For many families, IEP/IFSP meetings are a critical yet stressful part of their child’s educational journey. Parents often enter these meetings feeling anxious, overwhelmed, and uncertain about how their voices will be heard, or whether their child's needs will be met. For educators and service providers, there may also be a sense of pressure to meet compliance requirements, which can sometimes lead to a one-sided, transactional process rather than a collaborative, child-centered discussion. However, when IEP/IFSP meetings are designed to be truly collaborative, they can become an empowering experience for everyone involved. This session focuses on how to create the right conditions for effective, productive, and genuinely collaborative IEP/IFSP meetings that foster trust, transparency, and partnership. Participants will learn how to transform IEP/IFSP meetings from stressful encounters into opportunities for teamwork, where all voices—especially the voices of families—are valued.
Speakers