Complaint Summary

Date:

September 19, 2025

Case Number:

26-0028

Grade Level:

Elementary

Person filing complaint:

Parent

School District:

Woodstock Public Schools

Allegation(s):

• The Parent alleged that the District found the Student ineligible for special education and related services without conducting its own evaluation and without properly considering developmental data. 34 CFR § 300.304(b)(1), 34 CFR § 300.304(c)(6), 34 CFR § 300.306(c)

Conclusion(s):

• Intervention cannot be used to delay or deny a timely initial evaluation to determine if a child is a child with a disability and, therefore, eligible for special education and related services pursuant to an individualized education program (OSEP Memo 11-07). The District’s emphasis on the Student’s late referral to Birth to Three and their intent to screen the Student in the fall and review the Student’s response to the Birth to Three interventions over the summer contradicts the District’s obligation under 34 CFR §§ 300.304 and 300.306 to conduct a comprehensive evaluation to determine eligibility. The District’s position that they would screen in the fall following implementation of the Birth to Three interventions fails to meet the requirements of 34 CFR § 300.101 which ensures a free appropriate public education for children beginning at age 3. Corrective action is required. It must also be noted that it is not considered best practice for a student observation to take place at the PPT meeting in which eligibility is being determined. If a District is using data from an observation of a student as part of an eligibility determination, that observation should be conducted at a time outside of the PPT meeting. When a referral is received from Birth to Three, the District is obligated to consider conducting an initial evaluation. The PPT must then make the recommendation to either conduct a comprehensive initial evaluation (by designing a comprehensive evaluation, recommending additional assessments or using existing evaluation data) or determine that based on data the District is not conducing an initial evaluation. Through the course of the investigation, it was noted that the Consent to Conduct an Initial Evaluation form was not completed at the PPT meeting held on June 10, 2025. This consent form is a required document in the eligibility determination process. The Parent’s consent to share Birth to Three evaluations with the District is not the same as PPT determining that the available evaluation information is sufficient to determine the child's eligibility. The District was obligated under 34 CFR § 300.300(a) to complete the Consent to Conduct an Initial Evaluation form, indicate that the PPT had determined that the available evaluation information was sufficient to determine the Student’s eligibility, specify the evaluation information to be used, and obtain written consent from the Parent. Therefore, it is determined that the District violated 34 CFR § 300.300(a) by not obtaining informed parental consent at the PPT meeting held on June 10, 2025. Corrective action is required. Prior Written Notice (PWN) is intended to provide the Parent with written notice of actions proposed and/or refused by the District. The District is obligated to provide separate PWNs for each proposed or refused action related to identification, evaluation, educational placement, or provision of FAPE to a child. The PWN dated June 10, 2025, indicated that the District refused to initiate an evaluation. The District’s explanation for this documentation was that the PPT determined that an initial evaluation conducted by the District was not recommended by the PPT team. The PWN described the reason for the refused action as the Student was not eligible for services. This was an inaccurate completion of PWN by the District. Therefore, it is determined that the District violated the requirements of PWN in accordance with 34 CFR § 300.503. Corrective action is required.

Corrective Action(s):

• The District must attend the professional learning opportunity: Early Childhood Transition: Early Intervention Services (Part C) to Preschool Special Education (Part B) offered this fall by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), CT Birth to Three (B23) and the CT Parent Advocacy Center (CPAC). The District must send all special education staff that work directly with the transition to preschool special education including administrators. Confirmation of registration and completion must be sent to this investigator no later than December 1, 2025. The District must engage its special education staff including administrators in a review of the requirements of Prior Written Notice including 34 CFR § 300.503, Section 13 of the Connecticut IEP Manual, and the CSDE’s Prior Written Notice (PWN) Actions Proposed/Refused Reference Guide. An outline of the review and the names of the staff members, their signatures, and date of the review must be sent to this investigator no later than October 31, 2025. The District must then send to this investigator the names of 3 students following the completion of PWN between October 31, 2025, and December 31, 2025, for review. The District must provide the Student with compensatory education in the amount of 45 minutes of behavior support delivered by a school psychologist to account for the first three weeks of the 2025-2026 school year. The District must provide a log confirming service delivery with date, length of time, and focus to this investigator no later than October 20, 2025.