Delaware IEP Annual Review: How to Request a Meeting and What to Expect

Delaware parents have the legal right to request an IEP meeting at any time — not just when the district schedules one. If your child's needs have changed, if services aren't being delivered as written, or if the annual review is approaching and you want to prepare seriously, you should know exactly how to invoke that right and what to do with it.

How to Formally Request an IEP Meeting in Delaware

A request for an IEP meeting does not need to be elaborate. It does need to be in writing.

Under IDEA and Delaware's implementing regulations, either the parent or the district can request an IEP meeting at any time. Parent requests should be submitted in writing to the school's special education coordinator or principal. A simple email works:

"I am formally requesting an IEP meeting for [child's name] to discuss [your stated concern — e.g., concerns about current service levels, new evaluation data, a proposed placement change]. Please schedule this meeting at a mutually convenient time and provide notice at least 10 business days in advance."

The district is not obligated to hold a meeting simply because you requested one — they have some discretion to decline if they believe the current IEP remains appropriate. However, in practice, districts rarely refuse outright; a formal written request creates a record that a refusal would need to be justified in writing through Prior Written Notice under 14 DE Admin. Code §926.

If the district declines to schedule a meeting without providing Prior Written Notice explaining why, that is itself a potential procedural violation.

What Triggers an Annual Review

Delaware school districts are required to review each child's IEP at least once per year. The annual review is not automatic — the district must schedule it, and it must occur within 12 months of the previous IEP's effective date.

The purpose of the annual review is to:

• Assess the child's progress toward current IEP goals
• Determine whether goals have been met and whether new goals are needed
• Review and update the Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP)
• Determine whether current placement and services remain appropriate
• Decide whether related services (speech, OT, PT, counseling) should be added, modified, or discontinued

In practice, annual reviews often function as rubber-stamp exercises if parents don't come prepared. Districts frequently propose minor tweaks to existing goals rather than substantively reconsidering whether the current program is achieving meaningful progress. Your job as a parent is to change that dynamic with data.

Preparing for the Annual Review: What to Gather

Current progress data. Request copies of all progress reports on your child's current IEP goals before the meeting. Delaware requires districts to provide progress reports at least as frequently as report cards are sent to non-disabled students. If you have not been receiving these reports, that is a compliance issue worth noting in writing before the meeting.

Your own observations and records. Your observations of your child's functioning at home — areas of regression, skills that haven't generalized, behaviors that have increased — are relevant data. Write them down with dates and bring them as evidence.

Independent evaluation data. If your child has been evaluated by an independent specialist — a private psychologist, speech pathologist, occupational therapist — bring those reports. IEP teams are required to consider independent evaluation results.

Draft goals you want to propose. Delaware's DDOE has a WRITES initiative requiring IEP goals to be measurable and aligned to Common Core State Standards. Look up your child's grade-level standards and identify the specific performance gap you want the goal to address. Coming in with specific proposed language — rather than vague "I want better reading goals" — puts you in a much stronger position.

Records of service delivery failures. If services written in the current IEP have not been delivered as written — missed therapy sessions, aides not present, services reduced informally — document each instance with dates. These delivery failures may support a compensatory education request.

What Happens at the Meeting

Annual review IEP meetings in Delaware must include the required team members: at least one general education teacher (if the child participates in general education), at least one special education teacher or provider, an LEA representative with authority to commit district resources, and an individual who can interpret evaluation results. Parents are required members — not optional invitees.

The meeting will typically proceed through:

1. Review of current PLAAFP — where is the child now?
2. Assessment of goal progress — which goals were met, which weren't?
3. Development of new goals for the coming year
4. Discussion of services and supports — are they sufficient?
5. Placement determination — is the current setting still appropriate?
6. Signature on the new IEP

You have the right to participate meaningfully at every step. You can propose specific goals, request additional related services, and disagree with proposed placement changes. You do not have to sign the IEP at the meeting. You can take it home to review, request time to consult with an advocate or attorney, or sign it with noted disagreements.

When to Refuse to Sign the IEP

Signing an IEP indicates you consent to the services and placement proposed. You are not required to sign at the meeting. If the team has proposed a program you believe is insufficient, you can:

1. Sign with a written note stating "Signed pending review" or "Signing under protest regarding [specific provision]"
2. Refuse to sign and invoke your right to dispute resolution
3. Request a new meeting to continue negotiations

If you refuse to sign, the district may implement the last agreed-upon IEP under "stay put" provisions while the dispute is resolved. Refusing to sign is most useful when you have a specific, documentable objection — not as a general protest.

After the Meeting: Get the PWN

Regardless of the meeting outcome, the district must provide Prior Written Notice documenting what was proposed, what was refused, and the basis for each decision. If you leave the meeting without receiving (or being told when to expect) PWN, request it in writing the next day.

The PWN is the document you will need if you later file a state complaint or dispute the IEP. Without it, the district's decision exists only verbally — and verbal agreements disappear quickly in a small-state environment where staff turnover is ongoing.

The Delaware IEP and 504 Advocacy Playbook includes an IEP Meeting Preparation Checklist and Prior Written Notice request letter specifically formatted for Delaware's administrative code requirements — so you can walk into the annual review with the same documentation leverage the district uses.

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