LDOE staff to draft guidance on IEP meeting length and advocate communication; no formal action due to lack of quorum

At a meeting of the Louisiana Department of Education’s SEEK panel, staff proposed drafting guidance aimed at reducing multi‑hour IEP meetings and clarifying how school staff should communicate when parents bring private advocates; no formal policy change was adopted because the panel lacked a quorum. Lauren Wells, acting executive director of the Division of Diverse Learners, opened the discussion and asked for member input while noting that "a meeting without a quorum of the membership present does not constitute a meeting in which business can be conducted, and motions will not be recorded."

The proposal, presented by Ashley Townsend, deputy chief of policy, responded to a petition for rulemaking that asked the department to explicitly permit rescheduling when IEP meetings run long and to clarify expectations about communication when advocates attend. Townsend said the petition "was twofold" and that, after review, the department’s "recommendation for your consideration is that instead of…