Five Things To Consider When Seeking an Independent Evaluation (IEE)

An independent educational evaluation (IEE) may be requested by parents when they do not agree with a district’s results or it is not seen as comprehensive enough.

As a parent, you have the right to request an IEE at the district’s expense if you do not agree with their evaluation. Once you have made the request the district has two choices: to approve and fund the evaluation or to deny it and file a due process complaint against you.

Here are a few IEE facts that we want you to be aware of:  

1. If your district approves your request for an IEE, they cannot limit your choices. Most of the time districts will send you a list of what they consider “approved” assessors and a maximum amount they will pay for the evaluations.
2. This list is merely a suggestion by the district and we do not recommend using assessors on this list. CSNLG has a great list of assessors who provide helpful and comprehensive evaluations. 
3. A district cannot give you an expense cap in order to prevent you from obtaining an evaluation from a qualified assessor. Although there is no law preventing districts from trying to place these limits on you, it is possible to challenge them to provide you with the best evaluation possible. 
4. Recently we have come across a new limit being given to parents, a restriction regarding the mileage between the assessor and the district. There is also no law to limit the location of a provider and you may consider challenging this limit if it occurs.
5. An IEP must consider these evaluations and the comments and recommendations of the evaluator. The independent assessor typically has a more comprehensive evaluation than the district assessor. More times than not these evaluations bring to light other areas of need that had been missed with more vague evaluations. 

Fighting a district’s limitations may be stressful and draining. It is always best to consider the trade off’s between accepting a district’s limits and the effort it will take to overcome it.