Parent in Texas

1. Know the two sources

Your child's rights come from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a federal law usually called IDEA. It requires schools to find and evaluate students who may need special education, to write an individualized education program if the student is eligible, to educate the student with peers to the greatest extent appropriate, and to give families written procedural safeguards.

The Texas Education Agency, TEA, is the state agency that carries out IDEA in Texas. TEA publishes state guidance for families and districts, and it handles state complaint processes. When Texas practice and federal law both apply, federal law is the floor and Texas cannot go below it.

2. Learn the word ARD

In most states the team that writes the IEP is called the IEP team. In Texas it is the ARD committee, short for Admission, Review, and Dismissal. Same purpose, different name. You are a member of that committee, not a guest at it.

3. Put your request in writing

If you want your child evaluated, ask the district in writing and keep a copy with the date. Written requests start the clock on the district's obligations and give you a record later. Ask the district, in writing, what happens next and by when, and ask them to point you to the rule they are relying on.

4. Read the safeguards before you need them

The district must give you a copy of your procedural safeguards. It covers consent, records, independent evaluations, disagreement, mediation, and complaints. Read it once while things are calm. It is much harder to absorb during a dispute.

5. Prepare for the meeting

• Ask for draft documents and the evaluation report before the meeting, in writing.
• Write down three things you want to change and what you would accept instead. Specific beats general.
• Bring examples: work samples, a homework log, a note about what mornings look like.
• Ask for anything agreed to be written into the document, not just discussed.
• You may bring someone with you. You do not have to sign at the table.

6. If you disagree

Disagreement is a normal part of the process, and there are formal paths for it, including independent educational evaluations, mediation, state complaints, and due process. Your safeguards document explains each one. TEA maintains the Texas side of those processes.

Your reading path, in order

1. Texas hub: the whole state section in one place.
2. What is an ARD meeting in Texas?
3. Preparing for your ARD
4. Prior Written Notice in plain language
5. 5-day notice and 10-day recess
6. Evaluations and FIIE overview
7. MDR and manifestation
8. Glossary: the words you will hear in the room.
9. For parents: the parent hub and what to do next.

If discipline is part of your situation, add Discipline and special education to the list.