Your mediation meeting will be facilitated by an ALJ from the Office of Administrative Hearings. They will first ask all parties to sign a confidentiality agreement: what happens in the mediation meeting stays in the mediation meeting, and does not affect the outcome of any later hearing.
The judge will begin in the joint room by asking both sides about any offers that have emerged in the earlier discussions. The parties will be asked to put forward their conditions for settlement, and the process will go back and forth until you both agree. It can be a long day. In larger school districts, the meetings may be scheduled for half a day only.
If you come to an agreement in the mediation meeting, the terms will then be written into a settlement agreement, which you will sign while there. Make sure your agreement stipulates whether those terms will be written into the IEP, and whether they will end at the next annual IEP. Be sure you understand the implications of any waiver of your child’s rights. The terms should also stipulate your “stay put,” should you disagree again at the next IEP.
In most cases, the settlement needs to be approved by the Board of Education. This is done confidentially in a closed session. Once the board has voted on your settlement, the OAH will close the case.
For more information, see our article Due Process 101: Filing for Due Process, Mediation, and the Hearing.
