Building the Legacy: IDEA 2004

Button: Building the Legacy--IDEA 2004

Warning!

The information on this page is for historical reference only.

The following resources were associated with the 2004 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) re-authorization and were on the Building the Legacy: IDEA 2004 site. Some resources are outdated and no longer applicable to the current IDEA Statute and Regulations.

Relevant documents from the Building the Legacy: IDEA 2004 and updated resources can be found on the Topic Areas page.

Overview

Button: Building the Legacy--IDEA 2004

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law ensuring services to children with disabilities throughout the nation. IDEA governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education and related services to more than 6.5 million eligible infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities.

Infants and toddlers with disabilities (birth-2) and their families receive early intervention services under IDEA Part C. Children and youth (ages 3-21) receive special education and related services under IDEA Part B.

Part B

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Overview

This site was created to provide a “one-stop shop” for resources related to IDEA and its implementing regulations, released on August 3, 2006. It is a “living” website and will change and grow as resources and information become available. When fully implemented, the site will provide searchable versions of IDEA and the regulations, access to cross-referenced content from other laws (e.g., the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), etc.), video clips on selected topics, topic briefs on selected regulations, links to OSEP’s Technical Assistance and Dissemination (TA&D) Network and a Q&A Corner where you can submit questions, and a variety of other information sources. As items are completed and added to this site, we invite you to grow and learn with us as we implement these regulations.

Major Topics

Resources by Category

Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) sets forth requirements for States and local educational agencies (school districts) in providing special education and related services to children with disabilities, ages 3 through 21. Part B emphasizes the importance of including parents in decisions regarding the education of their children. Before a school district proposes or refuses to take action regarding the educational program of a child with a disability, the district must provide a “prior written notice” to the parents. The district must also, at specified times, provide parents with a “procedural safeguards notice” which explains their rights under Part B of the IDEA. Further, parents and school personnel must work together to develop an individualized education program (IEP) for each child which sets forth the services that the child will receive to meet his or her unique needs.

In the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (the 2004 reauthorization of the IDEA), the Congress required the U.S. Department of Education to publish and widely disseminate “model forms,” that are “consistent with the requirements of [Part B of the IDEA]” and “sufficient to meet those requirements.” Specifically, the reauthorization required the Department to develop forms for the: (1) IEP; (2) notice of procedural safeguards; and (3) prior written notice.

Attached to this introduction are the three forms that the Department has, consistent with the instructions from the Congress, developed to assist States and school districts in understanding the content that Part B requires for each of these three types of forms. The content of each of these forms is based upon the requirements set forth in the final Part B regulations. Although States must ensure that school districts include all of the content that Part B requires for each of the documents that they provide to parents, States are not required to use the format or specific language reflected in these forms. States may choose to add additional content to their forms, so long as any additional content is not inconsistent with Part B requirements.

These three forms closely track the language in the regulations. However, where appropriate, the Secretary has, in order to make the forms more user-friendly:

  • Used “school district” or “district” in place of “public agency” and “local educational agency.”
  • Used “you” in place of “parent” (or the student, where parental rights have been transferred from the parent to the student at the age of majority).
Available Downloads:

Children with Disabilities Parentally Placed in Private Schools (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Children with Disabilities Parentally Placed in Private Schools (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Data Reporting (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Discipline (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Discipline (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Fiscal Accountability (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

General Supervision Breakout Session (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

General Supervision (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

IDEA Part B Regulations Overview

IEP Team Changes/ Evaluation and Reevaluation (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

IEP Team Changes/ Evaluation and Reevaluation (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)
NOTE: Please use presentation from the OSEP Leadership Conference 2006

Monitoring, Technical Assistance, and Enforcement (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Monitoring, Technical Assistance, and Enforcement (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

NIMAS (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

NIMAS (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

IDEA Part B, Excess Cost

Procedural Safeguards (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Procedural Safeguards (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Response to Intervention (RTI) and Early Intervening Services (EIS) (OSEP Leadership Conference, 2006)

Response to Intervention (RTI) and Early Intervening Services (EIS) (OSEP Regional Implementation Meeting, 2007)

Part C

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Overview

This site was created to provide a “one-stop shop” for resources related to Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations, announced on September 6, 2011. It is a “living” website and will change and grow as resources and information become available. When fully implemented, the site will provide searchable versions of IDEA and the regulations, access to cross-referenced content from other laws (e.g., the Head Start Act, the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), etc.), webinars on selected topics, non-regulatory guidance, links to OSEP’s Technical Assistance and Dissemination (TA&D) Network, a Q&A Corner where you can submit questions, and a variety of other information sources. As items are completed and added to this site, we invite you to grow and learn with us as we implement these regulations.

On September 6, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education announced the release of the final regulations for the early intervention program under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). These final regulations will help improve services and outcomes for America’s infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.

Part C is a $436 million program administered by States that serves infants and toddlers through age 2 with developmental delays or who have diagnosed physical or mental conditions with high probabilities of resulting in developmental delays.

The final Part C regulations incorporate provisions in the 2004 amendments to Part C of the IDEA. Additionally, the final regulations provide States with flexibility in some areas, while ensuring State accountability to improve results and providing needed services for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families. The regulations focus on measuring and improving outcomes for the approximately 350,000 children served by the Part C program with the goal of ensuring that such children are ready for preschool and kindergarten.

“As everyone who works in education understands, one of the most important things we can offer children is a high-quality early learning experience that prepares them for kindergarten,” said U. S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan. “This is true for all children – but it’s especially important for infants and toddlers with disabilities to have access to high-quality early intervention services that prepare them to successfully transition to preschool and kindergarten. The Part C regulations will support the Education Department’s commitment to the goal of preparing more children with high needs with a strong foundation for success in school and beyond.”

Note that this document has been delivered to the Office of the Federal Register but has not yet been scheduled for publication. The official version of this document is the document that is published in the Federal Register.

Major Topics

Guidance

Suspension, Severe Discrepancy, Severe Discrepancy, Severe Discrepancy, Severe Discrepancy, Screening

Last modified on January 18, 2023