All school districts and charter schools are required to annually administer the nine-question State Performance Plan, Indicator 8: Parent Involvement Survey to all parents of students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP).
The Parent Involvement Survey is open February 2 through May 31, 2023.
The ESS Parent Survey application is accessed via ADE Connect. To obtain access to the application, please contact your Entity Administrator.
SY ‘22 results are available via ADEConnect. Refer to the FAQ section below for more information.
Utilize the following approaches to boost parent involvement and strengthen partnerships.
Provide a draft IEP prior to the meeting and encourage parental input. Include proposals and all relevant documents.
Greet parents upon arrival and introduce all participants.
Distribute the IEP meeting agenda and allow for parental input.
Review participants’ roles and responsibilities.
Ask teachers and related service providers to share strategies with families to support their child’s progress at home.
Ensure equal time for parental input into each component of the IEP process.
Offer to review of the Procedural Safeguards Notice (PSN).
Review pertinent local policies.
Establish regular—formal and informal—communication with parents regarding their child’s progress. Celebrate successes and discuss concerns.
Use parent-friendly person-first language and check for understanding.
Identify a point of contact for child-specific questions (i.e., teacher or case manager) and for general special education questions (i.e., the school parent liaison, a Raising Special Kids Family Support Specialist).
Utilize interpreters who are familiar with the special education process and terminology.
Use a variety of media for effective home/school communication (e.g., newsletters, flyers, phone calls, reminder apps, Facebook, Twitter).
Notify parents of all school activities—including extracurricular events—and encourage their participation.
Be sensitive to how each family is affected by their child’s disability and mindful of their cultural values, beliefs, and perceptions.
Offer meeting days and times to accommodate family schedules.
Propose a variety of meeting options (e.g., school site, home visit, conference call, video conference).
Offer special education training and resources to parents and staff (e.g., host workshops, disseminate parent group training calendars, display resource materials).
Plan and promote workshops based on input from families.
Develop and maintain parent advisory councils and family support groups.
Create a family-friendly atmosphere that welcomes and engages parents.
Seek parental input on special and general education topics.
Encourage parental input in the decision-making process.
Provide staff development on a variety of topics that impact special education and parent involvement.
The FY24 Statement of Assurances application is open for submission. All PEAs must submit the IDEA Statement of Assurances (SOA) through the ESS Portal of ADEConnect. This is required before any FY24 activities in the Exceptional Student Services portal are allowable. The portal will block any PEA that has not completed the SOA after the deadline.
The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next Special Education Data Updates live webinar on Wednesday, June 21,from 2pm – 3pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include (subject to change):
