California Concerned Parents Association

In 2012, CPA joined with the Morgan Hill Concerned Parents Association (MHCPA) to bring suit against the California Department of Education (CDE), alleging that the CDE was not providing California’s children with disabilities with a free and appropriate public education as mandated by federal law.

Our members have provided us with many examples showing that the CDE is failing to address their children’s needs. For example, many parents have experienced districts attempting to provide their child with speech and language services instead of the more costly Individualized Education Program (IEP). Other parents have had difficulty receiving an appropriate assessment of their child or securing appropriate educational services, especially if those services have involved high costs. Many parents have had trouble getting appropriate behavioral support plans – a fact that has impeded their child’s educational progress in a significant way. We have seen many parents of young children who have lost their IEPs upon entering first grade and for whom it has then taken years to regain a proper IEP. Other parents have joined us because they became frustrated with due process hearings, or were threatened with due process proceedings themselves.