Undivided’s New IEP Assistant: Common Parent Questions

Undivided’s IEP Assistant is a first-of-its-kind tool designed to help parents review key information in their child’s IEP and prepare for more productive conversations with the school. We sat down with CEO Seth Besse to learn how IEP Assistant works and see how game-changing tools can make a difference for our IEP prep.

Check out the recording of our IEP Assistant walkthrough with Seth Besse:

Here are Besse’s answers to some common parent questions about using the new IEP Assistant:

How does Undivided’s IEP Assistant work?

Once you’ve uploaded your IEP document, IEP Assistant extracts all of the information from the IEP and goes through step by step to identify the different sections of an IEP based on AI training and large language models. Every SELPA or school district has a different format, so it identifies where to find the goals, services, accommodations, etc. It also looks at parent concerns that are contained in the IEP and any other information that helps you understand where the child’s support needs may be. This system is really designed to help you understand your IEP, think about your IEP in different ways, and organize your thoughts around getting ready for your IEP meeting.

Can anyone else see my child’s IEP?

IEP uses trained AI models in a HIPAA-compliant way, so none of your private information goes to any external party. All of that is contained within Undivided’s HIPAA-compliant system, so none of it can be used for training of AI models or any external system. In addition, IEP Assistant is not trained on any documents you upload, so no other Undivided parent will be able to see your child’s information. Your Navigator will be able to see the documents in your account, and you can send documents to a provider if you choose.

How do I access IEP Assistant?

This tool is out live to all Undivided members. Anyone who has either a Platform membership or a Navigator membership can access it from their child’s Roadmap by adding the “Prepare for my annual IEP meeting goal.”

When you log into your account, you may see a prompt that asks if you would like to prepare for your IEP. Clicking through will prompt you to go through the process of adding this goal if it's not already there or viewing that goal if it already exists in your account. We're working on adding a widget on the homepage.

How long does it take for IEP Assistant to analyze my IEP?

Shorter IEPs can be processed in one or two minutes. Longer, complex IEPs can take up to ten or twelve minutes. Once you upload your document, Undivided will send you an alert and an email when it's done processing. If your upload takes more than fifteen minutes, there may have been an extraction error; the Undivided team will be notified and take a look at the issue.

How do I use IEP Assistant to review goals?

IEP Assistant is your workspace as a parent to collect your thoughts around your IEP, both the whole document and individual pieces. When you look at a goal, you can view the baseline (if it’s written in the IEP). You can look at the present levels of performance that are related to the goal, and you can look at the short-term objectives of the goal. If you click through each goal, you’ll see recommendations based on the structure of the goal or how it's written. You can add Andy AI’s recommendation as a note, or you can create your own note from scratch. You can also dismiss Andy AI’s recommendation and move to the next goal, and then go through each of the goals one by one.

How do I use IEP Assistant to review services or accommodations?

In the same way you can review goals and recommendations, you can choose to add Andy AI’s recommendation as a note or add your own note from scratch.

How does IEP Assistant help with IEP prep?

IEP Assistant will help you create your notes and lay everything out in a nice, clean format with a summary write-up of the IEP and the general notes that you want to discuss with your team. The idea is to take all these recommendations for you as a parent to really think about. We're not saying what's best for your child, but we're trying to inspire you to think, “Is this something I want to talk to my team about? Is this something that could be improved for my child along the way?” Then, when it comes time to prepare for your meeting or discuss concerns with the team, you can go ahead and print your notes.

What if I get a new IEP document?

At any point, if you get a new draft or an amendment, you can add a new IEP. Once you upload a new document, the system will process it, extract all the information out of it, and run you through that same system. You don’t have to delete a previously uploaded document before you can add a new one. Click “View Previous IEPs” to see past documents.

Can IEP Assistant compare an old IEP and a new one?

Right now, the answer is no; that is something that we're working on. Over time, what we want to do is take an IEP from last year, take this year's IEP, and compare the differences between those IEPs. We’ll look at the present levels of performance in each, and see whether progress is being made, whether the same goals are being recycled from last year, etc. That's something that we are working very diligently on and anticipate to get out at some point over the next six months.

Is IEP Assistant available in another language?

IEP Assistant is only available in English at this time. There are a number of things in our app that we're working on getting language translations for in the future.

Can I upload a document besides an IEP, like a progress report or assessment?

Right now, the system is only set up for IEP documents. We're working on the process of uploading a progress report, matching it to the IEP that's been uploaded, and then digging into whether progress has been made in that particular area or not, and even work toward recommending what may be appropriate goals going forward based on that progress.

Once I’ve dismissed a recommendation, can I go back to review it?

We do not currently allow parents to view dismissed recommendations, but that is something we are adding in the future because they’re saved on the back end.

How do I use IEP Assistant for two kids with different IEP documents?

Switch between your two children’s Roadmaps, and you’ll be able to work on the “Prepare for my annual IEP” goal and upload your documents for each child separately.

Can IEP Assistant write new IEP goals for me?

Not currently. Moving forward, we’re working on optional features in Andy AI for parents to brainstorm IEP goals. Andy AI will be able to interview you as a parent to understand where your child's support needs may be so that we can push that information into the IEP process. We’re also working on incorporating a number of different templates for communication with the school and requesting different services through your IEP. We're working on building that capability into Andy, so there'll be a whole bunch of new enhancements coming out that we will let everyone know about.

Can I use IEP Assistant for a 504 plan?

We're working on a version specifically tailored for 504s.

Do I still need an education advocate?

Undivided’s IEP Assistant uses what’s written in your child’s IEP document to make some recommendations and help you think about what you can ask your IEP team and what you should be looking at in your IEP. This tool is not a replacement for advocates, nor is it a replacement for you going through your child's IEP and really working hand in hand with your child's IEP team.

How do I report a bug or provide feedback about IEP Assistant?

If you’re a Navigator-level member, you can let your Navigator know your feedback to pass on to our IEP Assistant development team. Part of the beauty of what we do as a company is that our Navigators are often our internal testers, so if you are working with a Navigator, please keep them up to date on what features, information, and systems would be helpful. What we prioritize and work on directly comes from parents working with Navigators.

You can also email support@undivided.io.

In the future, we'll be adding a number of different ways that you can give us feedback directly in the system.