Kentucky IEP Evaluation Process: How to Request It and What the District Must Do

The IEP process doesn't start with a meeting. It starts with a written evaluation request — and the legal clock doesn't start until you submit that request in writing. If you've been asking teachers and counselors about an evaluation in phone calls and hallway conversations, you haven't started the clock. The district has no legal obligation to act on verbal requests.

Here's how to formally trigger the Kentucky special education evaluation process and what to do when the district doesn't respond correctly.

Step 1: Submit a Written Evaluation Request

Send a letter or email to the school's special education coordinator and the principal. The letter should:

• State that you suspect your child has a disability
• Describe the specific areas you're concerned about and how they're affecting your child's education (academic, behavioral, social-emotional, communication, motor)
• Request a full and individual evaluation across all areas of suspected disability
• Request that the district send you the prior notice and consent form to trigger the evaluation timeline

Keep a dated copy. If you send by email, save the sent message. If by mail, send certified. The date you submit this request in writing is the date the district's response obligation begins.

Step 2: The District's Response

Upon receiving your written request, the district must provide you with a Prior Written Notice (PWN) explaining whether they agree to evaluate and in what areas, or refusing the evaluation and explaining why. They cannot simply ignore your request.

If they refuse to evaluate, the PWN must explain the specific reason and the data they relied on to conclude an evaluation isn't warranted. "We already tried interventions" is not a valid refusal — under Kentucky's Child Find obligation in 707 KAR, a child can be referred for special education evaluation regardless of RTI tier status. "We don't think there's a disability" is a substantive conclusion that must be supported by specific evidence.

If they agree, they send you a consent form. Sign it and return it. The 60-school-day clock starts from the date the district receives your signed consent.

Step 3: The 60-School-Day Evaluation Timeline

Under 707 KAR 1:320, Kentucky mandates a strict 60-school-day timeline from receipt of signed parental consent to the completion of the evaluation and the ARC eligibility determination meeting. This is one of the shorter state timelines in the country — and it counts school days, not calendar days.

What that means practically: if you sign consent in May and there are 15 remaining school days, the clock pauses at 15 school days and resumes in the fall. Summer break, holidays, and snow days don't count. Track your own calendar — document when school is in session and add up 60 days from your consent date. Districts sometimes let this timeline slip, especially in rural areas with overburdened evaluation teams.

If day 60 arrives without an eligibility determination meeting, the district is in procedural violation. Send a written notice documenting the missed deadline and asking when the ARC meeting will be scheduled.

The Evaluation Must Be Comprehensive

The district is required to evaluate your child in all areas of suspected disability — not just academics, and not just the area the referring teacher mentioned. Under 707 KAR, the evaluation must:

• Use a variety of assessment tools (no single test can be the sole basis for eligibility determination)
• Include assessment in all areas related to the suspected disability: academic, cognitive, behavioral, social-emotional, speech/language, motor, health and vision/hearing, and functional skills as relevant
• Include parent input — your observations of your child at home are part of the evaluation record
• Be conducted by qualified professionals (school psychologist, speech-language pathologist, occupational therapist, etc. depending on the areas being assessed)

If the district evaluates only one area and misses others where you believe your child has needs, document your concern at the eligibility ARC meeting and request evaluation in the missed areas. You can do this even if the district finds eligibility in other areas — the evaluation obligation extends to all areas of suspected disability.

What Happens at the Eligibility ARC Meeting

At the ARC meeting following the evaluation, the team reviews all the data and makes two determinations:

1. Does the child have a disability in one of the recognized categories under 707 KAR 1:002?
2. Does that disability adversely affect educational performance to the degree that specially designed instruction is required?

Both criteria must be met for IEP eligibility. If the team finds a disability but concludes it doesn't require specially designed instruction, they may suggest a 504 Plan instead. That may or may not be appropriate — see the post on kentucky-504-plan-vs-iep for how to evaluate that decision.

If found eligible, the ARC begins developing the IEP at that meeting or schedules a follow-up meeting to do so. Services cannot begin until an IEP is developed and you consent to placement.

When the District Refuses to Evaluate

If the district refuses your evaluation request and you believe the refusal is wrong, you have two main paths:

State complaint. File a complaint with KDE OSEEL documenting that the district received your written request, refused to evaluate, and that the refusal was unsupported by the evidence. KDE investigates within 60 days and can order the district to proceed with evaluation.

Due process hearing. A formal adversarial hearing where you argue the district's Child Find failure. This is more time-intensive but creates a legally binding order if you prevail.

In most cases, a well-written letter citing the district's Child Find obligation and the specific areas of educational impact resolves the impasse before formal dispute resolution is necessary. Districts know that refusing a documented evaluation request with inadequate justification puts them at compliance risk.

What to Do During the Evaluation Period

While the evaluation is underway:

• Provide written input to the evaluators about your observations at home (submit in writing so it becomes part of the evaluation record)
• Request that teachers provide written observations in their specific areas
• Gather any outside records: pediatrician notes, private therapy evaluations, school reports, progress reports
• Document any behavioral incidents, school refusal, or significant academic struggles with specific dates

This documentation doesn't just inform the evaluation — it builds the evidentiary record you'll rely on if the evaluation results in a dispute.

The Kentucky IEP & 504 Advocacy Playbook includes a formal evaluation request letter template, a timeline tracking worksheet for the 60-school-day window, and a parent input letter template for the evaluation period — all built on Kentucky's 707 KAR requirements. The process works when parents know the rules. Start with the letter.

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