While schools are implementing fundamentally different ways of educating children and youths during the COVID-19 pandemic, Title I schools must still ensure that they provide parent notifications required by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act, Pub. L. No. 114-95, in a timely manner when school resumes.
Following are notifications to send to parents and families at the beginning of the school year.
Notice 1 – Parent and family engagement policies
Description – Local educational agencies and schools must distribute their respective parent and family engagement policies to parents.
Statute or regulation – ESEA Section 1116(a)(2) and Section 1116(b)(1)
Notice 2 – Complaint procedures
Description – LEAs must disseminate to parents the state educational agency’s written procedures for filing complaints about violations of the Title I statute.
Statute or regulation – ESEA Section 1112(e)(1)(A) and Section 1112(e)(1)(B)(ii)
Notice 3 – Teacher and paraprofessional qualifications
Description – LEAs must inform parents of each child in a Title I school at the beginning of every school year of their right to request information on the professional qualifications of their children’s classroom teachers and paraprofessionals providing instructional support. Schools must notify parents if a child is taught for four consecutive weeks by a teacher who does not meet state certification.
Statute or regulation- ESEA Section 1112(e)(1)(A) and Section 1112(e)(1)(B)(ii)
Notice 4 – Annual meeting
Description – Title I schools must notify parents of the required annual meeting and their right to request additional meetings.
Statute or regulation – ESEA Section 1116(c)(1) and Section 1116(c)(2)
Notice 5 – Title I Information
Description – Title I schools must provide information to parents about the Title I, Part A program.
Statute or regulation – ESEA Section 1116(c)(4)
Notice 6- English learner students
Description – LEAs are required to notify parents within 30 days if a child is placed in a Title I-funded program for limited-English-proficient students. Specifically, they must be told the reasons for the identification, including the child’s level of English proficiency, how it was assessed, and the status of the child’s academic achievement.
Schools must tell parents of alternative programs that they can opt out of entirely. This notice must be provided in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand.
Statute or regulation – ESEA Section 1112(e)(3)(A)
Charles Hendrix covers education funding and other Title I issues for TitleIAdmin, a DA sister publication. Links to documents mentioned above are available to subscribers.
