Project Child Find

In accordance with Child Find provisions, Franklin Academy Charter School is committed to meeting the needs of students with disabilities.  

What is Project Child Find?

An effort coordinated by your local school system and the Exceptional Children Division, State Department of Public Instruction, to:

• Locate and identify children and youth ages birth through 21 with disabilities who are in need of special education and related services.
• Inform parents and/or guardians of the services available from their local school system and other state and community agencies. 

Who Are the Children?

Children and youth who have been diagnosed or are suspected to have intellectual, physical, or emotional disabilities and are unable to benefit from a regular school program without special assistance.

What Help Is Available?

• A complete evaluation and, if appropriate,
• An Individualized Education Program for children with a disability beginning at age three,
• An Individual Family Service Plan for each child with a disability birth through 2, or
• A referral to other agencies when needed

For further information regarding Child Find or if you suspect your student may have a disability and need special education and/or related services, please contact:

Franklin Academy
Denise Kent
Ph: (919) 570-8262 x 310
E: kentd@franklinacademy.org

Overview of Special Education Process

Referral or request for evaluation:  

A school professional may identify students suspected of having a disability.  Additionally, parents may contact the student’s teacher or other school personnel and request evaluations.  An IEP Team, which includes the parent, would meet in either case and complete a Special Education Referral.  During this meeting, the team will review information about the student’s strengths and weaknesses, results of any interventions, information about educational history and daily classroom performance, state testing results (if available), etc.  Based on a review of the information the team will decide if further data is needed to determine eligibility.  If further data is needed, parental consent is required (Informed Consent for Evaluation). 

Evaluations requested by the team will be completed and an IEP Team, of which the parent is a part, will meet to review results and determine if the student meets the requirements for one or more of the 14 disability categories recognized within North Carolina (Eligibility Determination).  If the disability has an adverse effect on educational performance and requires specially designed instruction, the student is found eligible for special education. 

An Individual Education Program (IEP) will be developed which outlines the student’s strengths and weaknesses and the services, supplemental aids, modifications and accommodations required to meet the student’s needs to progress in the general education curriculum. 

The IEP Team’s decisions and the rationale for those decisions are outlined on the Prior Written Notice.  Parents are provided this document that explains the team’s decisions before any of those decisions are implemented. 

Informed Consent for Initial Provision of Services (must be signed by the parent before the IEP can be implemented).

Reevaluation: 

At least once every three years (and no more than once per calendar year unless agreed on by the team), a student must be reevaluated to determine if eligibility requirements continue to be met and to determine if the student continues to be in need of special education.  This is done via the Reevaluation Determination process.  

Disciplinary Procedures

Franklin Academy Charter School may suspend any student for violations of the Student Code of Conduct.  When a student with disabilities violates the Student Code of Conduct and warrants suspension from school for ten (10) school days or less in a given school year, the school may follow its normal disciplinary procedures. School personnel may consider any unique circumstances on a case-by-case basis when determining whether suspension is appropriate. Circumstances considered should include area of disability, functioning level of the student, intent of the behavior and other relevant factors. After 10 school days of suspension, the child’s IEP Team must determine whether the student’s misconduct is a manifestation of the disability. A removal from current placement is generally termed an out-of-school suspension (OSS) or in-school suspension (ISS) if special education services are not provided. 

A student with a disability who is removed from their current placement for more than 10 school days must continue to receive educational services, so as to allow him/her to continue to participate in the general education curriculum in another setting; continue to progress toward meeting goals outlined in his/her IEP; AND receive, as appropriate, a functional behavioral assessment (FBA), and behavioral intervention services and modifications that are designed to address the behavior violation. 

Transfer Information (In-state or out-of-state)

If you are new to Franklin Academy and have questions about special education, please visit or contact our school office. In order to facilitate a smooth transition into Franklin Academy, it is very important to provide the school copies of the following information during registration:

• Most recent psychoeducational report, eligibility, evaluation and/or reevaluation
• Current individualized education program (IEP); and
• Contact information for your student’s previous school and school district

These items will support a successful transition between your student’s old and new school and will ensure that appropriate services and supports are made available.

What to Expect

For out-of-state students: 

Once you have shared your student’s special education records, school staff will invite you to a meeting to discuss comparable services, or services similar to or the same as, provided on your student’s most recent IEP. During the meeting, school staff will also describe the initial eligibility process that occurs when students move from out of state and the timeline in which an initial North Carolina (NC) IEP will be developed.

For in-state students but new to Franklin Academy: 

School staff will begin implementing the current NC IEP on your student’s first day of school. An invitation to review and revise your student’s IEP may be scheduled. The purpose of the meeting will be to discuss your student’s transition to a new school and to determine if any adjustments to the services and supports currently being provided are needed.

Local Dispute Resolution

Occasionally, members of IEP Teams will not agree about how to meet a student’s needs or about exactly what should be included in an IEP.  Franklin Academy and the NC Department of Public Instruction, Exceptional Children’s Division, provide a range of resources to help the team resolve disagreements.   

When challenges arise, first communicate with the person closest to the issues.  Discuss your concerns with your child’s teacher, the IEP Team and the principal of your child’s school.  If additional support is needed, informal and formal processes are available from DPI.

NCDPI Exceptional Children Division’s consultants for dispute resolution and consultants for instructional support and related services are also able to offer consultation to assist parents, advocates, school system, or state operated programs personnel who request help with problem-solving. 

Consultants at the Department of Public Instruction are neutral and refrain from taking sides when there is a disagreement, but consistently advocate for appropriate services for children with disabilities. They are committed to the protection of rights for children with disabilities and their parents. 

An informal means of problem solving is provided through the Exceptional Children Division’s Facilitated IEP Program for school systems, charter schools, state operated programs, and parents. 

For more information on Dispute Resolution and governing polices can be found in the Parent Rights & Responsibilities in Special Education Notice of Procedural Safeguards 

Parent Rights & Responsibilities in Special Education: NC Notice of Procedural Safeguards

This handbook is designed to support families with the understanding of the rights and responsibilities specific to the special education process. Acronyms and terms often used in special education and resources can be found in the appendices.  If, at any time, you suspect your student may have a disability and is in need of special education and/or related services, you may request an evaluation, in writing, to your student’s school principal, teacher, or EC teacher.

EC Division Website

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction Exceptional Children Division 

The mission of the Exceptional Children Division is to ensure that students with disabilities develop intellectually, physically, emotionally, and vocationally through the provision of an appropriate individualized program in the least restrictive environment.

Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) for Families

Multi-Tiered System of Support for Families

What is NC MTSS?

Family engagement within an MTSS is defined as the active and meaningful partnerships that educators build and maintain with students’ families for the purpose of supporting student learning. It embodies the idea that all parties are equally invested in the student’s educational experience and all parties bring knowledge and skills of equal value to the table to work together.

This linked infographic is intended to support NC families in understanding what NC educators are referring to when they are talking about an MTSS.

What is “support”?

NC schools that are implementing an MTSS may talk about support for students. To further define that support, NC organizes these supports around the instruction, the curriculum, and the environment. This linked infographic is intended to promote understanding and conversations around how school teams are providing these supports to all, some, and a few students based on needs.