Can Schools Hold IEP Meetings Without Parents?
Question: Can Schools Hold IEP Meetings Without Parents? Answer:
Question:
Can schools hold IEP meetings without parents?
Answer:
Generally, no.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) places a heavy weight on parent participation. Parents are required members of IEP teams and schools must work with them to mutually schedule and/or reschedule IEP meetings. This includes when parents or their kids become sick, car batteries die, work responsibilities change, natural disasters hit, and/or a long list of other extenuating circumstances strike.
Schools must make consistent, documented efforts to engage parents, including those who have frequent scheduling issues. For some families, “extraordinary circumstances” are not rare—they’re reality. If you’re a parent reading this, you know that when it rains it pours, and sometimes it pours for years.
However . . . Under very limited circumstances, schools may conduct an IEP meeting without a parent in attendance.