Moving to Porter County
Move In Procedures for Students with Disabilities (based on current state and federal guidelines):
Step 1: Establish Residency
General and special education programs are made available to students who have legal settlement (residency) in a Porter County school corporation. The Porter County School Corporations include the Duneland Schools, the East Porter County School Corporation, MSD of Boone Township, Porter Township Schools, Portage Township Schools, Union Township Schools, and the Valparaiso Community Schools. (Charter schools within Porter County provide their own special education services, and are not served by Porter County Education Services.)
When seeking to attend a Porter County public school, it is essential to start the process in the district where the student resides. Parents should contact the school office where other neighborhood children attend school to receive information on the process of establishing residency. If parents are unsure of how to contact the neighborhood school, they may contact the corporation’s central office.
As establishing residency takes place, parents of students with disabilities should advise the school of the student’s past involvement with special education services. Any current special education records in the possession of the parents should be copied by the school unless those records were developed by Porter County Education Services. PCES special education records are transferrable amongst the member districts listed above.
Step 2: Contact with Porter County Education Services (PCES) by the Corporation
As soon as the corporation’s administration becomes aware that an enrolling student has a current special education plan (Individualized Education Plan–IEP), enrollment information is forwarded to the PCES office. The special education supervisor working with that school corporation will review the enrollment material as well as any special education materials also forwarded. If the parent is not in possession of any current special education records, the PCES special education supervisor will formally request those records. (It is far more expedient for PCES to request special education records than for the corporation to request special education records.) Once special education records have been reviewed, the special education supervisor will verify whether the student’s IEP can be carried out in the student’s neighborhood school. If so, services will begin as soon as the on-site teacher is assigned by the PCES supervisor and the appropriate student schedule is developed. A case conference will be offered to the parent within 10 days of the student’s enrollment. If not, a case conference will be scheduled as quickly as possible, but within 10 days of the student’s enrollment. Placement decisions will be made by the case conference committee.
