Chapter 392-172A Provision of special education services.

(1) When timely and meaningful consultation has occurred, the school district must obtain a written affirmation signed by the representatives of participating nonprofit private schools after timely and meaningful consultation.(2) If the representatives do not provide the affirmat…

(1) A private school official has the right to submit a complaint to the OSPI, special education division that the school district:(a) Did not engage in consultation that was meaningful and timely; or(b) Did not give due consideration to the views of the private school official.(…

(1) A parentally placed private school student does not have an individual right to receive some or all of the special education and related services that the student would receive if enrolled full- or part-time in a public school.(2) Decisions about the services that will be pro…

(1) The services provided to parentally placed nonprofit private school students eligible for special education services must be provided by personnel meeting the same standards as personnel providing services in the public schools.(2) Parentally placed private school students el…

(1) Services to parentally placed nonprofit private school students eligible for special education services may be provided on the premises of private schools.(2) If necessary for the student to benefit from or participate in the services provided, a parentally placed private sch…

(1) Due process procedures are not available for complaints that a school district has failed to meet the requirements regarding consultation, determination of need and provision of services, including the provision of services indicated on the student's services plan.(2) Due pro…

Public funds provided and property derived from those funds shall not benefit any private school or agency.A school district must use funds provided under the act to meet the special education and related services needs of students enrolled in nonprofit private schools, but not f…

(1) School district or other public agency personnel may be made available to private schools and agencies only to the extent necessary to provide services required by the student if those services are not normally provided by the private school.(2) Each school district or other …

A school district may not use federal funds available under section 611 or 619 of the act for classes that are organized separately on the basis of school enrollment or religion of the students if:(1) The classes are at the same site; and(2) The classes include students enrolled …

(1) A school district must control and administer the funds used to provide special education and related services for students eligible for those services in private schools, and hold title to and administer materials, equipment, and property purchased with those funds for the u…

(1) The provisions of WAC 392-172A-04080 through 392-172A-04095 apply to students eligible for special education services who have been placed in or referred to an in-state private elementary or secondary school or facility, or placed in or referred to a public or private out-of-…

(1) A school district that places a student eligible for special education services with a nonpublic agency or with another private or public agency under WAC 392-172A-04080(2) for special education and related services shall develop a written contract which must include, but not…

(1) The school district shall notify the special education division of the OSPI, in writing, of their intent to serve a student through contract with a nonpublic agency.(2) The school district and the nonpublic agency will review the requirements for approval and complete the app…

(1) A nonpublic agency must meet the following requirements to be approved:(a) The nonpublic agency is approved by the state board as a private school, and has at least one certificated teacher with a special education endorsement, other certificated teachers who meet state stand…

(1) An approved nonpublic agency must notify any school districts with whom they contract and the OSPI of any major program changes that occur during the approval period, including adding additional services or changing the type of programs available to students. OSPI will review…

OSPI may suspend, revoke or refuse to renew its approval of a nonpublic agency to contract with school districts for the provision of special education services if the nonpublic agency:(1) Fails to maintain the approval standards in WAC 392-172A-04090 through 392-172A-04100;(2) V…

In implementing the nonpublic agency provisions of WAC 392-172A-04080 through 392-172A-04105, the state shall:(1) Monitor compliance through procedures such as written reports, on-site visits, and parent questionnaires;(2) Disseminate copies of applicable standards to each privat…

(1) If a student eligible for special education services has a FAPE available and the parents choose to place the student in a private school or facility, the school district is not required by this chapter to pay for the student's education, including special education and relat…

The parents of a student eligible for special education services must be afforded an opportunity to inspect and review all education records. Inspection and review of education records is provided consistent with WAC 392-172A-05180 through 392-172A-05245.[Statutory Authority: RCW…

(1)(a) The parents of a student eligible for special education services must be afforded an opportunity to participate in meetings with respect to the identification, evaluation, educational placement and the provision of FAPE to the student.(b) Each school district must provide …

(1)(a) Parents of a student eligible for special education services have the right under this chapter to obtain an independent educational evaluation of the student if the parent disagrees with the school district's evaluation subject to subsections (2) through (7) of this sectio…

(1) Written notice that meets the requirements of subsection (2) of this section must be provided to the parents of a student eligible for special education services, or referred for special education services a reasonable time before the school district:(a) Proposes to initiate …

(1) School districts must provide a copy of the procedural safeguards that are available to the parents of a student eligible for special education services one time a school year, and:(a) Upon initial referral or parent request for evaluation;(b) Upon receipt of the first state …

A parent of a student eligible for special education services may elect to receive prior written notices, procedure safeguards notices and notices relating to due process hearing requests by an electronic mail communication, if the school district makes that option available.[Sta…

(1) An organization or individual, including an organization or individual from another state, may file with the OSPI special education division, a written, signed complaint that the OSPI, or a subgrantee of the OSPI including, but not limited to, an ESD, school district, or othe…

(1) Upon receipt of a properly filed complaint, the OSPI shall send a copy of the complaint to the school district or other agency for their investigation of the alleged violations. A complaint against OSPI shall be investigated pursuant to WAC 392-172A-05040.(2) The OSPI will pr…

(1) If a written complaint is received that is also the subject of a due process hearing under this chapter or contains multiple issues, of which one or more are part of that hearing, the OSPI must set aside any part of the complaint that is being addressed in the due process hea…

(1) Upon receipt of a complaint against the OSPI alleging a violation under this section, the superintendent will designate an investigator within ten days to investigate the complaint.(2) Investigation by the OSPI may include on-site investigations, interviews, and other documen…

The OSPI shall inform parents and other interested individuals about the community complaint procedures in this chapter. Specific actions to be taken by the superintendent of public instruction include:(1) Widely disseminating copies of the state's procedures to parents and other…

(1) The purpose of mediation is to offer both the parent and the school district an opportunity to resolve disputes and reach a mutually acceptable agreement concerning the identification, evaluation, educational placement or provision of FAPE to the student through the use of an…

(1) Mediation shall be conducted by qualified and impartial mediators who are knowledgeable in laws and regulations relating to the provision of special education and related services.(2) An individual who serves as a mediator:(a) May not be an employee of any school district or …

(1) If the parties resolve a dispute through the mediation process, the parties must execute a legally binding agreement that sets forth that resolution and that:(a) States that all discussions that occurred during the mediation process will remain confidential and may not be use…

(1) A school district may establish procedures to offer parents who elect not to use the mediation process to meet, at a time and location convenient to the parents, with a disinterested party:(a) Who is under contract with appropriate alternative dispute resolution entity or a p…

(1) A parent or a school district may file a due process hearing request on any of the matters relating to the identification, evaluation or educational placement, or the provision of FAPE to a student.(2) The due process hearing request must be made within two years of, and alle…

(1)(a) To file a due process hearing request, the parent or the school district (party), or the attorney representing a party, must:(i) Serve the request, which must remain confidential, directly with the other party; and(ii) File a copy of the request via mail, fax, or electroni…

(1)(a) Within fifteen days of receiving notice that a parent has served a due process hearing request on the district and filed a copy of the due process request with the office of administrative hearings, and prior to the initiation of a due process hearing under WAC 392-172A-05…

(1) A due process hearing is conducted for OSPI by the office of administrative hearings.(2) Administrative law judges that conduct the hearings:(a) Must not be:(i) An employee of OSPI or the school district that is involved in the education or care of the student; or(ii) A perso…

These hearing rights govern both due process hearings conducted pursuant to WAC 392-172A-05080 through 392-172A-05125 and hearings for disciplinary matters conducted pursuant to WAC 392-172A-05160.(1) Any party to a due process hearing has the right to:(a) Be represented by couns…

(1) An administrative law judge's determination of whether a student received FAPE must be based on substantive grounds.(2) In matters alleging a procedural violation, an administrative law judge may find that a student did not receive a FAPE only if the procedural inadequacies:(…

(1) Not later than forty-five days after the expiration of the thirty day resolution period, or the adjusted time periods described in WAC 392-172A-05090(3):(a) A final decision shall be reached in the hearing; and(b) A copy of the decision shall be mailed to each of the parties.…

(1) Any party aggrieved by the findings and decision made under WAC 392-172A-05105 through 392-172A-05110 or 392-172A-05165 has the right to bring a civil action with respect to the due process hearing request. The action may be brought in any state court of competent jurisdictio…

(1) In any action or proceeding brought under 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1415 of the act, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys' fees as part of the costs to:(a) The prevailing party who is the parent of a student eligible or referred for special education services;(b)…

(1)(a) Except for due process hearings involving special education discipline procedures, during the pendency of any administrative hearing or judicial proceeding regarding the due process hearing proceedings, the student involved in the hearing request must remain in his or her …

(1) School districts must ensure that the rights of a student are protected when:(a) No parent as defined in WAC 392-172A-01125 can be identified;(b) The school district, after reasonable efforts, cannot locate a parent;(c) The student is a ward of the state; or (d) The student i…

(1) Subject to subsections (4) and (5) of this section, when a student eligible for special education services reaches the age of 18 or is deemed to have reached the age of majority, consistent with RCW 26.28.010 through 26.28.020:(a) The school district shall provide any notices…

The purpose of WAC 392-172A-05140 through 392-172A-05175 is to ensure that students eligible for special education services are not improperly excluded from school for disciplinary reasons and are provided services in accordance with WAC 392-172A-05145, 392-172A-05148, and 392-17…

(1) School personnel may consider any unique circumstances on a case-by-case basis when determining whether a change in placement, consistent with the other requirements of this section, is appropriate for a student eligible for special education services, who violates a code of …

(1) Within ten school days of any decision to change the placement of a student eligible for special education services because of a violation of a code of student conduct, the school district, the parent, and relevant members of the student's IEP team (as determined by the paren…

If the school district, the parent, and relevant members of the student's IEP team determine the conduct to be a manifestation of the student's disability, the IEP team must either:(1) Conduct a functional behavioral assessment, unless the school district had conducted a function…

(1) When disciplinary changes in placement exceed ten consecutive school days, and the behavior that gave rise to the violation of the school code is determined not to be a manifestation of the student's disability pursuant to WAC 392-172A-05146, school personnel may apply the re…