEP for one full year, it sometimes gives parents a false indicator that it will continue through the summer months around here. So we have to make sure we make that clear. Once parents understand that, we usually don't have to address it with them. But all IEP's are dated for one full year and NOT re-written until that time unless a member of the IEP team calls a meeting before that one year is up.
I personally hate it when supervisors create a mandate that we have to do all IEP's at one time during the year. That makes it so hectic when you have a large caseload and I don't feel like I can take the time to prepare a very good IEP when I have so many to get written at one time. I perfer to have them scattered throughout the year. What I usually do is write the initial IEP when initial eligibility is determined and then that IEP stays in place for a year and comes due at the same time every year. That way, all of the students I serve have IEP's that expire all throughout the school year and not all at one time.
ALL IEPs are from the date they are written to the same date the following year. This is federal law, it is an annual document. Thank you Wray for pointing that out. While some may like the idea that the specific school year is identified on the IEP or in some way indicated with the service dates, that is NOT a part of the federal law and here is why: If a child leaves one school district and moves to another, the IEP is still in effect and the new school district must adopt it until they write their own. If a child moves in June out of a district where the school year ends in June- to, let's say a year round district, if the IEP had service dates specific to the old district, it would no longer be in effect.
I think it is very poor practice to try to make IEPs fit a district's school year calendar, they are year round documents.
Yes, the IEP is an annual document and the school year dates may vary from state to state. However, I believe the school year needs to be written on the IEP document. So whatever services are on the document, are valid in the school year indicated on the document only. The only really important thing to know is WHEN the goals and objectives and services, etc., are going to start and end. And it IS the case that there is a two-week period during which parents can object.
THIS WEEKEND I CHECKED WITH A LAWYER ABOUT THE TWO WEEK RULE. She said that there is NO two-week rule in the law. In fact, parents can object to a give IEP for TWO YEARS from the date of the IEP -- the legal statute of limitations. No state can be more restrictive than that, but it's clear that none of us can wait two years to start an IEP. If your state does not require a signature on an IEP, it starts when the IEP SAYS the services start. There need to be start dates and end dates. If, before that date, you object, write to your school district and object. However, depending on how serious the objection may be, you might need to take your District to a hearing. If it is something that can be resolved in anothe IEP meeting or simply a correction over the phone, do that. But an IEP goes into effect on the date it says in the body of the IEP unless some action is taken by the parent to stop it (this may differ in states that require active parental permission in the way of a signature each year).
Ah, so this is the difference. Our school year starts the day after labor day in September. So if I write an IEP on June 5, it is in effect by June 19 (if the parents do not object). Even though there is no school on June 19, this is still considered the "current" IEP. We begin work on those goals in September.
My point is for parents to know that the IEP is a year-round document, not one that can be written in February 2007 and go into effect in September 2007. If it is written and dated in February, it is in effect within 2 weeks.
Then there is the matter of the timeline for completion of the IEP which I believe is 14 calendar days from the date of the IEP meeting. This is a federal due process regulation which is the type of thing that gets "bent" by case managers holding meetings in May when they want a start date of July 1. But compliance monitors usually won't cite the district unless the old IEP actually expires.