Kan. Admin. Regs. § 91-42-5 - Administrative review

(a) Any parent who filed a written complaint with a local board regarding the use of emergency safety intervention may request an administrative review by the state board of the local board's final decision.

(b) Each parent seeking administrative review shall provide the following information in the request:

(1) The name of the student and the student's contact information;

(2) the name and contact information, to the extent known, for all involved parties, including teachers, aides, administrators, and district staff;

(3) a detailed statement of the basis for seeking administrative review, with all supporting facts and documentation. The documentation shall include a copy of the complaint filed with the local board and shall include the local board's final decision, if issued. The request shall be legibly written or typed and shall be signed by the parent. Relevant written instruments or documents in the possession of the parent shall be attached as exhibits or, if unavailable, referenced in the request for administrative review; and

(4) written consent to disclose any personally identifiable information from the student's education records necessary to conduct an investigation pursuant to this regulation.

(c)

(1) Each request for administrative review shall be filed with the commissioner within 30 days from the date a final decision is issued pursuant to the local dispute resolution process or, if a final decision is not issued, within 60 days from the date a written complaint was filed with the local board.

(2) The hearing officer shall forward a copy of the request for administrative review to the clerk of the local board from whom the administrative review is sought.

(d) Upon receipt of each request for administrative review, the hearing officer shall consider the local board's final decision and may initiate its own investigation of the complaint. Any investigation may include the following:

(1) A discussion with the parent, during which additional information may be gathered and specific allegations identified, verified, and recorded;

(2) contact with the local board or other district staff against which the request for administrative review is filed to allow the local board to respond to the request with facts and information supporting the local board's final decision; and

(3) an on-site investigation by department officers or employees.

(e) if the hearing officer receives information that the hearing officer determines was not previously made available to both parties during the local board dispute resolution process, the hearing officer may remand the issue back to the local board. The local board then has 30 days to issue a written amended final decision.

Upon remand, the hearing officer's case will be closed. All rights to and responsibilities of an administrative review shall begin again when the local board's amended final decision is issued or upon 30 days from when the hearing officer's remand is issued, whichever occurs first.

(f) Within 60 days of the commissioner's receipt of the request for administrative review, the hearing officer shall inform the parent, the school's head administrator, the district superintendent, the local board clerk, and the state board in writing of the results of the administrative review. This time frame may be extended for good cause upon approval of the commissioner.

(g) The results of the administrative review shall contain findings of fact, conclusions of law, and, if needed, suggested corrective action. The hearing officer shall determine whether the district is in violation of this article based solely on the information obtained by the hearing officer during the course of the investigation and the administrative review process. This determination shall include one of the following:

(1) The local board appropriately resolved the complaint pursuant to its dispute resolution process.

(2) The local board should reevaluate the complaint pursuant to its dispute resolution process with suggested findings of fact.

(3) The hearing officer's suggested corrective action is necessary to ensure that local board policies meet the requirements of law.

(h) Nothing in this regulation shall require exhaustion of remedies under this regulation before using procedures or seeking remedies that are otherwise available.

Notes

Kan. Admin. Regs. § 91-42-5

Authorized by and implementing Article 6, Section 2(a) of the Kansas Constitution; effective, T-91-2-17-16, Feb. 17, 2016; amended by Kansas Register Volume 35, No. 21; effective 6/10/2016