Common use of Complaint Process Clause in Contracts

Complaint Process. A. PDE will develop and implement a process by which ELs and students with a disability, and their Parents, can seek to resolve complaints and concerns regarding any aspect of AEDY related to EL services or ADA requirements, including placement and exiting decisions, the quality of relevant academic instruction, the provision or omission of language assistance services, and services to students with disabilities, including reasonable modifications. PDE may open this process to all students, Parents, and others and receive and resolve complaints concerning all aspects of AEDY. The process will include the following steps: i. Local Level Resolution: Students, Parents, and others having complaints and concerns regarding AEDY will be required to seek resolution of complaints and concerns via the relevant AEDY Program and/or LEA rather than elevating concerns to PDE in the first instance. PDE will require LEAs and AEDY Programs to develop and implement local policies and procedures, which will be submitted to PDE when applying for AEDY Program approval, by which students, Parents, and others can submit complaints and concerns to LEAs and/or AEDY Programs related to AEDY Programs. This paragraph does not limit any other rights or remedies under federal and state law. ii. PDE Review: Students, parents, and others will be provided an opportunity to seek PDE review if a local EL or ADA complaint or concern is not resolved at the local level and/or if students, Parents, or others wish to challenge the local level resolution. B. At both the local level resolution and PDE review stages, the complaint process will include providing all interested persons with: the relevant policies for investigation of EL and ADA complaints, including policies regarding interviews and consideration of relevant evidence, as well as possible outcomes of an investigation; timely procedures for responding to the person making the complaint; information about potential means of responding to the complaint; reasonable time frames for response; and information regarding how to determine the status of a complaint. C. PDE will notify AEDY stakeholders, including Parents, students, advocates, LEA Coordinators, and AEDY Program Coordinators, about the local level resolution and PDE review process required by Section IV.A. above, by posting the process on PDE’s website in both English and Spanish, and include information that explains how persons who require oral or written translation into a different language can obtain that translation. In addition, PDE will require LEAs and AEDY Programs to notify students, Parents, and others, about the local level resolution and PDE review process in a manner that is accessible to LEP Parents, Parents with disabilities, ELs, and students with disabilities given their language needs and disabilities. D. By May 31, 2019, PDE will submit to the United States for review its plan for the creation of the local level resolution and PDE review process required by this Section. The United States will have 60 days from receipt of the plan to provide PDE with its comments and proposed revisions. If the Parties disagree on whether the plan comports with PDE’s obligations under Section IV, they will utilize the dispute resolution procedures in Sections XI. F-G below. E. The local level resolution and PDE review process will be implemented before the start of the 2019-2020 school year.