Submit a Complaint
The Arizona Department of Education has two separate mechanisms by which a complaint regarding a student’s education can be filed. The Investigative Unit is authorized to investigate complaints related to the professional conduct of certificated education staff. The Investigative Unit does not have the authority to investigate allegations related to the provision of special education.
The Dispute Resolution Unit is available to resolve disputes involving students with disabilities who are eligible for special education services and does not have the authority to investigate allegations of teacher misconduct. Please read more about each of these units below!
Investigative Unit
The Arizona State Board of Education rules in Arizona Administrative Code (A.A.C.), Title 7, Chapter 2, Articles 7 and 13, provide for the adjudication of disciplinary issues and regulation of the conduct of educators.
The Board is responsible for imposing “such disciplinary action including the issuance of a letter of censure, suspension, suspension with conditions or revocation of a certificate, upon a finding of immoral or unprofessional conduct” pursuant to A.R.S. §§ 15-203(A)(14)and 15-203(A)(20). The Board’s rules provide that certificate holders who violate any provision of A.A.C. R7-2-1308 are deemed to have engaged in immoral or unprofessional conduct and may be disciplined by the Board. All reports of unprofessional or immoral conduct against a certified educator should initially be directed toward the Arizona Department of Education’s Investigative Unit.
The public should report certified educator misconduct to the Arizona Department of Education’s Investigative Unit using a Statement of Allegations Packet and notarized original Statement of Allegations Packet must be mailed to the Investigative Unit per instructions on Statement of Allegations Packet.
- If there are questions about the allegations process, please reach out to our Investigative Unit at 602-542-2972 or [email protected]
- LEAs and Charter Schools should report allegations of misconduct of certified educators through Common Logon via Certification Search or Teacher Input Application (TIA) or AzEDCert Educator Portal
- Charter Schools that do not have access to Common Logon or AzEDCert Educator Portal should fill out a statement of allegation and notarized original Statement of Allegations Packet must be submitted via mailed to the Investigative Unit per instructions on Statement of Allegations Packet.
Special Education Dispute Resolution
The special education dispute resolution unit is authorized to investigate issues that arise when a provision of IDEA part B or its implementing federal and state laws and regulations are alleged to have been violated or when a student eligible for special education services is not provided with a free and appropriate public education. The dispute resolution unit has the following processes available to resolve special education disputes: state administrative complaint, mediation, request for due process hearing and facilitated IEP. Please visit the dispute resolution webpage for information related to the mediation and facilitated IEP programs. To access the model complaint forms for filing a state administrative complaint or a request for due process hearing, please click the links below.
The State Complaint falls under the State’s general supervisory authority and is a process through which members of the community can alert the state education agency (SEA) of potential noncompliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in public schools. The SEA is only authorized to investigate those allegations pertinent to special education procedure as referenced in the IDEA, its implementing regulations, the Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.), and Title 7 of the Arizona Administrative Code (A.A.C.).
Learn More About State Complaints
Due Process is the most formal of the dispute resolution options and may be used to resolve any matter relating to the identification, evaluation, placement of a child, or the provision of a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to the child. A due process complaint can be filed by a parent, the school, or a student who has reached the age of majority (18 in Arizona).
