School districts have an obligation to provide a free appropriate public education to all of their resident students. Part of this “FAPE” mandate is the duty to locate, identify and evaluate students who may require special education and related services in school according to the “child find” obligation under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Typically, that child find obligation is triggered when the school district has reason to believe that a student may be in need of special education school services, whether by its own observation, information from parents or some other source, such as a prior educational provider. The child find obligation requires school districts to conduct a comprehensive multidisciplinary evaluation of the student in all areas of suspected disability. If the student is eligible for services, it must offer an individualized education plan (IEP) under the IDEA, or a service agreement under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, in accordance with those federal laws as well as Pennsylvania’s regulations to those statutes.