The purpose of this memorandum is to notify school district and education service cooperative personnel that, effective with the issuance of this memorandum, the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE), Special Education, is suspending the use of the Arkansas Transition Referral Form. This referral form is identified as ADE SPED Required Form, IEP - #410, July 2000. It is contained within the ADE IEP form and is currently used when a public agency refers a student to another agency for receipt of transition services.
The decision to suspend use of this form does not in any way change the requirements set forth in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), its implementing regulations and companion State regulations relative to the participation of other agencies, as appropriate, in planning for and providing needed student transition services.
Specifically, 34 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Sections 300.347(b) Content of IEP, Transition services, and 300.348, Agency responsibilities for transition services, as well as the ADE Special Education regulations at Sections 8.05.2, Transition Services Participants (in IEP meetings) and 21.03, Transition from School to Adult Life, provide that the public agency shall invite a representative of any other agency that is likely to be responsible for providing or paying for transition services to an IEP meeting if a purpose of the meeting will be the consideration of transition services. If an agency invited to send a representative to a meeting does not do so, the public agency shall take other steps to obtain participation of the other agency in the planning of any transition services. Further, if a participating agency, other than the public agency, fails to provide the needed transition services, the public agency shall reconvene the IEP Team to identify alternative strategies to meet the transition objectives for the student set out in that IEP.
The invitation of other agency participants in IEP meetings, as well as referral of a student to such an agency and the ultimate disposition of that referral, as well as any necessary follow up, must be documented. Again, the discontinuation of form #410 does not alter the requirements or the need for adequate documentation of the public agency’s efforts to comply with them.
Contact Dr. Mike Crowley or your designated ADE Special Education Supervisor for additional information.