April 3, 2023
Re: Invitation to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Consultation Meeting held pursuant to 20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(10)(A)(iii)
Dear Families of Home Schooled and Private Schooled Children,
On behalf of the North Adams Public Schools, I am writing to invite you to participate in a consultation meeting regarding child find and proportionate share services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
The meeting is scheduled for:
Date: April 13, 2023
Time: 9:00AM
Location: Via Zoom LINK
At this meeting, we will be discussing:
Child Find:
The process as to how parents of privately-enrolled students, teachers, and private school officials are to be informed about this process; how parentally-placed private school children suspected of having a disability can be evaluated for eligibility and potentially be offered equitable participation in special education services. For students already found eligible for special education either by The North Adams Public Schools or another school district, please come to the meeting prepared to provide documentation for the District to verify the eligibility of students (e.g. IEP’s). Please make sure you have obtained a consent form from each student’s parents and/or guardians to share this information with The North Adams Public Schools.
Determination of Proportionate Share:
The determination of the proportionate share of Federal funds available to serve parentally-placed private school children with disabilities, including the determination of how the proportionate share of those funds was calculated.
Consultation Process, Methodology and Schedule for the Year:
The consultation process that will be utilized among the District, private school officials, representatives of parents of parentally-placed private school children with disabilities, and parents of home-schooled students, including how the process will operate throughout the school year to ensure that parentally-placed children with disabilities identified through the child find process can meaningfully participate in special education and related services.
Determination of Services and their Method of Provision:
General discussion of student needs and how potential types of special education and related services can be delivered either directly or through alternative service delivery mechanisms. Federal IDEA funds can be used to provide services on the grounds of private schools, but services provided with state and local funds must be provided at a "public school facility or other public or neutral site," in accordance with 603 CMR 28.03(l)(e)(3)). If the amount of proportionate share of IDEA funds is insufficient to serve every student, a discussion of how the District will apportion the services among eligible student(s), and how and when those decisions will be made. If the District disagrees with the views of the private school official(s) or of the home-school parents on the provision of services or types of services (whether provided directly or through a contract), a discussion of how the District will provide the private school official(s) or representative of home-school parents with a written explanation of the reasons the District chose not to adopt the recommendations of the private school official(s) or representative of home-school parents.
We look forward to meeting with you to discuss and receive your input on the above topics at this consultation meeting.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Gretchen M. West
Assistant Director of Special Education
Early Childhood Coordinator