A ZOOM INVITATION IS NOT A NOTICE OF MEETING!
Hmm...have you noticed fewer official Invitation to Meeting notices are being sent home?
In its place, there are generated emails from whatever meeting platform the school district is using for virtual meetings. These automated emails do allow participants to accept or decline the meeting and tell the date and time of the meeting.
However, the Zoom, Google Meet, TEAMS (whatever the district uses) automated emails don't always allow parents to know the purpose of the meeting, whom the district has invited to the meeting, and other required components of the Notice.
WHY is this important information to have ahead of time?
1. You want to be crystal clear as to the purpose of the IEP meeting. If you think the meeting is to write a new IEP and the staff thinks it's an "informal" discussion you will be caught off-guard and be ill-prepared for the meeting. That's not how you want to start a meeting.
2. You want to know before you enter the virtual or school conference room who else will be at the meeting. This will give you important clues, so you have some idea of the amount of support or push-back that you might receive if the people who daily interact with your child were invited, if someone who can explain the test results will be
there, etc.
If the Assistant Director of Special Education is listed as an invitee that may mean you are "That Parent" or it could mean the Assistant Director of Special Education is there to support inclusive education training for the staff.
WHAT TO DO: Email your child's special education teacher and request a written Invitation to the IEP meeting Notice. Don't just accept a Zoom, Google Meet, or TEAMS invitation.
NOTE: Most states, only require a list of the roles of individuals invited, not the names. You need to check what your state requires.
