IDEA Complaint Decision 11-001

On January 7, 2011, the Department of Public Instruction received a complaint under state and federal special education law from XXXXX against the Whitnall School District. This is the department’s decision regarding that complaint. The issue is whether the district, during the 2010-2011 school year, properly informed the child’s parents of the child’s progress toward the child’s annual goal as specified in the child’s services plan.

The child is enrolled by her parents in a private school located within the Whitnall School District. On February 24, 2010, the child’s parents, employees of the Whitnall School District, and employees of the private school met to develop a services plan for the child. The services plan specified reports about the child’s progress towards meeting the child’s annual goals would be provided on a trimester basis. Trimesters in the Whitnall School District end in March, June, and November. The parents allege they did not receive any progress reports prior to December 24, 2010, at which time they received three progress reports, dated 3/31/2010, 6/11/2010, and 11/5/2010 respectively. The district was unable to provide evidence the progress reports were sent to the parent as scheduled. Though late, the district provided the required progress reports to the parent.

Within 30 days of the date of this decision, the district must submit a proposed corrective action plan to the department. The proposed corrective action plan must ensure parentally placed private school children receive timely reports about the child’s progress towards meeting the child’s annual goals as specified in the child’s services plan.

All noncompliance identified above must be corrected as soon as possible, but in no case more than one year from the date of this decision. This concludes our review of this complaint.

//signed CST 3/3/11
Carolyn Stanford Taylor
Assistant State Superintendent
Division for Learning Support: Equity and Advocacy

Dec/pas