Opinion ID: 619866
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Parental Participation in the IEP Process

Text: K.D. also argues that his parent, C.L., was deprived of an opportunity to participate in the IEP process, and that the district court erred in blaming C.L. for not cooperating with the IEP team, and missing both the July 2007 and July 2008 IEP meetings. Parental participation in the IEP process is an integral part of the IDEA. See Amanda J., 267 F.3d at 890-91. The regulations require the DOE to take steps to ensure that the parents of a disabled student is present at the IEP meeting, or at least afforded the opportunity to participate. 34 C.F.R. § 300.322(a). However, an IEP meeting may take place without a parent in attendance if the agency is unable to convince the parent that they should attend. Id. § 300.322(d). In such a situation, the agency must keep a record of its attempts to arrange a mutually agreed on time and place. 34 C.F.R. §§ 300.322(d)(1)-(3); see also Shapiro ex rel. Shapiro v. Paradise Valley Unified Sch. Dist., 317 F.3d 1072, 1078 (9th Cir. 2003) ([T]he school district must document phone calls, correspondence, and visits to the parents demonstrating attempts to reach a mutually agreed upon place and time for the meeting.). We conclude that the record clearly reveals that the DOE attempted to have C.L. participate in both the 2007 and 2008 IEP meetings. C.L. and the Loveland director were in attendance at the first IEP meeting held on April 5, 2007, which was continued to July due to time constraints. C.L. and the DOE continued to correspond from May 2007 through July 2007 regarding the scheduling of tests for K.D., in preparation for his IEP. On June 28, 2007, the DOE wrote C.L. a letter reminding her that the parties had agreed to continue the April IEP meeting to July, and suggesting three possible dates for the meeting. The letter also indicated that if C.L. did not respond by July 13, 2007, the meeting would be held on July 25, 2007. C.L. signed for receipt of this letter on June 30, 2007. The DOE did not receive a response to its June 28 letter, and sent C.L. another letter on July 13, 2007 stating that because it had not heard from C.L., the meeting was scheduled for July 25, 2007. C.L. signed for receipt of this letter on July 14, 2007. This pre-IEP meeting correspondence shows that the DOE presented C.L. with several opportunities to raise any concerns with the proposed meeting date. The hearing officer and district court both found that, after the fact, C.L. gave conflicting stories about why she was not present at the meeting. C.L. originally testified that she was escorting her son to the mainland for the entire month of July 2007, as required by a divorce decree, but later changed her testimony, and admitted that she was in Hawaii, but contended that she could not attend the meeting because she had started a new job and needed money. The record is devoid of any evidence showing that C.L. attempted to contact the DOE to reschedule the meeting. See Shapiro, 317 F.3d at 1078 (finding that because the parents asked to reschedule the meeting, the school district violated the IDEA by prioritizing the schedule of its representatives over the parents). Indeed, even after the IEP meeting occurred, C.L. still failed to respond to several letters from the DOEsent in July, August, October, December, and February, respectivelyasking whether she accepted the 2007 IEP offered to K.D., and encouraging her to contact the DOE to discuss any concerns, changes, or issues regarding the IEP. We conclude that this record clearly shows that the DOE satisfied its duty to involve C.L. in the 2007 IEP process, as required under the IDEA. Similarly, the record shows that the DOE also attempted to find a mutually acceptable time and place for the July 2008 IEP meeting. The DOE began corresponding with C.L. in preparation for the 2008 IEP meeting in May 2008, by requesting written consent to conduct observations of K.D., and requesting his performance reports. The DOE repeated its requests on June 19 and July 10, 2008. In a letter dated July 10, 2008, the DOE suggested three dates for the IEP meeting, and indicated that if no response was received before July 16, 2008, the meeting would be set for July 25, 2008. C.L. failed to respond to any of the referenced correspondence, and did not attend the July 25, 2008 meeting. Later, C.L. cited a work conflict as her reason for missing the meeting. As was the case with the previous year's IEP meeting, despite receiving the DOE's letters, C.L. never attempted to contact the DOE to reschedule the meeting. We conclude that the DOE satisfied its duty to involve C.L. in the 2008 IEP process, as required under the IDEA.