2023 New York Laws › EDN - Education › Title 6 - Special Schools and Instruction › Article 88 - New York State School for the Deaf › 4355 - Admission.

§ 4355. Admission. All deaf or blind and deaf children between the age
of  three  years  and  twenty-one  years  and  of  suitable capacity for
instruction who are legal residents of the state shall be  eligible  for
appointment to the New York state school for the deaf without charge for
such  period  of  time  in  each  individual  case  as may be set by the
commissioner, either: (i) upon the recommendation of  the  committee  on
special  education  or  committee  on preschool special education of the
child's school district of residence, as applicable; or (ii)  where  the
parents  of  a  school  age  child  make  application  directly  to  the
commissioner  or  the  school,  upon  recommendation  of  the   school's
multidisciplinary team in accordance with the joint placement procedures
established in this section.
2.  a. Upon receipt of an application for admission of a child who has
not been recommended for placement by the committee on special education
or committee on  preschool  special  education  of  the  child's  school
district  of  residence, the school shall immediately notify such school
district of such application. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision
of law, the school shall make  available  to  such  school  district  of
residence,  upon  request,  all  records  in its possession relating the
evaluation, placement and educational performance of each child who  has
applied  for admission or is attending the school, including the results
of any current evaluations of such child.
b. Prior to any meeting of its multidisciplinary team  to  develop  an
individualized  education  program  for  a school age child, either upon
initial admission to the school or in an annual review, the school shall
notify the school district of residence of such meeting and shall  offer
the   district   the   opportunity   to  identify  and  present  to  the
multidisciplinary team,  an  alternative  placement  recommendation  for
services  in the least restrictive environment. In addition, such notice
shall advise the school district of  its  right  to  appoint  additional
members  to  the  multidisciplinary team pursuant to paragraph c of this
subdivision. The multidisciplinary team shall consider such  alternative
and,  if it rejects the alternative, shall include in its recommendation
a statement of its reasons for doing so.
c. In addition to the members required  for  a  committee  on  special
education  pursuant to subdivision one of section forty-four hundred two
of  this  chapter,  the  school's  multidisciplinary  team  may  include
additional  members  appointed  by  the board of education of the school
district of residence pursuant to this paragraph, and shall include such
members if appointed  by  such  board  of  education.  For  each  member
appointed by the school, the school district may appoint a corresponding
member, including a representative of the committee on special education
who  is  qualified  to  teach  or  supervise special education, a school
psychologist, the child's teacher, a parent member,  a  physician  where
the parent requests attendance of the physician member, and, for a child
who has been evaluated for the first time, a person who is knowledgeable
about  the  evaluation  procedures used with the child and familiar with
the results of the evaluation.  The  commissioner  shall  determine  the
location  at  which  the multidisciplinary team meeting will be held. In
the event of a tie vote on the multidisciplinary team, the parents shall
cast the deciding vote.
d. The majority of the multidisciplinary team shall state the  reasons
for   its   recommendation,   and  submit  such  recommendation  to  the
commissioner for consideration in determining  whether  to  appoint  the
child.  If  the  representatives  appointed  by  the  school district of
residence disagree with  the  recommendation  of  the  multidisciplinary
team,  they  shall  be  entitled  to prepare a dissenting opinion on the
placement recommendation and to submit such opinion to the  commissioner

for  consideration  in  determining  whether to appoint the child to the
school.
e. The commissioner, or his or her designee, in determining whether to
appoint  a  school  age  child to the school, shall consider whether the
placement at the state school is an appropriate placement in  the  least
restrictive  environment,  taking  into  account  the  school district's
recommended alternative placement. If the commissioner  or  his  or  her
designee  determines  that  placement  in the state school is not in the
least  restrictive  environment  or  otherwise   disagrees   with   such
recommendation,  the  commissioner  shall  state  his  or her reasons in
writing and shall send the recommendation back to the  multidisciplinary
team   for   reconsideration,   with  notice  to  the  parents.  If  the
commissioner refers the recommendation  back  to  the  multidisciplinary
team for reconsideration, the commissioner shall also notify the parents
and  the  multidisciplinary  team  in  writing of the need to schedule a
meeting to ensure timely placement.
* f. Notwithstanding any provision of law, rule or regulation  to  the
contrary, a member of the multidisciplinary team, other than the parents
or persons in parental relation to the student is not required to attend
a  meeting  of the team, in whole or in part, if the parent or person in
parental relation to the student and the department agree,  in  writing,
that  the attendance of the member is not necessary because the member's
area of the curriculum or related services  is  not  being  modified  or
discussed at the meeting.
* NB Repealed June 30, 2024
* g.  Notwithstanding  any provision of law, rule or regulation to the
contrary, a member of the multidisciplinary team, other than the parents
or persons in parental relation to the  student,  may  be  excused  from
attending  a  meeting of the team, in whole or in part, when the meeting
involves a modification to or discussion of the  member's  area  of  the
curriculum  or  related  services  if  the  parent or person in parental
relation to the student and the department consent, in writing,  to  the
excusal  and  the  excused  member  submits  to  the parent or person in
parental relation to the student and the multidisciplinary team, written
input into the development of the individualized education program,  and
in  particular written input with respect to their area of curriculum or
related services prior to the meeting.
* NB Repealed June 30, 2024
* h. Requests for excusal of a member of the multidisciplinary team as
provided for in paragraphs f and g of this subdivision, and the  written
input  as  provided  for  in  paragraph  g of this subdivision, shall be
provided not less than five calendar days prior to the meeting date,  in
order  to  afford the parent or person in parental relation a reasonable
time to review and consider the request. Provided however, that a parent
or person in parental relation shall retain the right to request  and/or
agree  with  the department to excuse a multidisciplinary team member at
any time including where the member is  unable  to  attend  the  meeting
because  of  an  emergency  or  unavoidable  scheduling conflict and the
department submits the written input for review and consideration by the
parent or person in parental relation within a reasonable time prior  to
the  meeting  and  prior  to  obtaining written consent of the parent or
person in parental relation to such excusal.
* NB Repealed June 30, 2024
* i. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
the contrary, in making changes to a student's individualized  education
program after the annual review has been conducted, the parent or person
in  parental relation to the student and the department may agree not to
convene a multidisciplinary team meeting for the purpose of making those

changes, and instead may develop a written document to amend  or  modify
the   student's  current  individualized  education  program  under  the
following circumstances:
(i)  The  parent or person in parental relation makes a request to the
department for an amendment to the individualized education program  and
the  department  and such parent or person in parental relation agree in
writing; or
(ii) The department provides the parent or person in parental relation
with a written proposal to  amend  a  provision  or  provisions  of  the
individualized   education   program   that   is  conveyed  in  language
understandable to the parent or person  in  parental  relation  in  such
parent's  or  such  person's  native  language or other dominant mode of
communication, informs and allows  the  parent  or  person  in  parental
relation  the  opportunity  to consult with the appropriate personnel or
related service providers concerning the proposed changes and the parent
or person in parental relation agrees in writing to such amendments.
(iii) If the parent or person in parental relation agrees to amend the
individualized education program without a meeting, the parent or person
in parental relation shall be  provided  prior  written  notice  of  the
changes  to  the  individualized  education  program resulting from such
written document and the multidisciplinary team  shall  be  notified  of
such  changes.  If  the  department  makes such changes by rewriting the
entire individualized education program, it shall provide the parent  or
person  in parental relation with a copy of the rewritten individualized
education program. If the department amends the individualized education
program without rewriting the  entire  document,  the  department  shall
provide  the  parent  or  person in parental relation with a copy of the
document that amends or modifies the  individualized  education  program
or, upon request of the parent or person in parental relation, a revised
copy  of  the  individualized  education  program  with  the  amendments
incorporated.
Amendments to an individualized education  program  pursuant  to  this
paragraph  shall  not  affect the requirement that the multidisciplinary
team review the individualized education program at the annual  meeting,
or more often if necessary.
* NB Repealed June 30, 2024
3.   The   commissioner  shall  adopt  regulations  to  prescribe  the
procedures for  evaluation,  placement  and  admission  of  children  in
accordance  with this section, which shall include but not be limited to
procedures to  ensure  that  the  due  process  rights  of  parents  are
protected  and  that  placement  recommendations  are  made  in a timely
manner.