September 13, 2024
Federal laws mandate the support necessary for children with special needs. As administrators, you must ensure that school policies, materials and personnel adhere to these laws, to provide adequate support for children who need them. Your state may have additional laws with other requirements. This article highlights where those laws may have come from and what you can do to remain compliant.
Federal Laws to Consider for Special Education
Compliance with special education requirements depends on how much you adhere to the following:
1. Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA provides civil rights protection to every person with disabilities. Title II specifically prohibits discrimination by the state and local governments, where public education falls. Institutions must ensure that the structure of their buildings accommodates people with disabilities and that they have access to equal opportunities, benefiting from all programs available.
Public entities, like public schools, aren't required to take actions that can cause financial and administrative burdens. However, they must make reasonable modifications to avoid discrimination.
2. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Section 504 is more specific than the ADA. It requires that no person with disability should be excluded from any program, including educational activities like college, vocational education or other school systems. Institutions are not required to make structural changes for accessibility, as long as alternative services are available.
3. Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
IDEA may be the most detailed law for schools offering special education, due to the Individualized Education Program (IEP). The law ensures that free, appropriate public education is available for children with disabilities and that they get access to related services for their families. The IEP is a written document that highlights the services the student should receive, created together with the parents' and school's input. It's a long-term plan, lasting up to three years, designed to consider natural transition points for a child.
Failure to comply with the IEP can result in a student's delayed progress and unmet academic goals. It also results in increased stress for educators and can cause legal disputes for schools. To ensure full compliance, refer to your specific state's additional regulations. You may need to follow particular funding models and guidelines for transportation. You can create a special education compliance checklist for your school to easily review the requirements.
How to Ensure Special Education Compliance
Consider the following steps as the best practices for special education resource management:
1. Identify Which Children Have Special Needs
A state or local educational agency can request an initial evaluation to determine whether a child has a disability. Parental consent is required for this evaluation, but this consent does not necessarily mean the parents consent for the child to receive special education. The state or local agency must perform the evaluation within 60 days of receiving the consent or another specified time frame.
2. Create a Suitable IEP
If the child will receive special education, they need an IEP to determine their progression path. The IEP requires an IEP Team, which is composed of:
- The parents of the child with a disability
- At least one regular education teacher of the child
- At least one special education teacher
- A representative of the local educational agency
- A person who can interpret the child's evaluation results
- Other people with knowledge or special expertise regarding the child
- The child with the disability, if appropriate
The IEP should include information on:
- Performance levels: This includes the child's current level of academic achievement and how their disability affects their performance. It should also highlight the child's progress on the general education curriculum.
- Measurable annual goals: The IEP should indicate annual academic and functional goals that meet the child's needs resulting from their disability.
- Progress reports: The document should indicate when periodic reports shall be made — such as quarterly — and how the child's progress will be measured.
- Special education and related services: The document shall also explain the special education services and supplementary aid the child will receive, how services will be modified, and how the school personnel will be supported.
- Non-participation: The IEP shall indicate which activities the child with disabilities will not participate in compared to their nondisabled counterparts.
3. Review Requirements for Special Education Funding
The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) manages three formula grants. These grants are offered to states every year to support services for families and their children with disabilities, including support for special education. There are also discretionary grants from the U.S. Department of Education, which are awarded through a competitive process.
OSEP conducts the application reviews. These discretionary grants are available to state educational agencies, nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education. They are not available to families or educators.
4. Hire and Train Qualified Special Education Professionals
School personnel should be equipped with the appropriate skills and resources to support children with special needs well. Personnel, local educational agencies and states should not be occupied with unnecessary paperwork that doesn't improve educational outcomes.
Additionally, IDEA states that in 2000, 1 in 3 persons in the U.S. was a member of a minority group. With minority children comprising an increasing percentage of students from public schools, the law highlights that you should also recruit special education personnel who increase the participation of minorities. They can serve as role models with sufficient knowledge regarding special education.
Schools should also provide comprehensive staff training to tackle compliance issues well. For example, school personnel should understand their legal obligations in creating the IEP. You should also offer continuing professional development, especially for teachers. Each of them should be well-acquainted with the student and ensure that students' needs are met beyond just meeting the legal requirements. If parents raise issues, the staff should provide opportunities to resolve disagreements in a constructive manner.
In addition to IDEA policies, the school can also appoint a Section 504 coordinator and create grievance procedures to ensure compliance. Section 504 does not require a written document like an IEP, but institutions may choose to have related clauses.
5. Use Appropriate Special Education Technology
Special education resources are not limited to your building facilities and staff. They also include assistive technology devices and services that can help the child meet their educational goals. These resources can be pieces of equipment or product systems that are commercially modified or customized to improve the child's functional capabilities.
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