In this post we’re going to pull back the curtain on the IEP meeting. We’re going to walk through what happens, step-by-step, so you can go from feeling nervous to feeling empowered. 

Let’s face it. No one at the school really explains the process, or the IEP meeting in detail.  They’ve been through it hundreds of times.  They don’t realize that you’re new at this.  In fact, your heart beats faster just thinking about the process. In your mind’s eye, you see a long table with a dozen serious faces all looking at you. They toss out one acronym after another.  Are they even speaking English? You feel so out of control. 

So let’s walk you through the entire process so you know what to expect. Pretend you have a child named Georgina. She’s in fourth grade. She’s a talented, precocious child who draws anything and everything that she sees. She’s social and a pretty happy kid. But when it’s time to read, a wall goes up, and she will do anything and everything to avoid it. Stomach problems, her head hurts, any excuse to avoid reading, and doing homework. 

Part of the issue stems from a change that happens around the third grade.  School goes from learning to read to reading to learn. Students are expected to have mastered decoding, and now they need to obtain information by reading. Science books, multi-step math word problems, library visits—they all depend on reading. And for Georgina, the letters seem to move on the page. She misreads words, guesses, and becomes frustrated. School just isn’t fun anymore.

Step 1: Request the Evaluation

As her mom, you see it every day. It’s a deep, parental instinct that says, “My child is brilliant, and something is getting in the way. I need to find out what it is.” So you, the parent, initiate the process to have your child evaluated by writing an email to the school’s principal and the director of special education. Copy your child’s teacher to keep them in the loop. All you have to do is state your child’s name, her grade, and that you are concerned about her progress in school. Mention the areas of concern, like reading fluency and spelling and state the magic words: “I am requesting a comprehensive psycho-educational evaluation to determine if my child has a learning disability and is in need of special education services.” Before you hit send include: “please confirm receipt of this email.”  

That written, dated letter is the first step towards the IEP meeting.  It creates a paper trail and starts a legal timeline. The school is now required to respond. They must complete their evaluations and schedule a meeting of the Committee on Special Education to discuss the results.  This is known as a CSE meeting. You are going to hear quite a few acronyms throughout this process.  I call it Eduspeak and it is a language unto itself. The school might tell you that they can’t evaluate quite yet because your child first needs to go through the school’s multi-tiered system.  If they say that, they aren’t giving you the full story.  You, as the parent, can request a comprehensive evaluation at ANY point, and you do not have to “wait” for your child to go through tier 2 and tier 3.  That’s the law. 

Step 2: Committee on Special Education Meeting

Once the evaluations are started, you’ll receive a date and time for the CSE meeting.  Many parents call this the IEP meeting.  That technically isn’t correct as this is the initial meeting to determine if your child qualifies for services. You are an important part of the meeting. After all, you are the expert on Georgina. You see a side of her that the school team never sees. You know her strengths, her frustrations, her history.  Before you panic and start envisioning that long table let me mention that you don’t need to attend the meeting by yourself.  In fact, I highly recommend that you bring your partner, a trusted friend, or a professional advocate to take notes and be a second set of ears.  Even the most level-headed of parents will “lose it” and having a buddy at the meeting will make the process less daunting. 

Now, let’s talk about who else is sitting at the meeting. Think of them as part of Georgina’s team.

Georgina’s general education teacher will be there. She’s the classroom teacher and can talk about how Georgina’s struggles with reading are impacting her in math, science, social studies, and beyond. If you have a chance, sit down with the teacher before you write the email and discuss your concerns. Although teachers are allowed to refer a child for consideration, many schools “don’t encourage” teachers to do this.  Evaluations take time and in the end, the school might end up with too many children in Special Education. 

There will also be a special education teacher. This person is a specialist and understands intervention. Theoretically, they know the different research-based programs and strategies that can help and use them. Emphasis placed on the word “theoretical” because there is a wide range of knowledge.  

Next, you’ll see the school psychologist at the meeting. This is the person who did the testing. Their job is to translate the data into a story about how Georgina learns. They’ll talk about processing speed, working memory, and phonological awareness. They will compare Georgina’s results to other children of the same age.  This is called normative results and is very important in determining if a child qualifies for services or not. You’ll want to do some reading on standard deviations.  I recommend the book From Emotions to Advocacy by Wright’s Law.  It was heaven sent when I went through the process with my daughter and I’ll link to it in the show notes. 

Finally, there will be a district representative who is the Chairperson of the meeting. This person represents the school district and has the authority to approve services.  This last point is REALLY important.  If the individual says that they can’t answer a question because they need to check with their supervisor, know that you are being had.  By law, the Chairperson of the meeting has to have the authority to make a decision, else they cannot head up the meeting.  

So now that you know the key players, what happens at the IEP meeting? The purpose of this meeting is to answer two big questions: 1) Does Georgina have a disability that adversely affects her education? 2) If so, what are we, AS A TEAM, going to do about it?

As with most meeting, it will start with introductions.  From there it generally moves to the school psychologist reviewing the evaluations. They’ll talk about scores, percentiles, and standard deviations. They are trying to create a story about your daughter in the data. As an aside, this should not be the first that you are hearing the results.  When you give consent for the testing, request a written copy of the results at least 5 days before the CSE meeting.  This will allow you to review, process and challenge the information.  From there the classroom teacher may talk about what she observes in the classroom. This is also your chance to share what you see at home.  Many kids hold it together during the day and “fall apart” at home.  Share what you observe. If they don’t ask you specifically, turn to the Chairperson and state that you would like to share some information.  

Step 3: The Decision

Once everyone has reported out, and that includes you, the team has to come to consensus and decide. Based on this data, does Georgina qualify for special education services? Is her performance so far below her “national” peers that she needs additional services of Special Education? The key point here is the Team has to come to consensus and decide. There are two possible answers.

One option is classification. This means that everyone on the team agrees that yes, Georgina’s dyslexia is significantly impacting her ability to learn. She is officially classified with a Specific Learning Disability (which is one of the 13 classifications allowed by Federal law. This is a moment of victory because a classification unlocks the creation of an Individualized Education Program aka the IEP. Think of the IEP as a roadmap for Georgina’s success.  The IEP will have specific, measurable goals to ensure that Georgina makes meaningful educational progress.  The IEP will also list the services and the frequency of services she will receive in order to reach that goal. The document will list accommodations, like access to audiobooks and text-to-speech software, so she can access the curriculum. The IEP is a promise. It’s a plan. It’s help, made tangible. It’s also a legal contract between you and the school, so the goals are often watered down and not measurable.  

Be aware that as the parent you’ll be asked to sign the IEP (remember it’s a contract).  Before you sign anything, know that you have the right to review the document before signing, and can even schedule a separate meeting to review the document prior to signing.  I’ll talk about the actual IEP on another podcast and share what a good one looks like. 

So that was one option which resulted in Georgina being classified and granted services.  What if it goes the other way? What if the team says, “Yes, we see her struggles, but her scores aren’t low enough to qualify for an IEP”?

First, take a deep breath. Your first question should be, “Okay, if she doesn’t qualify for an IEP, she still needs support. Let’s discuss a 504 Plan. Do we need to convene the 504 committee?” Let me explain that a 504 Plan is for students with disabilities who don’t require specialized instruction but need accommodations to access their education. It can still provide crucial elements like extra time on tests, audiobooks, and the use of a keyboard for written assignments. Most dyslexic students qualify for a 504 Plan because in 2009, the federal government expanded the definition of a “qualifying disability that substantially limits a major life activity” to include reading.   

Now what would happen if they say that Georgina doesn’t qualify for anything but don’t worry they will put her in their multi-tiered system. You disagree because your gut is screaming that they are minimizing the severity of the issue! Remember, you are part of the team and still have an option. All you need to say clearly and calmly, “I understand the school’s position, but I disagree with the evaluation results and would like that noted in the meeting minutes.”

That sentence is your power. It is your right under federal law. When you say those magic word you can then formally request (in writing) an Independent Educational Evaluation—an IEE—at the public’s expense. The previous post discussed that option if you need additional information. 

Whether you walk out of that room with an IEP, a 504 plan, or a request for an IEE, you are walking out with a plan.