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A state complaint is one tool that can be used by a parent if a school is in violation of IDEA.
A state complaint is a formal document indicating a special education law or state regulation that you feel has been violated by the school or school district, and how it affects your child’s right to a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
A state complaint will usually follow documented efforts at working with your child’s team to resolve any issues. Sometimes, simply describing that you feel the school is not providing FAPE, is enough to start a conversation of remedying an issue. However, if meeting with the team and district is not enough, you have the right to file a state complaint.
Each state has their own format for submitting the complaint. This can be found on the state’s Department of Education, or Department of Instruction website. However, you are not required to use the specific form, you may simply create your own document to include the required information.
The complaint will need to contain at least:
You must make this complaint within a year following the instance of the violation.
The team has 90 days from your (written) request for evaluation in which to evaluate your child and, if found eligible, create an IEP based on that evaluation. The 90 day deadline is 90 calendar days, not school days, including weekends, school vacations and summer break. If the school has gone over the 90 day deadline you have grounds to file a state complaint because the school has violated IDEA part B.
In this example, your complaint would allege that the school district violated the 90 day deadline. You would back this claim up with documentation of the date of your initial request for evaluation.
The state also asks how you feel the issue should be resolved. In this example you might request compensatory special education services for the time that the school has not had an IEP in place for your child.
For the education missed by your student, the district should offer compensatory education such as tutoring (before or after school, or whenever school is not in session). Your child should never have to miss their general or special education time due to compensatory education.
After you submit the complaint to the state, the state will investigate the complaint and reach a decision within 60 days. The decision will include information on whether or not they feel the school district is in violation and what measure the school district needs to take to correct the situation.
A state complaint can take a lot of time and effort. So, before you start a complaint, here are some actions you may want to take…
If you are having difficulty, or getting nowhere by discussing an issue with your child’s special education teacher or case manager, request an IEP meeting (in writing) to include the school principal.
If you feel the outcome of that meeting is unsuccessful, your next step would be to contact the district’s special education, or exceptional children’s (there are many different names which departments go by) department at the school district building.
Contact the special education administrator for your child’s school. Describe the issue and how you feel it is in violation of your child receiving FAPE. If you speak to this person on the phone or in person, make sure to back it up with an email. Any promises or acknowledgments need to be in writing.
If your efforts are still not netting results, it may be a good idea to speak with a professional advocate, or find other legal advice, before you formally begin the complaint process.
A state complaint is only one way to resolve a dispute with your school district. Make sure that you have attempted to work with the IEP team to obtain all appropriate services for your child before you decide to file a complaint. You can view my video on State Complaints – Click Here. The non-profit Advocacy Institute provides links to each state’s complaint procedures.
A state complaint can take significant time and effort to put together. It is sometimes advisable to use an experienced professional (advocate or lawyer) to aid in construction of the complaint.
I would be happy to discuss any of this with you if you have questions.
I offer a free initial consultation. You can contact me at 919-510-3180. Or click below to request your consultation through my website.
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