Is My Child Eligible?

The Referral is the first step to all evaluations for determining if a student needs special education services.

If a school team or parent has suspicion that a student has a disability, they should bring their concern to the school. The school will consider how to address the concerns through a process of multi tiered systems of support. The school team or parent may request a referral to special education at any time. Referrals can be made to evaluate for either Special Education or Section 504.

This informational guidebook discusses screening, instruction and intervention, and resources that can support improved learning for school-aged individuals with characteristics of dyslexia. The audience for the information is broad and includes--but is not limited to--parents and families, educators, interventionists or reading teachers, and educational leaders.

The Special Education Evaluation Process

Referral for an Evaluation

Special Education Referral

This process begins with a referral stating that it is believed the student has a disability and the reasons this assumption is being made.Upon a referral being started, the parent will receive a Notice of Referral which states that an Individual Education Plan (IEP) team will be developed to conduct the evaluation and informs parents of the steps in the process. Parents should receive the Parent Rights Brochure Spanish Hmong.

Students who are suspected to have a disability requiring special education must be evaluated via the IEP Process to determine if they have a disability and if they are eligible to receive special education services. If a student qualifies, they are eligible to receive services starting from age 3 through the end of the school year that they turn 21.

Evaluation for Special Education Needs

Once a referral is started, an evaluation of the student will be started. Students who are suspected to have a disability requiring special education must be evaluated by an IEP Team to determine if they have a disability and if they are eligible to receive special education services. Students are eligible to receive services starting from age 3 through the end of the school year that they turn 21 (See the DPI Guide to Special Education Forms - Notice of Ending of Services Due to Age).

Evaluation and Eligibility Criteria

Evaluation is an essential beginning step in the special education process for a child with a disability. Before a child can receive special education and related services for the first time, a full and individual initial evaluation of the child must be conducted to see if the child has a disability and is eligible for special education. Parents must be informed through the Notice of Referral before this evaluation may be conducted. The evaluation process is guided by requirements in our nation’s special education law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and state eligibility criteria. The Center for Parent Information and Resources is a useful site to help guide parents through the process. The Special Education Rights for Parents and Children - Procedural Safeguards Notice also provides more information on parent's rights throughout the process.

If the student is determined to have an impairment AND a need for specially designed instruction, an Individual Education Plan (IEP) will be developed.

IEP - Individual Education Plan

If the team determines that a student is a student with a disability, an IEP will be developed. The Individual Education Plan (IEP) documents how the student will be served in special education. The IEP is designed annually by an IEP team, yet can be adjusted at any point during the school year via the review/revise process. An IEP is designed to explain how the student's disability affects his or her learning, state the student's present level of academic and functional performance, identify annual goals for improving the present level of performance, and describe the services that the student needs in order to achieve the stated goals. Language support and interpretation is available for families whose native language is other than English. See a guide to the contents of an IEP from the Center for Parent Information and Resources.

Transfer Students into MMSD

Students with disabilities who transfer into MMSD

Students with disabilities who transfer into MMSD

MMSD ensures that students who have a disability and move into MMSD or between schools in MMSD have no interruption in special education services. Parents/guardians moving into MMSD may inform the principal, psych or the student's teacher in their school building about their child's special education needs. A team will be assembled and services will be approximated as closely as possible to the current IEP while it is being reviewed for adoption, or a new one is being developed. If the Evaluation meets WI criteria and the IEP can be carried out as written in our schools, MMSD can adopt the previous district's Evaluation and IEP. If the evaluation does not meet WI criteria, a new evaluation will be conducted, followed by a new IEP.

An LEA may offer parents a new notice of placement without a meeting if the students new school building is the building s/he would otherwise attend if not disabled AND the student's IEP can be implemented as written in the new school building. MMSD must notify the parents of its decision to implement the current IEP in the new school building by providing the parent a copy of the IEP along with the new notice of placement.

DPI Informational Bulletin 13.01 - Transfer Students

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