SELPAs Help Families and Districts Resolve Conflicts

Three letters that have a big impact on students with disabilities and their families have been a focus of our Special Education Local Plan Areas (SELPAs) as they provided support to their member districts this past year — ADR.

The acronym stands for alternative dispute resolution. It’s a process for families to use when they have concerns about their child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) and need to resolve a conflict with the district. SELPAs were recently provided with one-time funds under the Dispute Prevention/Dispute Resolution grant, and each SELPA’s member districts developed a plan for the funds that met their unique needs.

To understand the importance of ADR, let’s back up a little. School districts work with families and students with disabilities to see how to best accommodate the student, and it may be determined that special education placement is the best option.

Each student in special education is required to have an IEP that describes the plan for that student’s educational program. It’s required by law to include several specific elements.

Families and districts work together to ensure the IEP is in the best interest of the student. But sometimes concerns arise.

Our regional SELPAs have been helping their member districts and families to resolve concerns before they become larger issues or turn into lawsuits.

“Lawsuits are costly and often don’t focus on solving problems,” explained Heather DiFede, executive director of the East County SELPA. “We hired a coordinator, provided training to local educational agencies on dispute resolution, training to families, and developed a system for families to engage when they have concerns about their child’s educational plan.”

The East County SELPA also collaborated with the Exceptional Family Resource Center, a local family empowerment center, to create short videos explaining the different terms involved in special education and the rights of families in the IEP process.

Russell Coronado, executive director of South County SELPA shared, "ADR provides an opportunity for individuals to resolve disagreements in a safe, efficient process. Because ADR is voluntary, it allows a neutral person to find common ground between the local educational agency and the parent with a focus on the child."

SELPAs across our county have been reviewing IEPs, providing support to families throughout the IEP process, and facilitating resolutions between families and districts, getting services to the students who need them and strengthening family-district relationships in the process. Some SELPAs also contract with the Exceptional Family Resource Center or other consulting firms to provide training or similar services to families in need.

“We’ve dramatically increased parent participation in SELPA and community advisory committee-sponsored trainings designed to empower and connect families with services and programming for their students,” shared Rebecca Nobriga, executive director of the North Coastal Consortium for Special Education.

North Inland Special Education Region has focused its work on the prevention of disputes.

“We have focused specifically on improving the IEP processes for member districts to enhance meaningful parent involvement, boost collaboration between the IEP team members, and implement strategies to foster positive student-focused meetings,” said Jaime Tate-Symons, executive director of the SELPA.

One example of this work is that small districts in rural communities were provided technology to improve online meeting formats where all team members are visible and heard.

In addition to IEP resolution and mediation support, some SELPA teams created free workshops for parents to learn more about IEPs, ADR, and communication tools and tips when working with districts.

“It was wonderful to hear specifically how ADR can help families. You all do amazing work and you are so appreciated!” said a participant in a South County SELPA parent event.

The South County SELPA also has an ADR newsletter for parents and parent office hours for family members and caregivers to access support and resources.

Top Photo: South County SELPA ADR team Jenn Gorospe Tull, Heidi Lyon, Lindsay Cross, Laura Cervantes, and Mayra Jaramillo.

Bottom Photo: NCCSE parent liaisons Heidi Marshall, Shauna Schmoke, and CAC Executive Board Member Jeff Ladman

Front page photo: Heather DiFede and Hinda Nadif, from East County SELPA.