Do you have a complete copy of your child’s educational record? Unless you have submitted a recent FERPA request, I doubt you do.
We all know how it goes: the end of the meeting parents are handed an IEP document to sign – rarely are they provided time to even read it which is another topic for discussion – and then they are sent on their way with that one document and the millionth copy of their procedural safeguards. Parent take that copy of the IEP home and put it in a binder and believe that they have all the records. I am here to tell you, you do not have all the records – and you should!
So how do you make a FERPA request for your child’s full and complete educational record?
First, understand that if your child receives special education or has ever been evaluated for special education, there are two files: a school file and a district file.
The school file has all of your child’s registration forms, discipline records, state testing records, attendance records, 504 plan records, SST meeting records, report cards and anything that is recorded at a school site level. This should include also classroom benchmark assessments such as the Star Reading and Math, the iReady, DIBELS or any other tool used to measure progress in reading and math throughout the year for all students. When you make your records request, be sure to specify that you are also requesting those classroom benchmark records because often those are held in the classroom and not the school office and if you do not specifically ask for them then they may not be included in the file you receive.
The district file holds all of the special education records. This includes assessment plans, meeting notices, assessment reports and IEP documents. So even if your child does not have an IEP but was at one point assessed they will have a district file. School sites likely (and should) have the current IEP on file but they most likely do not have the full special education record, so it is important to make the request for both records and send that to the principal and the special education director.
Here is a template you can use, it is written for California so if you live in another state please adjust the 5 days to whatever the days required are in your state:
[Today’s Date]
Dear [Sped Director Name and Principal Name],
I am requesting a complete copy of my child, [CHILD NAME], entire school and district records including any and all special education files and classroom records including benchmark assessments (such as Star Reading/Math, iReady, etc) or any other district/school maintained educational records.
His/her/they’re birthdate is [CHILD BIRTHDATE].
Please consider this a FERPA request and I understand that I will receive these records within 5 days and be provided at no charge as it would be a financial hardship. Please notify me when they are ready for pick up.
Thank you for your assistance,
[PARENT NAME]
How long does the school/district have to give you the records?
The answer to this question depends on what state you reside in. I am in CA so I can provide the California FERPA timeline which is 5 business days. The federal FERPA guidlines require that school districts provide access to records within 45 days. The difference between the state and federal guidelines is that the federal government essentially sets the ceiling on timelines, but the states can always do more but never less. So a state can set their own state regulations to provide educational records in a FERPA request for fewer than 45 days but they cannot set that timeline to be more than 45 days. CA made the determination to set their state regulation for records access to be 5 days which is great for parents. Hawaii for instance though has their regulation set to 45 days, the maximum number of days allowed by the state which means parents often have to wait over a month to access their child’s education records. So an important step you need to take when making this request is to check your state’s timeline for educational records requests.
How are the records provided?
The district can provide these records to you as a printed copy or an electronic copy, emailed to you as a file for you to download and print yourself. There is not a requirement about how they provide them. In fact, some district’s can exercise their right to say you can come look at them and “inspect” the records and not give you a copy at all. This is rare and I have found if you push back and say this is an equity and access barrier you can get the district to agree to giving you a copy. If for some reason you experience your district only allowing you to come look at the records then bring your phone and take a photo of every single page. You can then upload those photos into a scanning app such as Genius Scan and convert them to pdf documents. I know that is tedious but it is an option if that is your only option. However, always push back if you denied physical or electronic copies. Never just accept no for an answer.
You received the records. Now what?
Organize them! Get your supplies: a binder, page dividers, tabs, post it notes and a color variety of highlighter pens. Then take the file apart and sort it into categories: IEP’s by year, IEP ammendments by IEP year, assessment reports (sort those by report category such as speech, Psych Ed, OT, etc), meeting notices, assessment plans. Sort out the school file into categories such as: report cards, state testing reports, discipline records, attendance records, benchmark assessments, registration documents. Then read every page, highlight key areas of note and use post it notes to write your own notes about the area of concern or inaccuracy. Keep a records of concerns you want to address and the documents that the item of concern is on.
Another option is to email or call us. We can provide a full records review and a list of recommendations as one of the services we offer at SEA.
Important note if you are approaching the end of the school year:
All requests in public education are subject to school year timelines. This means if there are 5 days or more of a break there is a pause on the timeline for the request until school resumes. If you plan on using the summer break to review your child’s records, organize their IEP binder or hire me to do it – then you need to make your request withing your state’s FERPA guidelines before the last day of the school year. So if you are in CA for example, make sure you request the files no less than 5 days before the end of the school year.
