Avenues for Complaint

In any relationship, disagreements arise. Disagreements can occur between parents and school officials as they plan together for the special education of children. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has due process procedures for resolving differences in which an impartial third party hears and makes a judgement about the position taken by each party.

Prior to initiating a formal due process appeal, there are steps to take in order to avoid the costly, time and energy consuming appeal process. Parents should always work up the "chain of command" from teacher or specialist, to principal, to special education administrator, to superintendent in an attempt to reach an agreement. Change comes more quickly for children when differences can be resolved at the school building level or at the administrative level with the school system.

If disagreements cannot be resolved at the local level, a due process appeal is not the only mechanism available to parents who believe that the school system has not provided a free appropriate public education or has not respected the procedural safeguards to which they are entitled.

There are two other options to consider. First, every state education agency is required by the federal government to adopt a written procedure for receiving and resolving complaints about a local education agency’s violation of the federal law or regulations that apply to IDEA. If parents believe that such violations have occurred, they can choose to file a written complaint with the State Department of Education. The State Department of Education is required to investigate and to resolve the complaint within 60 days of receiving it.

In addition to the formal complaint route, each state school system maintains a telephone service through which parents can discuss their problems and concerns as well as conveying verbal complaints. In some states, parents can also use this service to request information about school and community services.

There is a third avenue available to parents in addition to a due process hearing or a complaint to the state. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 provides a way to file an administrative complaint with the Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, for either an individual or a class of individuals. The law also provides for legal action under Section 504 only after exhausting due process procedures under IDEA.

Section 504 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in the operation of federally funded programs, which includes all public school systems. The Section 504 regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Education tell every school system that they must provide a free, appropriate public education to all school-aged children, thus echoing the provisions of IDEA. In many cases, any parents or group of parents who feel that their children have been denied rights to a free, appropriate public education can file a Section 504 complaint with the Office for Civil Rights.

For the State of Virginia

Office of Due Process and Complaints, (804) 225-2013
Regions 6 & 7 Complaints Specialist, Reba O'Connor, (804) 786-0608
Regions 2 & 3 Senior Complaints Specialist, Melissa Ploger, (804) 225-2923 
Regions 2 & 3 Senior Complaints Specialist, Ronald J. Brumleve, (804) 225-2195
Regions 1 & 8 Senior Complaints Specialist, Scott McMichael, (804) 786-0116
Regions 4 & 5 Senior Complaints Specialist, Sandra G. Peterson, (804) 225-2339

Regional Office of the Office of Civil Rights serving Virginia

Office of Civil Rights, District of Columbia Office
U.S. Department of Education
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Room 316
P.O. Box 14620
Washington, D.C. 20044-4620
(202) 208-2545, FAX (202) 208-7797, TDD (202) 208-7741
email OCR_DC@ed.gov .

To locate the Complaint Officers in other states, contact the State Department of Education, Special Education Directors. This information can be found at the U.S. Education Department web site, http://www.ed.gov/Programs/bastmp/SDSE.htm.

To locate the Regional Office of the Office of Civil Rights serving your state, visit http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/ocregion.html.

For information on how to file an Office of Civil Rights complaint, visit
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/ocrcomp.html.

Access the publication from the Office of Civil Rights Student Placement in Elementary and Secondary Schools and Section 504 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, visit http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/placpub.html.