What Do Parents Need to Do Before the End of the School Year?

Event Recap

May. 26, 2022Updated Jun. 10, 2022

As June approaches, many IEP teams are busy trying to wrap up the school year. On May 19, 2022, we talked with Dr. Sarah Pelangka, special education advocate and owner of KnowIEPs, to learn about any loose ends that parents need to work on tying up before the end of the year. Check out the highlights from our discussion about ESY, learning loss, and more.

Before summer: Figure out ESY and transition services

You may not be able to completely finish and sign your child’s IEP before the end of the year, but you can sign the parts that should be in place before summer, like extended school year (ESY). Ideally, you’ll address transitions too so that things are already in place on the first day of school in fall. Listen to this clip for other examples of services that you’ll want to address in an IEP meeting before summer if possible.

During our live event, Clarisse O asked in the chat window, “What if ESY was offered but it is not an appropriate setting for the child? The child is in a general ed classroom with supports, but ESY is only SDC classrooms. There will be regression. However, putting the child in the right placement in ESY may not be a great setting. Is there a way we can ask for summer tutorial or other services from school?”

Undivided Navigator Iris Barker responded, “This is so true! SO many times we are offered ESY but in SDC. We brought this up to our school district, and they were going to give us a spot in their typical kids' summer program with an aide. It is worth asking!”

Request extra services for learning loss

The pandemic and virtual learning have been disruptive to many students’ education over the past two years. As a result, California school districts have received funds to address learning loss and regression caused by the pandemic. Check out the clip below for Dr. Pelangka’s advice about how to prove that your child should receive extra services:

The difference between recoupment and comp ed

If your student’s education was negatively impacted by the pandemic, you may be able to request recoupment and/or compensatory education services. Dr. Pelangka explains the difference between these two in the clip below:

You can also check out our articles about comp ed and recoupment for learning loss due to the pandemic.

It’s important to note that if your child attends a non-public school (NPS), they are still part of the school district. The district is responsible for ensuring that their needs are met, so your child may be eligible for recoupment.

Watch the full recording

If you missed the event or want to review what we learned, you can catch the full recording here.

To learn more about helping your child get the supports they need, be sure to attend our next live event to ask your questions in the chat and hear from our experts and fellow parents! Keep an eye on our Facebook page to learn more about upcoming events, and join our private Facebook group to keep the discussion going.

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Overview

Before summer: Figure out ESY and transition services

Request extra services for learning loss

The difference between recoupment and comp ed

Watch the full recording

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