-
Period: to
Evaluation Process
References
PICNH. (2021). Steps in the NH special education process. https://picnh.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Step-In-the-Special-Education-Process-2021.pdf -
Referral is Made
A referral is made for a student that is suspected of having a disability. -
Disposition of Referral
After referral is made, IEP team must meet within 15 days along with the parents to go over whether the child's needs could be met. This is then followed by the school district needing to explain their answer along with how they came to that conclusion. -
Parental Consent Gained
After the Disposition of Referral, parental consent must be obtained before any evaluations can begin -
Initial Evaluation
Initial Evaluations must be completed within 60 calendar days. The IEP team will review a student's history in order to decide what testing needs to be done. -
Determining Eligibility
After the initial evaluation, the IEP team meets to decide whether a student has a disability that will require special education/ related services. -
Developing the IEP
Within 30 days of determining eligibility, the IEP team must meet to start creating the IEP. This means creating all the essential elements of the IEP along with planning how to transition the student into the plan. -
Completing the IEP
Parents will have up to 14 days to review the IEP plan and deciding how they will respond to each part. They can accept or deny any of the parts while also making suggestions for changes. -
Determining Placement
Once everything is approved, the IEP team will meet to find the least restrictive environment (LRE) for the student that is able to implement their IEP. This allows for them to learn in a regular classroom before moving to another classroom in the case that the regular one cannot satisfy their needs. -
Reevaluation
Students must be re-evaluated at least once every three years but it can be done more frequently if circumstances call for it.