Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dispute Resolution topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Mediation agreement rates rise while complaints and due‑process requests increase, state dispute‑resolution unit reports
Summary
The State Department reported a 75% day‑of‑mediation agreement rate, a 29% increase in state complaints this year and a substantial multi‑year increase in complaints nationwide; the department has expanded its mediator and hearing‑officer panels and increased training.
Kirsten, a member of the Connecticut State Department of Education’s dispute‑resolution staff, reported to the State Special Education Advisory Council on Sept. 24 that mediation outcomes, state complaints and due‑process hearings are all active parts of the system and that caseloads have been growing.
Kirsten told the council that the department’s mediation agreement rate reached 75 percent for agreements obtained on the day of mediation and that the department expects additional mediated agreements that finalize after a session. “I encourage all of you, as you talk to people around you who are curious about the system, encourage them to participate. It’s a wonderful option for dispute resolution,” she said.
At the same time, the state experienced a 29 percent increase in state complaints in the 2025 school year and a 64.5 percent increase over a four‑year span, the presentation said. The department compared those increases with other states and noted similar trends nationwide.
Kirsten also summarized due‑process hearing activity: the department received 289 hearing requests this past year, with 28 cases still active at the time of the report. Of fully adjudicated hearings in 2025, seven decisions favored districts, three favored parents and one was a split decision; the department posts full decisions on its website.
To manage demand, the department has expanded its panels and training: the mediator roster has more than doubled in two years and the hearing‑officer panel has grown to 10 attorneys. Mediators receive continuing training, case‑study workshops and post‑mediation feedback; the department reported a 4.7 average mediator rating (out of 5) from 175 survey responses. Hearing officers participated in substantial professional development, including both internal and external trainings.
Kirsten listed themes the due‑process unit observed in complaints and hearings: unclear present levels of performance and connections to goals in IEPs; misunderstandings of the difference between unilateral placements and parental placements; frequent requests for independent educational evaluations (IEEs) and disputes about whether district evaluations were appropriate; and problems arising from staffing vacancies. She closed with practical advice for avoiding formal disputes: “Communicate, communicate, communicate,” Kirsten said.
Why this matters: growing complaint and hearing volumes change how districts and families may approach dispute resolution and make mediation an important option. The department’s investments in mediator and hearing‑officer capacity aim to shorten timelines and provide more access to trained neutrals.
Follow up: the department will place its mediator and hearing‑officer lists and professional‑development materials on the department website and supply the council with the slide deck for further review.
