Roxanne: My son is in 10th grade. IEP since first grade. Never re-evaluated as he was doing great and we were happy with his IEP and accommodations. His IEP was for special learning disability due to poor performance in language. He also has ADHD, severe anxiety with panic attacks and depression. None of those are in the IEP. He has always got extra time on all testing. Since he is making Honors the school wants to reevaluate him with the intention to remove him from the program. All he wants is extra time on tests due to his medical issues and his poor handwriting which slows down his essays but also his math calculations. Should I push for OHI and try to keep his IEP or try to get accommodations through a 504? I asked that he not be reevaluated but they dont care. He only does well since he has extra time and because he takes 3 medications!! His great performance is due to his hard work,great psychiatric care and extra time on tests. How do I keep him in a program that is working so well for him?
You do not need to have an IEP to access accommodations through a 504 plan. As a school psychologist who works in a high school setting, I can’t say that what the school is recommending is unreasonable for your son. IEPs provide specialized instruction–special education. It sounds like your son is no longer receiving specialized instruction, so it makes sense to at least re-evaluate to ask the question about whether special ed is still needed. However, if your son was a student in my school I would use the re-evaluation process to consider whether ongoing accommodations were needed through a 504 plan. A 504 plan with testing accommodations is still something that your son would need to be found eligible for, but it could be put in place without an IEP.