Advocate more Effectively by Understanding the Public School Hierarchy

Public School Hierarchy

We created the chart above to help parents and caregivers understand the leadership roles in the public school hierarchy. It is essential to know who to engage with first should a situation arise in the school setting. If an issue occurs, the best practice is to reach out to Special Education teachers.

The next step would be to include the LEA (Local Education Agency) designee. This is a person at the meeting who has the authority to allocate resources and approve the IEP, and to facilitate individual problem solving as appropriate. This MAY require an IEP team meeting.

When an IEP team requires additional support, district personnel are assigned to assist as needed to resolve specific issues.

District personnel communicates specifics to the director of ESE for the next steps as appropriate.

*BELOW IS A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF LEADERSHIP IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS:

STUDENTS AND PARENTS: The system exists to serve students and parents, whose needs and concerns influence a wide range of policies and practices.

SCHOOL BOARD: Oversees public schools and ensures that they are in compliance with constitutional responsibilities.

SUPERINTENDENT: Oversees and enhances educational programs, implements rules, regulations, policies, and procedures and increases student achievement.

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATORS: Oversees specific areas such as curriculum and instruction development, student services, special needs, English Language Learners, athletics, transportation, federal programs, testing and assessment, finances, etc.

DISTRICT ADVISORY TEAMS/SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TEAMS: Formal committees are composed of community members, school leaders, and parents who advise the school district or individual schools and create improvement plans.

PRINCIPALS AND SCHOOL LEADERS: Oversees school operations, provides staff with necessary skills to fulfill educational goals, and ensures that rules, regulations, policies, and procedures are enforced and fulfilled.

PARENT COMMITTEES (PTO/PTA): Parent-teacher committees support school/family social interaction and enhance educational efforts through classroom assistance, information sharing, and fundraising.

SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS: Assist students in gaining the necessary knowledge and skills to succeed.

SUPPORT STAFF: Provides support services, such as counseling, scheduling, communications, etc…

Related: The Politics of Special Education: The Information You Need Right Now

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This post originally appeared on our July/August 2021 Magazine