Full Text of SB3541 097th General Assembly
SB3541 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012 SB3541 Introduced 2/8/2012, by Sen. Heather A. Steans SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: | | 105 ILCS 5/14-8.02 | from Ch. 122, par. 14-8.02 |
|
Amends the School Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the
identification, evaluation, and placement of children in special education
programs.
|
| |
| | A BILL FOR |
|
| | | SB3541 | | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | AN ACT concerning education.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | 5 | | 14-8.02 as follows:
| 6 | | (105 ILCS 5/14-8.02) (from Ch. 122, par. 14-8.02)
| 7 | | Sec. 14-8.02. Identification, Evaluation and Placement of | 8 | | Children.
| 9 | | (a) The
The State Board of Education shall make rules under | 10 | | which local school
boards shall determine the eligibility of | 11 | | children to receive special
education. Such rules shall ensure | 12 | | that a free appropriate public
education be available to all | 13 | | children with disabilities as
defined in
Section 14-1.02. The | 14 | | State Board of Education shall require local school
districts | 15 | | to administer non-discriminatory procedures or tests to
| 16 | | limited English proficiency students coming from homes in which | 17 | | a language
other than English is used to determine their | 18 | | eligibility to receive special
education. The placement of low | 19 | | English proficiency students in special
education programs and | 20 | | facilities shall be made in accordance with the test
results | 21 | | reflecting the student's linguistic, cultural and special | 22 | | education
needs. For purposes of determining the eligibility of | 23 | | children the State
Board of Education shall include in the |
| | | SB3541 | - 2 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | rules definitions of "case study",
"staff conference", | 2 | | "individualized educational program", and "qualified
| 3 | | specialist" appropriate to each category of children with
| 4 | | disabilities as defined in
this Article. For purposes of | 5 | | determining the eligibility of children from
homes in which a | 6 | | language other than English is used, the State Board of
| 7 | | Education shall include in the rules
definitions for "qualified | 8 | | bilingual specialists" and "linguistically and
culturally | 9 | | appropriate individualized educational programs". For purposes | 10 | | of this
Section, as well as Sections 14-8.02a, 14-8.02b, and | 11 | | 14-8.02c of this Code,
"parent" means a parent as defined in | 12 | | the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 | 13 | | U.S.C. 1401(23)). | 14 | | (b) No child shall be eligible for special education | 15 | | facilities except
with a carefully completed case study fully | 16 | | reviewed by professional
personnel in a multidisciplinary | 17 | | staff conference and only upon the
recommendation of qualified | 18 | | specialists or a qualified bilingual specialist, if
available. | 19 | | At the conclusion of the multidisciplinary staff conference, | 20 | | the
parent of the child shall be given a copy of the | 21 | | multidisciplinary
conference summary report and | 22 | | recommendations, which includes options
considered, and be | 23 | | informed of their right to obtain an independent educational
| 24 | | evaluation if they disagree with the evaluation findings | 25 | | conducted or obtained
by the school district. If the school | 26 | | district's evaluation is shown to be
inappropriate, the school |
| | | SB3541 | - 3 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | district shall reimburse the parent for the cost of
the | 2 | | independent evaluation. The State Board of Education shall, | 3 | | with advice
from the State Advisory Council on Education of | 4 | | Children with
Disabilities on the
inclusion of specific | 5 | | independent educational evaluators, prepare a list of
| 6 | | suggested independent educational evaluators. The State Board | 7 | | of Education
shall include on the list clinical psychologists | 8 | | licensed pursuant to the
Clinical Psychologist Licensing Act. | 9 | | Such psychologists shall not be paid fees
in excess of the | 10 | | amount that would be received by a school psychologist for
| 11 | | performing the same services. The State Board of Education | 12 | | shall supply school
districts with such list and make the list | 13 | | available to parents at their
request. School districts shall | 14 | | make the list available to parents at the time
they are | 15 | | informed of their right to obtain an independent educational
| 16 | | evaluation. However, the school district may initiate an | 17 | | impartial
due process hearing under this Section within 5 days | 18 | | of any written parent
request for an independent educational | 19 | | evaluation to show that
its evaluation is appropriate. If the | 20 | | final decision is that the evaluation
is appropriate, the | 21 | | parent still has a right to an independent educational
| 22 | | evaluation, but not at public expense. An independent | 23 | | educational
evaluation at public expense must be completed | 24 | | within 30 days of a parent
written request unless the school | 25 | | district initiates an
impartial due process hearing or the | 26 | | parent or school district
offers reasonable grounds to show |
| | | SB3541 | - 4 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | that such 30 day time period should be
extended. If the due | 2 | | process hearing decision indicates that the parent is entitled | 3 | | to an independent educational evaluation, it must be
completed | 4 | | within 30 days of the decision unless the parent or
the school | 5 | | district offers reasonable grounds to show that such 30 day
| 6 | | period should be extended. If a parent disagrees with the | 7 | | summary report or
recommendations of the multidisciplinary | 8 | | conference or the findings of any
educational evaluation which | 9 | | results therefrom, the school
district shall not proceed with a | 10 | | placement based upon such evaluation and
the child shall remain | 11 | | in his or her regular classroom setting.
No child shall be | 12 | | eligible for admission to a
special class for the educable | 13 | | mentally disabled or for the
trainable
mentally disabled except | 14 | | with a psychological evaluation
and
recommendation by a school | 15 | | psychologist. Consent shall be obtained from
the parent of a | 16 | | child before any evaluation is conducted.
If consent is not | 17 | | given by the parent or if the parent disagrees with the | 18 | | findings of the evaluation, then the school
district may | 19 | | initiate an impartial due process hearing under this Section.
| 20 | | The school district may evaluate the child if that is the | 21 | | decision
resulting from the impartial due process hearing and | 22 | | the decision is not
appealed or if the decision is affirmed on | 23 | | appeal.
The determination of eligibility shall be made and the | 24 | | IEP meeting shall be completed within 60 school days
from the | 25 | | date of written parental consent. In those instances when | 26 | | written parental consent is obtained with fewer than 60 pupil |
| | | SB3541 | - 5 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | attendance days left in the school year,
the eligibility | 2 | | determination shall be made and the IEP meeting shall be | 3 | | completed prior to the first day of the
following school year. | 4 | | After a child has been determined to be eligible for a
special | 5 | | education class, such child must be placed in the appropriate
| 6 | | program pursuant to the individualized educational program by | 7 | | or no
later than the beginning of the next school semester. The | 8 | | appropriate
program pursuant to the individualized educational | 9 | | program of students
whose native tongue is a language other | 10 | | than English shall reflect the
special education, cultural and | 11 | | linguistic needs. No later than September
1, 1993, the State | 12 | | Board of Education shall establish standards for the
| 13 | | development, implementation and monitoring of appropriate | 14 | | bilingual special
individualized educational programs. The | 15 | | State Board of Education shall
further incorporate appropriate | 16 | | monitoring procedures to verify implementation
of these | 17 | | standards. The district shall indicate to the parent and
the | 18 | | State Board of Education the nature of the services the child | 19 | | will receive
for the regular school term while waiting | 20 | | placement in the appropriate special
education class.
| 21 | | If the child is deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually | 22 | | impaired and
he or she might be eligible to receive services | 23 | | from the Illinois School for
the Deaf or the Illinois School | 24 | | for the Visually Impaired, the school
district shall notify the | 25 | | parents, in writing, of the existence of
these schools
and the | 26 | | services
they provide and shall make a reasonable effort to |
| | | SB3541 | - 6 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | inform the parents of the existence of other, local schools | 2 | | that provide similar services and the services that these other | 3 | | schools provide. This notification
shall
include without | 4 | | limitation information on school services, school
admissions | 5 | | criteria, and school contact information.
| 6 | | In the development of the individualized education program | 7 | | for a student who has a disability on the autism spectrum | 8 | | (which includes autistic disorder, Asperger's disorder, | 9 | | pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified, | 10 | | childhood disintegrative disorder, and Rett Syndrome, as | 11 | | defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental | 12 | | Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV, 2000)), the IEP team shall | 13 | | consider all of the following factors: | 14 | | (1) The verbal and nonverbal communication needs of the | 15 | | child. | 16 | | (2) The need to develop social interaction skills and | 17 | | proficiencies. | 18 | | (3) The needs resulting from the child's unusual | 19 | | responses to sensory experiences. | 20 | | (4) The needs resulting from resistance to | 21 | | environmental change or change in daily routines. | 22 | | (5) The needs resulting from engagement in repetitive | 23 | | activities and stereotyped movements. | 24 | | (6) The need for any positive behavioral | 25 | | interventions, strategies, and supports to address any | 26 | | behavioral difficulties resulting from autism spectrum |
| | | SB3541 | - 7 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | disorder. | 2 | | (7) Other needs resulting from the child's disability | 3 | | that impact progress in the general curriculum, including | 4 | | social and emotional development. | 5 | | Public Act 95-257
does not create any new entitlement to a | 6 | | service, program, or benefit, but must not affect any | 7 | | entitlement to a service, program, or benefit created by any | 8 | | other law.
| 9 | | If the student may be eligible to participate in the | 10 | | Home-Based Support
Services Program for Mentally Disabled | 11 | | Adults authorized under the
Developmental Disability and | 12 | | Mental Disability Services Act upon becoming an
adult, the | 13 | | student's individualized education program shall include plans | 14 | | for
(i) determining the student's eligibility for those | 15 | | home-based services, (ii)
enrolling the student in the program | 16 | | of home-based services, and (iii)
developing a plan for the | 17 | | student's most effective use of the home-based
services after | 18 | | the student becomes an adult and no longer receives special
| 19 | | educational services under this Article. The plans developed | 20 | | under this
paragraph shall include specific actions to be taken | 21 | | by specified individuals,
agencies, or officials.
| 22 | | (c) In the development of the individualized education | 23 | | program for a
student who is functionally blind, it shall be | 24 | | presumed that proficiency in
Braille reading and writing is | 25 | | essential for the student's satisfactory
educational progress. | 26 | | For purposes of this subsection, the State Board of
Education |
| | | SB3541 | - 8 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | shall determine the criteria for a student to be classified as
| 2 | | functionally blind. Students who are not currently identified | 3 | | as
functionally blind who are also entitled to Braille | 4 | | instruction include:
(i) those whose vision loss is so severe | 5 | | that they are unable to read and
write at a level comparable to | 6 | | their peers solely through the use of
vision, and (ii) those | 7 | | who show evidence of progressive vision loss that
may result in | 8 | | functional blindness. Each student who is functionally blind
| 9 | | shall be entitled to Braille reading and writing instruction | 10 | | that is
sufficient to enable the student to communicate with | 11 | | the same level of
proficiency as other students of comparable | 12 | | ability. Instruction should be
provided to the extent that the | 13 | | student is physically and cognitively able
to use Braille. | 14 | | Braille instruction may be used in combination with other
| 15 | | special education services appropriate to the student's | 16 | | educational needs.
The assessment of each student who is | 17 | | functionally blind for the purpose of
developing the student's | 18 | | individualized education program shall include
documentation | 19 | | of the student's strengths and weaknesses in Braille skills.
| 20 | | Each person assisting in the development of the individualized | 21 | | education
program for a student who is functionally blind shall | 22 | | receive information
describing the benefits of Braille | 23 | | instruction. The individualized
education program for each | 24 | | student who is functionally blind shall
specify the appropriate | 25 | | learning medium or media based on the assessment
report.
| 26 | | (d) To the maximum extent appropriate, the placement shall |
| | | SB3541 | - 9 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | provide the
child with the opportunity to be educated with | 2 | | children who are not
disabled; provided that children with
| 3 | | disabilities who are recommended to be
placed into regular | 4 | | education classrooms are provided with supplementary
services | 5 | | to assist the children with disabilities to benefit
from the | 6 | | regular
classroom instruction and are included on the teacher's | 7 | | regular education class
register. Subject to the limitation of | 8 | | the preceding sentence, placement in
special classes, separate | 9 | | schools or other removal of the disabled child
from the regular | 10 | | educational environment shall occur only when the nature of
the | 11 | | severity of the disability is such that education in the
| 12 | | regular classes with
the use of supplementary aids and services | 13 | | cannot be achieved satisfactorily.
The placement of limited | 14 | | English proficiency students with disabilities shall
be in | 15 | | non-restrictive environments which provide for integration | 16 | | with
non-disabled peers in bilingual classrooms. Annually, | 17 | | each January, school districts shall report data on students | 18 | | from non-English
speaking backgrounds receiving special | 19 | | education and related services in
public and private facilities | 20 | | as prescribed in Section 2-3.30. If there
is a disagreement | 21 | | between parties involved regarding the special education
| 22 | | placement of any child, either in-state or out-of-state, the | 23 | | placement is
subject to impartial due process procedures | 24 | | described in Article 10 of the
Rules and Regulations to Govern | 25 | | the Administration and Operation of Special
Education.
| 26 | | (e) No child who comes from a home in which a language |
| | | SB3541 | - 10 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | other than English
is the principal language used may be | 2 | | assigned to any class or program
under this Article until he | 3 | | has been given, in the principal language
used by the child and | 4 | | used in his home, tests reasonably related to his
cultural | 5 | | environment. All testing and evaluation materials and | 6 | | procedures
utilized for evaluation and placement shall not be | 7 | | linguistically, racially or
culturally discriminatory.
| 8 | | (f) Nothing in this Article shall be construed to require | 9 | | any child to
undergo any physical examination or medical | 10 | | treatment whose parents object thereto on the grounds that such | 11 | | examination or
treatment conflicts with his religious beliefs.
| 12 | | (g) School boards or their designee shall provide to the | 13 | | parents of a child prior written notice of any decision (a) | 14 | | proposing
to initiate or change, or (b) refusing to initiate or | 15 | | change, the
identification, evaluation, or educational | 16 | | placement of the child or the
provision of a free appropriate | 17 | | public education to their child, and the
reasons therefor. Such | 18 | | written notification shall also inform the
parent of the | 19 | | opportunity to present complaints with respect
to any matter | 20 | | relating to the educational placement of the student, or
the | 21 | | provision of a free appropriate public education and to have an
| 22 | | impartial due process hearing on the complaint. The notice | 23 | | shall inform
the parents in the parents' native language,
| 24 | | unless it is clearly not feasible to do so, of their rights and | 25 | | all
procedures available pursuant to this Act and the federal | 26 | | Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of |
| | | SB3541 | - 11 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | 2004 (Public Law 108-446); it
shall be the responsibility of | 2 | | the State Superintendent to develop
uniform notices setting | 3 | | forth the procedures available under this Act
and the federal | 4 | | Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of | 5 | | 2004 (Public Law 108-446) to be used by all school boards. The | 6 | | notice
shall also inform the parents of the availability upon
| 7 | | request of a list of free or low-cost legal and other relevant | 8 | | services
available locally to assist parents in initiating an
| 9 | | impartial due process hearing. Any parent who is deaf, or
does | 10 | | not normally communicate using spoken English, who | 11 | | participates in
a meeting with a representative of a local | 12 | | educational agency for the
purposes of developing an | 13 | | individualized educational program shall be
entitled to the | 14 | | services of an interpreter.
| 15 | | (g-5) For purposes of this subsection (g-5), "qualified | 16 | | professional" means an individual who holds credentials to | 17 | | evaluate the child in the domain or domains for which an | 18 | | evaluation is sought or an intern working under the direct | 19 | | supervision of a qualified professional, including a master's | 20 | | or doctoral degree candidate. | 21 | | To ensure that a parent can participate fully and | 22 | | effectively with school personnel in the development of | 23 | | appropriate educational and related services for his or her | 24 | | child, the parent, an independent educational evaluator, or a | 25 | | qualified professional retained by or on behalf of a parent or | 26 | | child must be afforded reasonable access to educational |
| | | SB3541 | - 12 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | facilities, personnel, classrooms, and buildings and to the | 2 | | child as provided in this subsection (g-5). The requirements of | 3 | | this subsection (g-5) apply to any public school facility, | 4 | | building, or program and to any facility, building, or program | 5 | | supported in whole or in part by public funds. Prior to | 6 | | visiting a school, school building, or school facility, the | 7 | | parent, independent educational evaluator, or qualified | 8 | | professional may be required by the school district to inform | 9 | | the building principal or supervisor in writing of the proposed | 10 | | visit, the purpose of the visit, and the approximate duration | 11 | | of the visit. The visitor and the school district shall arrange | 12 | | the visit or visits at times that are mutually agreeable. | 13 | | Visitors shall comply with school safety, security, and | 14 | | visitation policies at all times. School district visitation | 15 | | policies must not conflict with this subsection (g-5). Visitors | 16 | | shall be required to comply with the requirements of applicable | 17 | | privacy laws, including those laws protecting the | 18 | | confidentiality of education records such as the federal Family | 19 | | Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Illinois School | 20 | | Student Records Act. The visitor shall not disrupt the | 21 | | educational process. | 22 | | (1) A parent must be afforded reasonable access of | 23 | | sufficient duration and scope for the purpose of observing | 24 | | his or her child in the child's current educational | 25 | | placement, services, or program or for the purpose of | 26 | | visiting an educational placement or program proposed for |
| | | SB3541 | - 13 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | the child. | 2 | | (2) An independent educational evaluator or a | 3 | | qualified professional retained by or on behalf of a parent | 4 | | or child must be afforded reasonable access of sufficient | 5 | | duration and scope for the purpose of conducting an | 6 | | evaluation of the child, the child's performance, the | 7 | | child's current educational program, placement, services, | 8 | | or environment, or any educational program, placement, | 9 | | services, or environment proposed for the child, including | 10 | | interviews of educational personnel, child observations, | 11 | | assessments, tests or assessments of the child's | 12 | | educational program, services, or placement or of any | 13 | | proposed educational program, services, or placement. If | 14 | | one or more interviews of school personnel are part of the | 15 | | evaluation, the interviews must be conducted at a mutually | 16 | | agreed upon time, date, and place that do not interfere | 17 | | with the school employee's school duties. The school | 18 | | district may limit interviews to personnel having | 19 | | information relevant to the child's current educational | 20 | | services, program, or placement or to a proposed | 21 | | educational service, program, or placement. | 22 | | (h) (Blank).
| 23 | | (i) (Blank).
| 24 | | (j) (Blank).
| 25 | | (k) (Blank).
| 26 | | (l) (Blank).
|
| | | SB3541 | - 14 - | LRB097 16975 NHT 62166 b |
|
| 1 | | (m) (Blank).
| 2 | | (n) (Blank).
| 3 | | (o) (Blank).
| 4 | | (Source: P.A. 95-257, eff. 1-1-08; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08; | 5 | | 96-657, eff. 8-25-09.)
|
|