Section 281.41.322. Parent participation.

       41.322(1) Public agency responsibility—general. Each public agency must take steps to ensure that one or both of the parents of a child with a disability are present at each IEP team meeting or are afforded the opportunity to participate, including:

        a.           Notifying parents of the meeting early enough to ensure that they will have an opportunity to attend; and

        b.           Scheduling the meeting at a mutually agreed-upon time and place.

       41.322(2) Information provided to parents.

        a.           The notice required under 41.322(1)“a” must:

       (1)             Indicate the purpose, time, and location of the meeting and who will be in attendance (name and position); and

       (2)             Inform the parents of the provisions in 41.321(1)“f” and 41.321(3) relating to the participation of other individuals on the IEP team who have knowledge or special expertise about the child and subrule 41.321(6) relating to the participation of the Part C service coordinator or other representatives of the Part C system at the initial IEP team meeting for a child previously served under Part C of the Act.

        b.           For a child with a disability, beginning not later than the first IEP to be in effect when the child turns 14, or younger if determined appropriate by the IEP team, the notice also must:

       (1)             Indicate that a purpose of the meeting will be the consideration of the postsecondary goals and transition services for the child, in accordance with subrule 41.320(2), and that the agency will invite the student; and

       (2)             Identify any other agency that will be invited to send a representative.

       41.322(3) Other methods to ensure parent participation. If neither parent can attend an IEP team meeting, the public agency must use other methods to ensure parent participation, including individual or conference telephone calls, consistent with rule 281—41.328(256B,34CFR300) related to alternative means of meeting participation.

       41.322(4) Conducting an IEP team meeting without a parent in attendance. A meeting may be conducted without a parent in attendance if the public agency is unable to convince the parents that they should attend. In this case, the public agency must keep a record of its attempts to arrange a mutually agreed-upon time and place, including:

        a.           Detailed records of telephone calls made or attempted and the results of those calls;

        b.           Copies of correspondence sent to the parents and any responses received; and

        c.           Detailed records of visits made to the parent’s home or place of employment and the results of those visits.

       41.322(5) Use of interpreters or other action, as appropriate. The public agency must take whatever action is necessary to ensure that the parent understands the proceedings of the IEP team meeting, including arranging for an interpreter for parents with deafness or whose native language is other than English.

       41.322(6) Parent copy of child’s IEP. The public agency must give the parent a copy of the child’s IEP at no cost to the parent.

       41.322(7) Rule of construction: “final” versus “draft” IEPs. An agency shall not present a completed and finalized IEP to parents before there has been a full discussion with the parents regarding the eligible individual’s need for special education and related services and the services the agency will provide to the individual. An agency may come prepared with evaluation findings, proposed statements of present levels of educational performance, proposed recommendations regarding annual goals or instructional objectives, and proposals concerning the nature of special education and related services to be provided. The agency shall inform the parents at the outset of the meeting that the proposals are only recommendations for review and discussion with the parents.