Kinship families are created when a relative or close family friend raises a child or children when parents can’t. The relative or friend is often referred to as a “kinship caregiver”. This article will be helpful for new kinship caregivers and long-term kinship caregivers if their child or children has or develops a disability. This article focuses on early intervention and special education for children with disabilities in Washington State. It describes early intervention and special education and how to get those services or alternative services.
It has information about situations like:
- The child got special education or had a 504 plan at their previous school
- The child received early intervention services with their birth or previous family
- A kinship caregiver thinks a child does not have the usual skills for their age, or they are not doing well in school, and the caregiver thinks it may be due to a disability
This article also has information about the school enrollment process and documents needed and the right to go to school in Washington which applies to all children whether or not they have a disability.
For schools, who can act as a parent?
Many different people may be defined as parents under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a U.S. federal law which makes sure eligible children with disabilities receive a free, appropriate public education (FAPE). It covers children from birth through age 21.
The definition of a parent states:
“(1) A biological or adoptive parent of a child;
(2) A foster parent, unless State law, regulations, or contractual obligations with a State or local entity prohibit a foster parent from acting as a parent;
(3) A guardian generally authorized to act as the child’s parent, or authorized to make educational decisions for the child (but not the State if the child is a ward of the State);
(4) An individual acting in the place of a biological or adoptive parent (including a grandparent, stepparent, or other relative) with whom the child lives, or an individual who is legally responsible for the child’s welfare; or
(5) A surrogate parent who has been appointed in accordance with § 300.519 or section 639(a)(5) of the Act”.
Kinship caregivers may fall under one or more of these categories. It’s important for kinship caregivers to understand what their rights and responsibilities are about their child’s education. If kinship care does not involve legal steps to remove a parent’s rights, the birth/biological parents still have the right to make decisions about their child’s education, such as:
- Where the child goes to school
- Whether the child can get special education services and supports or a 504 plan
- What goals, services, etc. are written on the IEP
- Notifications about and the right to attend IEP meetings (remotely, if necessary).
In WA State, the school will, based on the law above, assume you have the right to make educational decisions about the child, but the child’s parents can still intervene if they wish.
There is information available about kinship care situations where the kinship caregiver has rights to make educational (any many other) decisions for the child. Those situations (statuses) may include guardianship of a minor child, adoption, or getting a Power of Attorney from the birth parents to make certain decisions about the child’s education and other areas. WA State’s Kinship Navigators can connect you with legal aid resources. One online source is Washington Law Help, a “public law library” for legal information in WA State. It’s maintained by the nonprofit Northwest Justice Project and explains legal terms and legal situations with easy-to-understand wording in English, Spanish, and 8 other languages commonly used in Washington.
School Enrollment
Documents you may need:
- Something that verifies your address, like a utility bill
- Something that confirms the child’s age, like a birth certificate or a certified doctor’s statement
- A record of the child’s immunizations
The WA State Governor’s Office of the Education Ombuds is the state’s problem-solving office for educational issues or questions. On their website they write:
“Schools often list examples of the kinds of documents you can use for enrollment. If you do not have the specific documents that the school generally requires (like a copy of bills, or a birth certificate for your child), talk to the school enrollment office about your situation.
Alternatives to Birth Certificates/Passports: Schools must accept alternatives to show a child’s age or date of birth. The school cannot insist on receiving a birth certificate or passport if you do not have one. Other alternatives might include an adoption record, a certified statement of a physician, or an immunization record with a birthdate on it.
Proof of Residency: Schools generally ask for proof of where you are living in order to be sure your child is a resident of the district. However, if you are currently without a regular place to live (if you are experiencing homelessness), the school cannot require documents before enrolling your child. If this might apply to you or a child you are caring for, ask at the school or district office to talk with the school district’s “McKinney Vento Liaison.”
Remember, all children who live in Washington State have the right to access public education. If you are trying to enroll your child in school, but you do not have the paperwork the school usually requires, please ask for help.
You can ask for help at the school or at the school district office. You can also contact our office at 1-866-297-2597 or visit our Get Help page to contact us through our online intake system.”
Kinship caregivers can enroll their child at the office of the local school. When a child is enrolled in a school district, they are usually placed in the school closest to where they live.
- How to find your local school district: School Districts, Charter Schools, Tribal Schools and Education Support Districts (ESDs). Includes links to each district or school’s website.
- How to request information from a previous school: Contact the school office at the child’s last school. If you don’t know the school’s name, try an online search such as “high schools in (Town Name, State)”. Schools usually have their own websites and contact information.
What is Early Intervention?
Early Intervention is a system of services for infants and toddlers (birth to age 3) that have developmental delays, risk of developmental delays, or diagnosed conditions. Services and supports may include speech, physical or occupational therapy, hearing assistance, nursing care, and vision care. The services are provided in the home or in the community.
Every state is required to offer these services under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA Part C). Services are either free, low-cost, or billable to some insurances.
Families are assigned a Family Resource Coordinator (FRC) and an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) is created by the FRC and the parents (kinship caregiver) for services to support the child’s development and activities for the family to do with the child at home.
When a child reaches age three, the child can transition to special education if needed with a new evaluation. Kinship caregivers may want to start with PAVE: Early Intervention: How to Access Services for Children Birth to 3 in Washington
What is Special Education?
“Special education is instruction that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. This means education that is individually developed to address a specific child’s needs that result from his or her disability. Since each child is unique, it is difficult to give an overall example of special education. It is individualized for each child.
Some students may be working at the pre-kindergarten grade level, others at the first, second, or third grade level. There may be students whose special education focuses primarily on speech and language development, cognitive development, or needs related to a physical or learning disability”.
-Center for Parent Information and Resources
A child getting special education has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) created for them by an IEP team that includes
- Parents or Guardians (including kinship caregivers)
- Student (when appropriate)
- Special Education Teacher
- General Education Teacher
- School Representative, Administrator
- Specialist or service providers
- Additional Individuals (a parent advocate or friend)
What is a 504 Plan?
“A student with a disability is protected by multiple federal laws. One of these laws is the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This law is enforced by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. Section 504 is part of the Rehabilitation Act and it helps protect students from being treated unfairly because of their disability.”
“The right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) is protected by Section 504 and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The most common way schools protect Section 504 FAPE rights is through accommodations. A student might have specifically designed help to accomplish their schoolwork, manage their emotions, use school equipment, or something else. The sky is the limit, and Section 504 is intentionally broad to capture a huge range of possible disability conditions that require vastly different types and levels of support.”
PAVE, Section 504: A Plan for Equity, Access and Accommodations
A document, called a Section 504 Plan or just 504 plan, is developed by a team at the child’s school, and includes the child’s parents (kinship caregiver), the 504 coordinator, teachers, and other appropriate staff. The plan is shared with the child’s teacher and any other appropriate staff and is reviewed and updated by the team regularly and as needed.
What to do if the newly arrived child or children had special education, had a 504 plan or received Early Intervention, and they are now in a new school district, town, or state:
Early Intervention:
If the child used to live in a different state, contact Washington’s Early Support for Infants and Toddlers (ESIT) Program. It’s managed by the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF). A new Family Resource Coordinator will be assigned.
You can tell them where the child used to live. If you do not have a copy of the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) and if the FRC is unable to get it from the child’s previous state, the FRC may recommend a new evaluation.
If the child was already living in WA State, contact the ESIT program to let them know the child’s new address and family situation so an FRC can help you continue the child’s plan.
- ESIT Program contact information
- PAVE: Early Intervention: How to Access Services for Children Birth to 3 in Washington
Special Education:
Students who get special education have an Individualized Education Program (IEP). IEPs are documents that outline instruction, services, goals and supports for students in grades Kindergarten through graduation. Parents, including kinship caregivers, are essential in helping a school create an IEP and review and update it every year or as needed.
IEPs and Free Appropriate Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) are required by federal law, the Individuals with Disability Education Act (IDEA).
- When a child changes schools inside a school district, they keep the same IEP.
- If a child moves to a new district from inside or outside Washington State, there’s a process to get comparable (similar) instruction and services.
The new school must provide comparable (similar) services immediately and hold an IEP team meeting within 30 days to decide whether to use the existing IEP or develop a new one. If the IEP team (including parents/kinship caregivers) decide a new IEP is needed, the school must keep providing comparable services until the new IEP is ready to use.
The school must get permission from the parents (kinship caregiver) to have a new evaluation done for a new IEP.
If the kinship caregiver doesn’t have a copy of the child’s IEP, they can contact the child’s previous school and ask for one copy to be sent to the new school, and one copy to the kinship caregiver. Knowing what’s in the child’s IEP, and keeping records is important to make sure the child is getting the services and supports they need.
Another way is for the new school to contact the previous school to get the IEP. In that case, ask the new school to make a copy and send it to you as early as possible before the first IEP team meeting.
To get help with problems with this process, contact PAVE through PAVE’s Support Form.
504 Plans:
If a child is going to a new school in the same district, the new school will use the current 504 Plan.
If a child is moving from another school district or another state, the child still has a right under federal law for the accommodations, but the current plan isn’t transferred. This is because putting 504 Plans into action may be slightly different from state to state.
- Parents (kinship caregivers) must provide documentation (the same type as required by the current 504 Plan) and advocate for current accommodations to continue (or be improved or added to).
- Schools are required to provide comparable (similar) services and accommodations until a new plan is approved, but they will need the current 504 Plan to make that happen.
If the kinship caregiver has a copy of the 504 Plan, and the documents used to create it (such as medical records and diagnosis from a doctor), they can make copies and deliver them to the new school. Use email to send them if you have it to create a record of what was sent and the date.
If the kinship caregiver doesn’t have the 504 Plan document or the documents, use the same process as the IEP. Contact the office at the previous school and request they send the 504 Plan, along with all the child’s school records.
Schools are required to provide school records, but they may need a copy of a court order (if that is how a child was placed in a kinship family), or another type of document to prove they are acting as the child’s parent.
Kinship caregivers can contact these organizations if they are having problems with getting school records:
Finding out if a child needs Early Intervention, Special Education or a 504 plan
Age birth to 3
- If a kinship caregiver has a concern that a child age birth to three isn’t doing typical activities for their age, early intervention services may be the next step.
- Start with PAVE’s article: Early Intervention: How to Access Services for Children Birth to 3 in Washington. It offers step by step instructions, discusses options, and includes a video.
For children age 3 and up, the school district where the child attends (or will be attending) school is where kinship caregivers can request an evaluation (testing) to see if their child is eligible for Special Education, or possibly a 504 Plan.
A federal law requires all school districts to find, evaluate (test), and if eligible, serve any infant, toddler, or school-aged child who has a known or suspected disability that might impact (interfere with) their learning in school.
If you are not sure how special education would work for your child, you can fill out PAVE’s support form and you’ll hear back from a PAVE team member with first steps and resources to learn more.
Learn More
- How Special Education Works A 10-Step Guide to the Special Education Process -Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), WA State’s education department.
- You can also check out these articles here at PAVE:
- Special Education is a Service, Not a Place
- Evaluations Part 1: Where to Start When a Student Needs Special Help at School
- Evaluations Part 2: Next Steps if the School Says ‘No’
- Sample Letter to Request Evaluation
- Learn about the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
- IEPs and FAPE
- Free Appropriate Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) (video)
- Financial support and other benefits for Kinship Caregivers
- WA State’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) has many resources available to kinship caregivers and their families, including the assistance of kinship navigators or resource persons to help you find your way through “the system” and apply for benefits, health care, find legal aid, and more.
- Kinship Care web page at DSHS
- Benefits as a Licensed Kinship Caregiver with Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF):
- “Kinship caregivers who get licensed receive the greatest amount of ongoing financial assistance DCYF can provide. They are also assigned a Licensing Division worker who can help with questions. Other benefits include access to the Foster Parent Reimbursement and Liability Plan for unexpected damages and monthly foster care reimbursement for young adults over 18 who choose to remain in Extended Foster Care.” -WA State Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF)
- DCYF webpage on Becoming a Kinship Caregiver and Licensing
- Support groups
- Kinship Caregiver Support Groups: If you are raising a child of a relative or friend you can connect with other kinship caregivers in your region through the Kinship Care Supports and Services at Washington’s Department of Social and Health Services. Contact information for support groups and other Kinship caregiver supports is listed by county or region.
- Parent to Parent Support Program: Well-known WA State branch of the national organization offers county or regionally-based support groups, 1:1 support matches with trained parent volunteers who have similar caregiving situations with their children, in-person events, newsletters, and much more.
- Trualta WA Caregivers’ Learning Portal: offers both time-limited and ongoing support groups, generally topic-based. Some groups are always anonymous, others give the option to join with or without your camera on. Log in (or register if it’s the first time) and click on the Events tab. You can sign up to get the monthly newsletter with a schedule of all support group meetings and upcoming live webinars.