Guide to Special Education and other Legal Information

The resources on this page help parents and other decision‑makers understand the special education process and their rights. They explain how special education provides supportive services that help students succeed in general education and support families in working with schools to make informed educational decisions.

Parent Guide to Special Education

The intended purpose of the guide is to provide special education information in an easy to understand manner.  The primary audience of this guide is parents, education advocates, self-advocates, and other legal decision-makers of students with exceptionalities.  Parents share the responsibility for developing educational plans for their students with local education agencies (LEAs).  This active role requires parents to have information about the special education process and requirements.

This guide has been written to help parents and other educational decision-makers understand the special education process.  Special education is not a place to which one or a group of students in a school goes; it is supportive services that are given to some students so that they may progress in and be a part of the general education curriculum. All students are general education students and all students benefit from parents being involved in their education, not just the special education part of it.

• Parent Guide to Special Education (PDF)

Kansas Special Education Process Handbook

The Kansas Special Education Process Handbook was developed to provide guidance, resources and supports necessary for those professionals who work to improve results for exceptional children. The Handbook attempts to clarify and define legal requirements of the law and regulations. Each chapter includes a brief overview specifying requirements that are particular to Kansas. In addition, each chapter includes links to valuable resources, sample forms and references. Users of the Kansas Special Education Process Handbook are encouraged to update any future documents which provide clarification to the law and regulations by the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) or the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP).

For more information, visit the  Kansas Special Education Process Handbook webpage.

Notice of Procedural Safeguards (Parent Rights)

The reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA), in 2004, retained important procedures which schools must use when evaluating eligibility for special education services, when developing or changing a child's Individualized Education Program (IEP) or when attempting to resolve serious disputes regarding special education issues. These procedures are sometimes referred to as "procedural safeguards" or "parent rights." The procedural safeguards specified in the IDEA were primarily designed to help schools and parents work together to develop effective educational programs for children with disabilities.

Parents Rights Document (Notices/Forms)