Eligibility
A child must be referred for an initial evaluation and found eligible for services before special education services can be provided. No matter what age your child is, or what grade he or she is in, if you have any concerns, or know that your child has a disability, ask that your child be evaluated for special education services.
A child is eligible for special education if he or she has one or more of the following disabilities:
Instruction and Services
Special education refers to individualized educational and related services for children with disabilities. To determine what educational and related services a child will receive, a case conference committee will develop an Individualized Education Program (IEP).
A case conference committee is a group of people, including school personnel and parents, who decides if a student is eligible for special education and what special education and related services will be provided to an eligible student, based on his or her needs.
An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a written document developed by the case conference committee that describes accommodations, modifications, special education and related services that will be provided to the student. The IEP must be reviewed and updated by the case conference committee every 12 months.
Services that may be included in an IEP include:
All special education services must be provided in the least restrictive environment (LRE). LRE means educating a child with disabilities along side children who do not have disabilities, for all or part of the school day, or as much as possible.
Article 7 – Indiana's Special Education Regulation
Indiana's state regulation, which has the effect of law, for special education is known as "Article 7." Article 7 is based on federal law known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA '04) and the federal regulations for IDEA.
Article 7 – English Version
Article 7 – Spanish Version