Evaluations
When the school's picture of your child doesn't match the child you know, trust your instincts.
An Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) is a comprehensive special education/learning assessment conducted by a qualified evaluator not employed by the school district. In California, if you disagree with a district evaluation, and you request an IEE, the District must fund the IEE, or File for Due Process to defend their evaluation.
Tell us what's happening, and let's figure it out together.
What this is
An IEE is a psychoeducational evaluation conducted by a qualified evaluator who is not employed by the school district. That independence allows Crescent to follow the evidence wherever it leads. It does not mean taking sides against the school—it means approaching your child’s needs with an open mind and independent professional judgment.
Every evaluation begins with the questions surrounding your child and how they are functioning at home, at school, and in daily life. We look beyond isolated test scores to understand how your child learns, what may be getting in the way, and which supports are most likely to help.
You should leave the process with more than a report. Our goal is to give you a clear, meaningful understanding of your child’s strengths and needs, along with practical recommendations you can bring to the IEP table and use in everyday life. Families come to Crescent for thoughtful answers—not simply confirmation of what someone already believes.
An IEE can provide important information about your child’s learning and educational needs, but it does not independently determine special education eligibility or guarantee an IEP or Section 504 plan. The information provided here explains the process in general and should not be considered a diagnosis of your child or legal advice about your specific circumstances.
Who it's for
This is for parents of school-aged children who want an independent evaluation.
Why Parents Seek Out IEEs
Your rights
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, if the school district has evaluated your child and you disagree with its evaluation, you may request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) at public expense.
You do not have to provide a detailed explanation of your disagreement. After receiving your request, the district must, without unnecessary delay, either agree to fund the IEE or file for due process to defend its evaluation.
An IEE is not automatically publicly funded, and some families choose to pay privately when timing or evaluator selection is especially important. Whether publicly or privately funded, the IEP team must consider a qualifying IEE—but it is not required to accept every conclusion or recommendation.
This information is intended to help families understand the general process and is not legal advice. If your family is already involved in a dispute, consider consulting a special education attorney.
The process
1. Put the request in writing. A verbal request at a meeting is easy to lose and hard to date. A written request establishes when you asked. Keep a copy of what you sent and note the date.
2. Name the areas. An IEE can cover the whole psychoeducational picture, or one specific area the district assessed and you believe it got wrong. Naming the areas tells the district what you are actually asking for.
3. Ask for the district’s IEE criteria. Districts may set reasonable requirements for independent evaluators, covering qualifications, geographic area, and cost. You are entitled to those criteria in writing. They describe what an evaluator must meet. They do not limit you to a list the district provides.
4. The district responds. It agrees to fund, or it files for due process. If it agrees, it will usually share its criteria and ask which evaluator you have chosen.
5. Selecting an evaluator. The choice is yours. A district may give you a list of evaluators, but you are not required to choose from it. You can select any qualified evaluator who meets the district’s criteria, whether or not the district has named them. That choice matters more than families expect. An evaluation that will be read by a district team, and possibly by counsel or a hearing officer, has to be legally defensible.
Template
This is a starting point, not a form. Change it to fit your situation, and take out anything that does not apply to your child.
Subject: Request for Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE)
Dear [Special Education Director / Case Manager / Program Specialist],
I am the parent/guardian of [Student Name], currently enrolled in [Name of School District]. I am writing to formally request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) at public expense. I disagree with the district’s most recent evaluation of my child, completed on or about [date].
I am requesting an IEE in the following area or areas: [psychoeducational / autism assessment / ADHD assessment / speech and language / occupational therapy / adapted physical education / functional behavior assessment / other].
Please provide the district’s IEE criteria, including evaluator qualifications, cost guidelines, and the process for selecting an independent evaluator.
I look forward to your written response.
Sincerely,
[Parent Name]
[Contact Information]
[Student Name and Date of Birth]
If you would like to talk through whether an IEE is the right step, or what to name in the request, a free 15-minute consultation is the place to start.
What to expect
Starting an evaluation can feel like a lot.
You do not need the right terms. Use the contact page to describe what you are seeing at home and at school. Do not send records, reports, or other sensitive details through a public form.
Together we sort what the current picture already explains, what is still open, and which questions an independent evaluation can actually address.
Testing follows those questions. We look at functioning at home and at school, not a one-size list of measures.
The goal is a profile you understand and next steps you can act on. We will not promise that a school team will adopt any recommendation, or that an IEP or 504 plan will follow.
Our approach
We look at how your child is actually functioning at home and at school, test for what the questions call for, and turn the results into a plan you can use.
Crescent has more than twenty years in special education and experience on both sides of the table. That insider view is what the work rests on. It is how we understand both your child and the system. It is not a claim that we work for the district, or against it.
Independence is the point. The evaluation has to be independent. Crescent stays professionally neutral toward schools for that reason.
Who you'll work with
Crescent is led by Marcia Lynn Miller, Licensed Educational Psychologist (LEP #3015), Nationally Certified School Psychologist. You’ll work directly with the person handling your child’s evaluation, from the first conversation through the final report. More on her background is on About.
Logistics
Fees & insurance
Fees for an Independent Educational Evaluation are discussed at consultation.
For the practice-wide money explanation, see Fees & Insurance.
You have the right to a Good Faith Estimate of expected charges. The sitewide notice lives in the footer and on the Good Faith Estimate page.
Scope is worked out on the consultation call. After that call you receive a Good Faith Estimate in writing that names the areas to be assessed and what the work involves, before anything is scheduled.
Attendance at an IEP meeting is included where a district has contracted it as part of an IEE. Where a parent asks me to attend a meeting outside that, it is additional time billed at the hourly rate, agreed in advance.
Common questions
An IEE is an evaluation completed independently of the school, by an evaluator who is not employed by the district. The job is to understand how your child is functioning and to turn that into a plan you can use.
No. Independence means the evaluation is not done by the district. It does not require a fight, and it does not put Crescent on a side.
We will not promise that. A school team may consider independent findings. Adoption of any recommendation, and any eligibility decision, stays with the people who have that authority. Crescent's job is a full profile and next steps you can act on.
Fees are discussed at consultation. We do not publish evaluation prices on this page.
Marcia Miller. Crescent does not present a team of evaluators. Her bio is on About.
Tell us what's happening. If the better fit is a psychoeducational assessment or an autism evaluation, we will say so. You do not have to already know the school term to start.
No. California parents may request an IEE at public expense without providing a detailed explanation of the disagreement. You may give a reason if you want to. You are not required to.
It must respond without unreasonable delay, by either agreeing to fund the evaluation or filing for due process to defend its own. The law does not fix that as a specific number of days, which is one reason to date your written request and keep a copy.
The IEP team must consider the results. It is not required to adopt the recommendations. A well-constructed report is written so that its reasoning is visible, which is what makes considering it meaningful rather than procedural.
Yes. A district may share a list of evaluators, but you are not required to choose from it. The evaluator you select needs to meet the district’s criteria, which can cover licensure, geographic area, and reasonable cost limits. Ask for those criteria in writing before you decide.
It cannot simply deny it. If it does not agree to fund the evaluation, it has to file for due process and defend its own evaluation before a hearing officer. Some families in that position choose to proceed privately rather than wait. That is a decision worth talking through, and it is one a special education attorney is better placed to advise on than an evaluator.
Related pages
Start with a conversation
You do not have to carry this by yourself.
Tell us what’s happening, and let’s figure it out together.
Prefer to talk? Call or text (559) 287‑8351.
Marcia Lynn Miller, LEP #3015 · Independent practice
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