Moscow School District is responsible for ensuring that students with disabilities receive a free appropriate public education from the ages of three (3) through the semester in which they turn twenty-one (21). Utilization of a variety of services through private service providers in the District is recognized as a valuable and needed resource for children with disabilities to receive the full benefit of a public education.
These services are a supplement to regular education programs and consist of specially designed instruction and/or related services provided in a variety of settings at no cost to the parents to meet the unique needs of students with disabilities. Therefore, it is critical that these services are coordinated and that all service providers have a complete understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the District prior to, and for, the delivery of services.
Private providers can be involved in the District's special education process by referring parents to the appropriate personnel for identification and evaluation; providing appropriate evaluation information and/or recommendations to multi-disciplinary teams after parent consent is given; participating in Individual Education Program (IEP) team meetings with the consent of the parent; or, participating in the delivery of services through a memorandum of understanding with the District.
Decisions regarding eligibility and the type, length, and duration of services are the responsibility of an appropriately formed IEP team. Information submitted by appropriately certified or licensed outside providers through parent consent will be considered by an IEP team. All decisions regarding education methodology, materials, and personnel are the responsibility of the District, however.
- Delivery of Services
- If the student is not eligible for public special education services, but the private provider recommends services:
- The District shall not provide special education services; and
- The District will inform parents that private services contracted by and paid for by parents are not developed into an IEP, but should be noted.
- If a student is eligible for public special education services and the parent requests that private services be utilized to supplement the District services, those services will be noted in the comment section of the IEP, but no additional goals and objectives are required.
- If a student is eligible for public special education services, but the parent chooses to pay for and have those services provided by a private provider, a complete IEP will be written. It will be documented on the IEP that the District recommended the service but the parent elected to pay for services from the private provider or allowed third party billing, rather than have the District provide services. It should be noted that when a student is removed from the regular education program for services for which they are not eligible under state and federal criteria, those services might become a detriment to that student's regular education program. The District has no legal obligation to allow the private service provider to use district space during regular school hours or access to district materials or equipment for any of the above situations.
- Contracts
When the District uses private service providers, the District will have a contract for services in place. For any private service provider that is not contracting with the District for service but is providing direct services in district facilities, a memorandum of understanding must be drafted to include District and provider's role/responsibilities, name(s) of student(s) being served, time(s) of services, provisions for space, materials and equipment to be used, insurance requirements, billing/paying agreements, etc. (See Forms Section) Private providers working in the District must provide the District with the appropriate documentation of certification or licensure, insurance, and background check.
The District is aware of potentially difficult constitutional issues in the above paragraph; public facilities and services may not be used to benefit private individuals (providers). The District will avoid discriminatory practices; if one provider has access to the school, all who request it must have equal opportunity for access.