How to Request a Special Education Evaluation in Colorado

Most parents who struggle to get their child evaluated for special education make the same mistake: they ask verbally. A verbal request starts no clock. A written request — submitted to the right person, with the right language — starts a legal timeline the district must follow under Colorado law.

Here is how to do it correctly.

Who Gets the Request and What It Must Say

In Colorado, written evaluation requests go to the district's Director of Special Education (or equivalent). If your child's school is served by a BOCES, the request goes to the BOCES Special Education Director — not the school principal, not your child's teacher. Sending to the wrong person can delay the process.

Your written request does not need to use legal language or cite statutes. It needs to:

1. State clearly that you are requesting a comprehensive evaluation for special education eligibility
2. Describe the specific areas of concern (academic performance, behavior, communication, social-emotional, motor skills — whatever applies)
3. Specify that you are requesting this under IDEA and ECEA
4. Be dated and sent in a way you can prove was received (email with read receipt, or certified mail)

A simple, direct letter works. One paragraph is enough:

"I am writing to request a comprehensive evaluation for my child, [child's name], date of birth [date], who attends [school name]. I am concerned about [describe specific areas: reading, attention, speech, behavior, etc.]. I am requesting this evaluation under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Exceptional Children's Educational Act (ECEA). Please provide written notice of the district's response within the required timeline."

Keep a copy of everything you send.

The Colorado Evaluation Timeline

Once you submit a written evaluation request, Colorado's timeline under ECEA Rule 4.02(3)(c)(ii) is:

The district has 10 school days to respond in writing with either consent for evaluation or a refusal, including the reasons for refusal.

If the district agrees to evaluate, you then sign consent for the evaluation to proceed.

From the date you sign consent, the district has 60 calendar days to complete the evaluation. This is Colorado's statutory timeline under ECEA — it applies regardless of whether school is in session during that period.

After the evaluation is complete, the district has an additional 30 calendar days to hold the initial IEP meeting and finalize the IEP, if eligibility is determined.

Total maximum timeline from signed consent to initial IEP: 90 calendar days.

Common district delay tactic: Some districts start the 60-day clock from the date they receive your signed consent form, not from when they gave it to you to sign. Confirm in writing when the clock starts. If you signed consent on March 1, the evaluation must be complete by April 30.

If the District Refuses to Evaluate

The district can refuse your request — but it must give you a written Prior Written Notice (PWN) explaining:

• The action proposed or refused
• The reason for the refusal
• The evaluation procedures, tests, records, and reports used to reach this decision
• A description of other options the team considered and why they were rejected
• Sources of information for your parental rights

A refusal without a written PWN is itself a procedural violation you can report to CDE.

If the district refuses and you disagree, you have two options:

Option 1: File a state complaint with CDE. If the district refused without a proper PWN, or refused without adequate justification, a CDE state complaint is often the fastest route. CDE must investigate and respond within 60 days. There is no cost.

Option 2: Request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE). If the district evaluated and found your child ineligible (or you disagree with any part of the evaluation they did complete), you can request an IEE at district expense. The district must respond within a reasonable time — either agreeing to fund an independent evaluation by an outside evaluator, or filing for due process to defend its own evaluation. If the district files for due process and loses, you get the IEE at district expense. If the district does not file for due process, it must fund your independent evaluation.

What Happens During the Evaluation

A comprehensive evaluation in Colorado must assess all areas related to the suspected disability. A district cannot limit the evaluation to one domain if you have raised concerns in multiple areas. You should ask in writing which assessments will be conducted, by whom, and what the purpose of each is.

The evaluation must include:

• A variety of assessment tools — no single score can be the sole basis for eligibility or ineligibility
• Input from parents and teachers
• Review of existing data
• Observation of the child in the current educational setting

You have the right to provide information to the evaluation team, submit outside reports, and request that specific areas be assessed. Do this in writing before the evaluation begins.

If the Evaluation Finds Your Child Ineligible

An ineligibility determination is not final. You can:

• Request a copy of all evaluation reports and review them carefully
• Request an IEE at district expense if you disagree with the methodology or conclusions
• File a state complaint if the evaluation was not comprehensive or did not follow required procedures
• Re-refer in the future if your child's needs change or new information emerges

Colorado's funding structure creates pressure on districts to find students ineligible or eligible for less intensive support — the state's Tier B special education funding has been capped at approximately $6,000 per student since 2006, well below what adequate services cost. That pressure is real. It does not override your child's rights under IDEA and ECEA, but it helps explain why some districts push back on eligibility.

Charter Schools

Charter schools in Colorado are public schools and are fully bound by IDEA and ECEA. A charter school cannot refuse to evaluate, cannot counsel a student out to avoid providing services, and cannot tell you that evaluations must go through the home district. The Charter School Institute (CSI) operates as an independent Administrative Unit for CSI-authorized charters — if your child attends a CSI charter, evaluation requests go to CSI's special education office, not the local district.

The Colorado IEP & 504 Advocacy Playbook includes independent evaluation demand letters, ECEA navigation guides with Colorado Education Code citations, and dispute resolution templates if the district refuses or delays your evaluation request.

See more United States homeschool guides →