After the ARD (IEP) meeting, it is important to draft and send a follow-up letter to the ARD (IEP) facilitator to provide your perspective on the meeting. This document serves as a crucial record of any issues discussed, which can be helpful if you need to file a complaint or pursue legal action against the school district. It is essential to focus on presenting factual information in this document, as opposed to engaging in arguments. Before you begin drafting the parental attachment, review your notes from the meeting, the IEP document, and, if available, any recordings of the meeting.
“If it was not written down, it was not said. If it was not written down, it did not happen.” — Pete Wright
After the ARD (IEP) Meeting
No later than the following day, sit down and list everything said in the ARD (IEP) meeting, including what was agreed upon, what was not agreed upon, and things that were said but no decision was made. Include things discussed even if you did not like what was said. You can do this in bullet point form.
The Follow-Up Letter
Here are some suggestions of things you include in the letter:
- If you were given a copy of the IEP document read over it carefully. List any errors in the IEP document and request that they be corrected.
- If you have not received a copy of the IEP and were not given a date, ask when you can expect to receive a copy.
- Document if you were not given enough time to address your concerns.
- Make sure to document if something was discussed but a solution was not developed and put it in the IEP. (i.e. We discussed Johnny’s difficulty with receptive language, but we failed to discuss and develop a solution to help Johnny improve his receptive language skills. Is another ARD meeting needed to address this? I feel it is important for Johnny to be able to develop this skill.)
- Include any additional testing you requested and the school’s response. If the school agreed to the testing and you did not sign a consent form at the ARD (IEP) meeting ask that you be given the consent form to sign.
- Document any requests denied by the school.
- Record any decisions made by the school that you did not agree with.
- If any additional paperwork was to be provided to you, what that was, who was to provide it, and the date it was to be provided. If a date was not given ask when you can expect to receive the paperwork.
Sample Wording for the Follow-Up Letter
Dear (ARD (IEP) Facilitator),
I want to thank you and the rest of the committee for meeting with us on (date of ARD meeting) to develop (child’s name)’s IEP for the next year. A lot was discussed during the meeting and I want to make sure I am understanding it correctly. During the meeting, we discussed:
- List out everything that was discussed during the meeting, using the points above as suggestions of items to mention. Do not leave anything out, except for emotions.
Please let me know in writing if I misunderstood anything or left anything out. I will look for my copy of the finalized IEP document (do not include if you were already provided a copy) and the PWN within the next 5 days.
Sincerely,
Your Name
Please place a copy of this letter in my child’s permanent education file.
You can e-mail or print and hand deliver the letter. If you hand deliver the letter, be sure to write down the date, time, and the name of the person you gave the letter to on your copy.
In my next post, we will discuss what to do next to ensure you child receives the support they need.
If you require further assistance or guidance, feel free to reach out to me. I’m here to support you in advocating for your child’s educational needs.
This post intends to give you a general idea of the special education process. Samantha Davis cannot predict the outcome of any meetings, including ARD (IEP) meetings held for your child. Special education eligibility and/or services that are offered to your child are based on the decision of the ARD (IEP) committee as a whole.
