SPECIAL EDUCATION RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Chapter 5

Information on Related Services

From a 13-Chapter Manual

Available by Chapter and in Manual Form

Written by:

Community Alliance for Special Education (CASE)

and

Protection and Advocacy, Inc. (PAI)

Copyright © 1992 by CASE and PAI

Ninth Edition

Revised December 2005

Written permission of the Community Alliance for Special Education (CASE) and Protection and Advocacy, Inc. (PAI) must be obtained for duplication of the materials contained in Special Education Rights and Responsibilities.

These materials are based on special education laws and court decisions in effect at the time of publication. Federal and state special education law can change at any time. If there is any question about the continued validity of any information in the handbook, contact CASE, PAI or a legal authority in your community.

 

Federal special education law was significantly amended by Congress in 2004 and will be further clarified by regulations from the U.S. Department of Education in 2006. The California Education Code has been amended to reflect some of the federal law changes but not all.  In certain circumstances where it provides greater protections or entitlements, California law will continue to control special education pupils’ rights unless it is amended to completely conform to federal law.

CASE and PAI will monitor the development of conforming state law and regulations, so that revised state laws and regulations can be incorporated into later supplements and editions of SERR.

For further information on the development of federal and state law and regulation, or clarification about IDEA implementation, please contact CASE or PAI.

 

Community Alliance for Special Education (CASE) provides legal support, representation, technical assistance consultations, and training to parents throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area whose children need appropriate special education services. Trained advocates and attorneys assist parents at IEP meetings, Mediation Conferences and Due Process Hearings. CASE also provides free consultations about special education rights and services to parents and professionals by telephone or face-to-face. CASE is a nonprofit organization serving all children with disabilities who need or may need special education services. For more information, contact:

CASE

 

Protection and Advocacy, Inc. (PAI), is a private, nonprofit organi­zation that protects the legal, civil and service rights of Californians who have develop­mental or mental disabilities. PAI provides a variety of advocacy services, including information and referral, technical assistance, and direct representation. For information or assistance with an immediate problem, call:

PAI

Toll Free: (800) 776-5746

9:00 AM to 5:00 PM - Monday through Friday

 

 

PAI receives funding under the Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act and the Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act. Any opinions, findings, recommendations or conclusions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations which fund PAI.

SPECIAL EDUCATION RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1             Information on Basic Rights and Responsibilities

Chapter 2             Information on Evaluations/Assessments

Chapter 3             Information on Eligibility Criteria

Chapter 4             Information on IEP Process

Chapter 5             Information on Related Services

Chapter 6             Information on Due Process Hearings/Compliance Complaints

Chapter 7             Information on Least Restrictive Environment

Chapter 8             Information on Discipline of Students with Disabilities

Chapter 9             Information on Inter-Agency Responsibility for Related Services (AB 3632/882)

Chapter 10        Information on Vocational Education

Chapter 11        Information on Preschool Education Services

Chapter 12        Information on Early Intervention Services

NOTE:              The text in each chapter refers to specific questions in other chapters by using the titles shown above

 

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SPECIAL EDUCATION RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Chapter 5

Information on Related Services

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Question                                                                                    Page

1.      SEE ALSO CHAPTER 1, QUESTION AND ANSWER 10. What are related services?. 1

2.      What is the difference between “Related Services” and “Designated Instruction and Services” (DIS)?. 6

3.      What does “required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education” mean?. 6

4.      What is an example of a needed service that is not “related” to education?. 6

5.      When can my child get transportation as a related service?. 7

6.      Can the school district refuse to provide out-of-district transportation for my child?. 9

7.      Can the school district stop providing transportation if my child is mainstreamed in regular classes?. 9

8.      May a school district provide transportation only to those students who live at least a specified minimum distance from their school site (for example, two miles)?. 10

9.      May a school district require parents to provide transportation if they are able?. 10

10.   When can my child get occupational or physical therapy as a related service?. 10

11.   When can my child get psychological counseling or other mental health services as a related service?. 11

12.   Does my child need to be classified as “emotionally disturbed” to receive mental health services?. 12

13.   When can my child get speech or language therapy as a related service?. 12

14.   Can the school district limit all children to two half-hour speech therapy sessions per week because it only has one speech therapist on staff?. 12

15.   Can my child get communication services and equipment if he is non-oral?. 12

16.   Can my child receive vision therapy as a related service?. 12

17.   What are school health services and who provides them?. 13

18.   My child needs health services such as tracheostomy care or catheterization in order to attend school, but the school district told me it does not have to provide such services because they are “medical.” Is this true?. 14

19.   My child needs nursing services in order to attend school (or to attend school in the otherwise appropriate least restrictive environment), but the school district told me it does not have to provide such services because they are “medical.” Is this true?. 14

20.   Can the school district require me to attend school with my child to perform health-related services?. 15

21.   Can I have the school district provide a certain type of related service?. 15

22.   SEE ALSO CHAPTER 1, QUESTION AND ANSWER 47. How do I decide who is qualified to provide a related service?. 15

23.   What must be written in my child’s IEP concerning related services?. 16

24.   SUPERSEDED. SEE ONLY CHAPTER 1, QUESTION AND ANSWER 22(A). Can the amount of related services, or IEP objectives for related services, be changed without convening an IEP meeting?. 17

25.   If my child is placed full time in a regular classroom is he entitled to receive related services?. 17

26.   Are school districts responsible for providing children with instructional aides?. 18

27.   What can I do if my child is not receiving a related service, as provided in the IEP, because the person who is to provide the service is absent?. 18

28.   Looking at the list of related services stated in the law, it seems that school districts must provide many nonacademic services. Do school districts actually provide these services?. 19

29.   Under what circumstances is my child entitled to residential placement?. 19

30.   Must my child be classified as emotionally disturbed before she is entitled to a residential placement?. 20

31.   SEE ALSO CHAPTER 1, QUESTION AND ANSWER 46. My child is placed in a nonpublic school. Can he receive related services from the public school system if he needs the services to benefit from education, and the services are not available from the nonpublic school?. 20

32.   SEE ALSO CHAPTER 1, QUESTION AND ANSWER 46. My child attends a religious school. Can she receive related services from the public school system if she needs such services to benefit from education and the services are not available at the religious school?. 22

33.   My child has ongoing behavior problems. Does the school district have any service responsibility to address those problems?. 22

34.   What does “behavioral intervention” mean and what purpose does it serve?. 23

35.   What do the California positive behavior intervention regulations require of school districts?. 23

36.   What is a “serious behavior problem” for purposes of qualifying for positive behavior intervention services under the regulations?. 24