Who are the ‘team’ members?

DEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) has requirements as to who must participate at an IEP meeting. Additional people can attend as appropriate for a given student. When we talk about a ‘team’, we are often referring to the group of people who come together to make decisions for the student at IEP meetings. But the team that is described in this lesson also might include additional members who do not regularly attend these meetings (for example, working fathers are sometimes unable to attend IEP meetings, but are nonetheless important team members).

For most students with disabilities, the team might consist of:

• The parents of the child
• A regular education teacher of the child (if applicable)
• A special education teacher
• In-school therapists involved with the child (i.e. OT, speech/language)
• An administrator (principal, special education supervisor, etc.)

In addition, there may be other people regularly involved with the student who should be considered to be integral members of the team. These might include:

• Paraprofessionals
• Regular caregivers (such as extended family members, day care providers)
• Involved independent professionals and therapists (i.e. doctors, counselors, etc.)
• Educational consultants (if one is involved with the student’s program)
• Job coach
• Related state agency staff involved with the student (i.e. Department of Mental Retardation or Developmental Disabilities, Birth to Three provider, Vocational Rehabilitation, etc.)
• The student, when appropriate
• Anyone else that is considered a large part of the child’s life or educational program that would like to be involved and that is acceptable to the team

While the student should always be considered an important member of the team, this is not to say that they should attend all of the IEP meetings. These decisions would depend greatly upon the relationship between team members, the topics that are due to be discussed at meetings, etc. Always, however, the student’s perspective and ideas should be shared with the team and any plans that are developed should take them into consideration. Students can provide input without attending meetings through interviews, interest surveys, developing (with help) lists of wants and dislikes, etc. when it is decided not to be appropriate for the student to actually sit in attendance at the IEP meeting. Their participation can also be provided through person-centered planning methods if they are utilized for the student.