New York State Individualized Education Program (IEP) Facilitation LIASEA Patricia J. Geary NYSED Office of Special Education November 2015

Staff from NYSED Office of Special Education Cathryn Tisenchek Supervisor Due Process Unit Jessica Gallo Associate Due Process Unit 2

The purpose of IEP Facilitation is to:  develop and sustain collaborative, productive relationships between Committee on Special Education members;  keep meetings student-focused; and  reduce adversarial disputes during the IEP development process. 3

What are your questions? 4

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IEP Facilitation: National Status States are making significant investments in early collaborative alternative dispute resolution activities:  41 states and jurisdictions are providing, developing, or exploring the use of IEP facilitation;  30 of these currently offer IEP facilitation statewide (compared to 8 in 2005); and  23 states have supported other activities, including local capacity building, ombudspersons, stakeholder training, advisory opinions, and other innovative approaches. 6

IEP Facilitation in NYS  Three-year pilot program  Two regions of the State  NYC  Long Island 7

Why is IEP Facilitation Needed? Improve parent-district relationships Mediation is under utilized in NYS Use of Impartial Due Process Hearings is over utilized in NYS and the trend is upward Few issues are resolved through resolution sessions 8

Prior to Pilot Initiation  Consultation and technical assistance from the Center for Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE)  Benchmarking and discussion with other states  NYSED staff participated in IEP Facilitation Training  Stakeholder dialogue  Member of national workgroup on IEP Facilitation 9

Without disclosing student’s names -  Discuss with your ‘elbow partner’ an IEP meeting that you would describe as ‘not going well’. 10

Content and Process 11

Meeting Functions and Roles Key2Ed 2005, 2013 Functions of an IEP Meeting – the work that gets accomplished Roles – who does the work 12  Participating and contributing to the discussions  Managing the IEP meeting process, encouraging everyone to contribute their ideas and thoughts  Managing information, paperwork, record of the meeting  Making decisions, understanding use of consensus  Parent(s)/guardians  Student  Regular education teacher(s)  Special education teacher(s) / providers  School psychologist  LEA representative  ….

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14  Shared responsibility  Collaborative attitude  Strategic Planning  Facilitative Behaviors  Everyone in a meeting can play an active and positive role in producing meaningful results  Guides individuals to act in a cooperative manner  Selecting an appropriate course of action to achieve desired results  Help people build understanding and agreement Key2Ed 2005, 2013

“Where these concepts come together, the team finds shared responsibility and shared understanding.” * * Doug and Joyce Little, Key2Ed 15

What is IEP Facilitation? 16

When should it be used?  IEP facilitation is a voluntary process that can be used when parents and districts agree that the presence of a neutral third party would help facilitate communication and the successful development of recommendations for a student’s IEP.  This process is not necessary for most IEP meetings.  It is most often utilized when there is a sense from any of the participants that the issues at the IEP meeting are creating an impasse or acrimonious climate. 17

The IEP Facilitator’s Role  “A neutral facilitator is someone who does not share any content knowledge about the student but rather is there simply to guide the meeting process, encourage participation, make sure that everyone is working on the same thing at the same time.” Key2Ed 18

What happens at a facilitated IEP meeting?  The IEP Facilitator greets all participants and asks each participant to identify the role he/she is in at the meeting.  An agenda is reviewed/developed with suggestions from all participants and the desired outcome of the meeting is identified and agreed to by everyone.  Group norms (rules) are agreed to (e.g., communicate clearly; respect the views of others).  The agenda, desired outcome and group norms are posted so everyone can see them and refer to them throughout the meeting. 19

 The meeting occurs with facilitation techniques being used.  An IEP is developed or revised and an action plan for implementing the IEP is agreed upon.  The participants review what was successful in the meeting due to IEP Facilitation and what could be changed in the future. What happens at a facilitated IEP meeting? 20

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Role of the IEP Facilitator  Helps committee members  Focus on needs of student  Resolve conflicts and disagreements  Maintain open communication  Develop and ask clarifying questions  Stay on task and within time allotted  Maintains impartiality 22

The Role of the Facilitator - DOES  Help members of the CSE or CPSE identify the needs of the child and develop or revise an IEP everyone can agree with  Help the committee in solving problems and disagreements about the IEP  Help keep open communication among all members of the committee  Help committee members develop and ask questions for better understanding  Help committee members stay on task and within the time set aside for the meeting  Maintain fairness 23

The Role of the Facilitator – DOES NOT  Does not offer legal, regulatory or policy advice, but may need to clarify (explain) when more information is needed  Does not take sides, place blame or determine if a particular decision is right or wrong  Does not make IEP decisions  Does not force a decision on the group  Does not serve as a member of the CSE or CPSE  Does not replace the LEA representative or another member at the meeting 24

Who are the IEP Facilitators?  IEP Facilitators are selected by NYSED and trained in IEP development, special education law and regulation and conflict resolution.  23 IEP Facilitators selected for Others may be added at a later date.  Trained by Key2Ed.  The facilitator is not a decision-maker, is impartial and does not represent the parent, school district or State. 25

IEP FACILITATOR QUALIFICATIONS  Bachelor’s degree or higher  Experience in a human services field (e.g., psychology, education, social work) and/or a dispute resolution field  Leadership skills as well as strong oral and written communication skills’  Experience in interest-based problem solving and effective meeting facilitation  Preference to individuals who are also fluent in a language other than English and who have experience working with diverse cultures 26

The Key2Ed founders developed IEP meeting facilitation in the 90s. Douglass and Joyce Little 27

Key2ED IEP Facilitation Training  3-day training  Specific tools and techniques for IEP meeting participants to improve positive communication, reduce conflict, and focus the meeting on the needs of the child  Guide IEP teams to agree on appropriate IEP recommendations  Channel communication to building mutual understanding based on respect  Create agreements based on full participation from all members  Generate informed discussions  Prevent, reduce, and resolve conflict 28

IEP Facilitators have been trained on:  The IEP Facilitation process and purpose  Learning objectives for facilitation  Resolve conflict, maintain momentum, effective communication…  Elements of facilitation  Shared responsibility, collaboration, strategic planning…  How to plan a successful interactive meeting  Shared development of agenda, identify desired outcomes  Special education law and regulation  IDEA, Federal regulations, NYS Law, NYS regulations 29

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Requesting IEP Facilitation  Either a parent or a school district may ask for IEP Facilitation.  Both the parent and school district must agree to use IEP Facilitation.  Upon receiving a parent request or when the school district requests to use IEP Facilitation, the parent and school district complete and sign an ‘IEP Facilitation Request Form.’ 31

Request form agreement

Appointment of IEP Facilitator 33

Written Agreement  Signed by the district, parent and IEP facilitator prior to the meeting  The agreement form includes, but is not limited to identifying the following:  the role of the IEP Facilitator and agreement to participate in the IEP Facilitation;  the IEP Facilitator has no conflict of interest;  the parent has given permission for the district to share personal student information with the IEP Facilitator at the meeting; and  use of IEP Facilitation may not be used to deny or delay a parent’s right to a hearing or a parent’s due process complaint, or the parent’s and district’s use of mediation to settle disagreements mentForm.pdf

Arranging for the facilitated IEP meeting  Provide IEP facilitator with copy of meeting notice which identifies who is expected to attend, location, time, and purpose of the meeting.  IEP Facilitator does not seek additional information prior to the meeting from the district or the parent regarding the issues to be discussed. Facilitator enters the meeting as neutral.  District should assist the IEP facilitator regarding materials needed (e.g., poster paper, markers) and room arrangement. 35

Evaluation of IEP Facilitation  Evaluation form  Voluntary completion  Form submitted to NYSED  NYSED reviews each form  Discussion with Stakeholder groups 36 /documents/EvaluationForm.pdf

 During Pilot Project, NYSED pays the costs for the IEP facilitator.  District must verify that IEP Facilitator performed the service submitted by the district to NYSED.  $ per IEP Facilitation. 37

IEP Facilitation Video IEP Facilitation Video facilitation/ facilitation/ 38

Resources for Information  NYSED  Video – in development  Informational materials  Translated into 5 languages facilitation/IEPFacilitation.html  CADRE 0for%20CADRE%20English.pdf 0for%20CADRE%20English.pdf  PACER 

What are your questions? 40

Questions? 41