Independent Living Program - Florida's Center for Child Welfare

Parental Involvement InEducation PlanningWhat Role Do ParentsHave in PlanningWhen Their ChildrenAre in State Care?It is very importantfor youth withdisabilities whoreceive specialeducationalservices to have a“parent” involved ineducationaldecision making.Under Florida education law, the termparent includes parents, guardians, personsin a parental relationship to a studentor any person exercising supervisoryauthority over a student in the place ofa parent. Florida Statute §1000.21(5).Parental Rights NOT TerminatedParents of youth in the dependency systemretain their right to participate in educationaldecision- making for their children unless thatright was specifically taken away. That meansthat parents have the right to receive notice andparticipate in all meetings and decisions the sameas parents whose children are not in state care.Parental Rights Terminated orEducational Rights RemovedParents cannot participate in making decisionsfor their children after their parental rights areterminated. Parental rights are terminated througha court process called “TPR” – termination ofparental rights. Parents may also be prohibitedfrom making decisions, such as educationaldecisions, for their children if the court specificallyorders that they may not make such decisions. Ifthe parents are not available to participate in theyouth’s education, then someone else must – eithera relative, a foster parent or a surrogate parent.Youth Living with RelativesMany youth in state care live with grandparents,aunts, uncles or cousins. The adult relativesresponsible for caring for those youth are considered“parents” for education purposes and can makethe same educational decisions as parents.Foster ParentsFoster parents can be considered “parents” foreducation purposes. Fla. Stat. §1000.21(5). But inorder for a foster parent to serve as a surrogateparent, he or she must have an “on-going, longtermparental relationship” with the child. Fosterparents who have cared for a child for only ashort time, or are not interested in the child’seducation should not be considered as “parents”and a surrogate parent should be appointed.Surrogate ParentsA surrogate parent is an adult who has beenappointed to represent the educational interests ofan exceptional student who does not have a parentor guardian. A surrogate parent has all the rightsand responsibilities of a parent in the educationalprocess. 20 U.S.C. §1415(b)(2)(A) and Florida Statute39.00165. Surrogate parents can, for example:• Observe the student in school• Review the student’s records• Meet with teachers• Participate in IEP and othermeetings concerning the youth• Help make decisions aboutthe youth’s education• Develop a Transition Plan• Give or withhold consent foractions proposed by the school district• Ask the school to take actionsrelated to the student’s education• Sign permission slips for field trips,records and photograph releases• Invoke the procedural safeguards of the law(requesting due process hearing for example)6