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Education
Parent Rights & Dispute Resolution
Parents of children with disabilities, surrogate parents and students aged 18 or over have specific rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). These rights are sometimes called procedural safeguards and are designed to keep families involved in their child’s education and to provide families and schools a way to resolve disputes.
Procedural Safeguards
Procedural safeguards include the right to participate in all meetings, to examine all educational records, and to obtain an independent educational evaluation (IEE) of the child. Parents have the right to written notice when the school proposes to change or refuses to change the identification, evaluation or placement of a child. The law includes several ways to resolve disputes including mediation, “resolution sessions” and due process hearings. Procedural safeguards include legally binding written mediation agreements and confidentiality.
Find out more about Parent Rights
Watch the GA DOE Parent Rights Video
What to Do if You Disagree
IDEA gives parents a process to use when they disagree with the school about their child’s educational program. This process allows the school and parents to use a variety of different formats to come to an agreement.
Georgia DOE and Dispute Resolution
Fact Sheet: How to File a Formal Complaint (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese)
Fact Sheet: Due Process (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese)
Fact Sheet: Mediation (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese)
CADRE Parent Guides: Mediation, Written State Complaints, Due Process Complaints/Hearing Requests, and Resolution Meetings (English and Spanish). Guides are also available in Arabic, Chinese(Simplified), Hmong, Korean, Russian, Vietnamese, Burmese, Portuguese, Japanese, and Somali.
Watch the P2P (three part) webinar series on Due Process presented by Attorney Craig Goodmark:
1) Is Due Process Right for You?
2) Creating a Due Process Hearing Request.