SB 1231 — SCH ED-SPECIAL ED FACILITIES

SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b AN ACT concerning education.

For purposes of determining the eligibility of children the State Board of Education shall include in the rules SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 2 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b definitions of "case study", "staff conference", "individualized educational program", and "qualified specialist" appropriate to each category of children with disabilities as defined in this Article.

At the conclusion of the multidisciplinary staff conference, the parent of the child and, if the child is in the legal custody of the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department's Office of Education and Transition Services shall be given a copy of the multidisciplinary conference summary report and recommendations, which includes options considered, and, in the case of the parent, be informed of his or her right to obtain an independent educational evaluation if he or she SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 3 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b disagrees with the evaluation findings conducted or obtained by the school district.

An independent educational evaluation at public expense must be completed within 60 school 30 days of a SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 4 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b parent's written request unless the school district initiates an impartial due process hearing or the parent or school district offers reasonable grounds to show that such 30-day time period should be extended.

The school district may evaluate the child if that is the decision resulting from the impartial due process hearing and the decision is not appealed or if the SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 5 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b decision is affirmed on appeal.

The district shall indicate to the parent, the State Board of Education, and, if applicable, the Department's Office of Education and Transition Services the nature of the services the child will SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 6 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b receive for the regular school term while awaiting placement in the appropriate special education class.

This notification shall include, without limitation, information on school services, school admissions criteria, and school contact SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 7 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b information.

SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 8 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b Public Act 95-257 does not create any new entitlement to a service, program, or benefit, but must not affect any entitlement to a service, program, or benefit created by any other law.

(i) those whose vision loss is so severe SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 9 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b that they are unable to read and write at a level comparable to their peers solely through the use of vision, and (ii) those who show evidence of progressive vision loss that may result in functional blindness.

provided that children with disabilities who are recommended to be placed into SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 10 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b regular education classrooms are provided with supplementary services to assist the children with disabilities to benefit from the regular classroom instruction and are included on the teacher's regular education class register.

(e) No child who comes from a home in which a language other than English is the principal language used may be assigned to any class or program under this Article until he SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 11 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b has been given, in the principal language used by the child and used in his home, tests reasonably related to his cultural environment.

The notice shall inform the parents in the parents' native language, unless it is clearly not feasible to do so, of their rights and all procedures available pursuant to this Act SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 12 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b and the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-446);

(g-5) For purposes of this subsection (g-5), "qualified professional" means an individual who holds credentials to evaluate the child in the domain or domains for which an SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 13 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b evaluation is sought or an intern working under the direct supervision of a qualified professional, including a master's or doctoral degree candidate.

Visitors shall be required to comply with the requirements of applicable privacy laws, including those laws SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 14 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b protecting the confidentiality of education records such as the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Illinois School Student Records Act.

If one or more interviews of school personnel are part of the evaluation, the interviews must be conducted at a mutually agreed-upon time, date, and place that do not interfere with the school employee's school SB1231 EngrossedEnrolled - 15 - LRB104 05906 LNS 15938 b duties.