Special Education
Special Education is a Service-Not a Place
Special education at Indianapolis Public Schools is a set of individualized services and supports built around your child; designed to help them learn, grow, and succeed alongside their peers. Services are tailored to each student through the Individualized Education Program (IEP) and can be delivered where your child learns best.
What Special Education Means for Your Child:
- Individualized. Services are tailored to your child’s unique strengths and needs based on their IEP.
- Flexible across settings. Support can be provided in the general education classroom, in small groups, or in more specialized settings—whatever the IEP team decides will help your child be successful. The support follows your child.
- Focused on access. Your child learns alongside their peers to the greatest extent appropriate, with the accommodations and modifications that open up the same curriculum and opportunities (this is what the law calls the Least Restrictive Environment).
- Decided together. You are an essential member of the team. Decisions about services and supports are made collaboratively through the case conference (IEP) process.
Designed Around Your Child
Every child is different. Special education services are designed to:
- Build on your child’s strengths
- Address specific learning, behavioral, or developmental needs
- Support independence and long-term success
- Adjust over time as your child grows
There is no one-size-fits-all program. Services are determined individually and may change as your child’s needs evolve.
How to Get Support
If you have concerns about your child's learning, development, or behavior, you can take action whenever you're ready. You are never required to complete any other process before requesting a special education evaluation.
Start a conversation with your child’s school.
Reach out to your child's teacher or school team to share what you're seeing. The school can put general education supports in place right away—often through a problem-solving process called MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports)—and will monitor your child's progress and keep you updated.
Request an evaluation whenever you choose.
If you believe your child may have a disability, you can request a special education evaluation at any time—including while general education supports are already in place. MTSS can be helpful, but it is never required before an evaluation and cannot be used to delay or deny one. You can make this request to your child's school or to the special education team, ideally in writing.
What happens next:
- Evaluation. With your written consent, a multidisciplinary team conducts a comprehensive evaluation of your child’s strengths and needs.
- Case Conference Committee (CCC) Meeting. In Indiana, the IEP team meeting is called a Case Conference Committee, or CCC. The CCC is made up of you and several required school staff. You are welcome to bring people who support you or know your child well—for example, a family member, a friend, an advocate, or anyone with helpful knowledge or expertise about your child. You and the team meet to review the results of the evaluation and decide whether your child is eligible for services.
- Individualized Education Program (IEP). If your child is eligible, the team develops an IEP that lays out the services, supports, and goals designed for your child.
You are an equal and valued member of this CCC team at every step.
Types of Support Your Child May Receive
Special education services are based on individual need and may include:
- Academic support (reading, writing, math, learning strategies)
- Behavioral and social-emotional support
- Speech and language services
- Occupational and physical therapy
- Specialized Transportation
- Early childhood services (ages 3–5)
- Transition services for life after high school
Several of these are what the law calls related services—transportation, occupational or physical therapy, counseling, and health and nursing services that are provided alongside instruction to help your child benefit from their education. When your child's IEP includes related services, they are provided at no cost to your family.
How Services Are Delivered
Every student with a disability has the right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). For most students, this means learning in the general education classroom and participating in a full school day alongside their peers. If a student is not making meaningful progress in that setting, even with supports in place, the IEP team meets to discuss what additional services or changes may be needed.
Inclusion means more than being physically present in a classroom. It means your child receives the supports they need to participate and succeed, such as:
- Additional adult support
- Adaptations to materials and instruction
- Specialized teaching strategies
- Individualized goals and services
- Related Services
Decisions about services and settings are always made by the IEP team based on the individual needs of the student.
When More Intensive Support is Needed
Most students with disabilities are well-served in the general education classroom with the right supports in place. Some students need more intensive or specialized services for part or all of the school day, and IPS offers a full continuum of services to meet a wide range of needs. Depending on what your child needs, this may include:
- Intensive Behavioral Support
- Specialized Instructional Settings
- Programs for Students with Significant Developmental or Cognitive disabilities
- Structured Communication Supports
- Mental Health Supports and Therapeutic Settings
- Specialized Health and Nursing Services
The right level of support for your child is determined by the IEP team, which includes you, through the case conference process based on a clear look at how your child is progressing and what they need to access their education. Because every child is different, this decision is made individually for your child and not assigned in advance.
Resources for Families
Essential Documents & Information
- Laws and Resources
- Notice of Procedural Safeguards
- Aviso de Salvaguardias Procedimentales
- Guidelines Seclusion and Restraint in Schools
- Special Education Rules – Title 511, Article 7
- Non-Public Referral Process
Have Questions? We’re Here to Help
Our special education team is ready to support you and your family. Use the form below to submit questions, request information, or connect with our staff.
Our Commitment
IPS is dedicated to ensuring that all students have access to a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. We work collaboratively with families, educators, and community partners to create individualized learning experiences that prepare students for success in school and beyond.