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Decision-Making Guidance
Last updated: 1/30/17
Note: This document was updated to comply with Michigan Department of
Education standards for accessibility. No other content changes were made.
Ex-Officio
I. Introduction
This guidance document provides information to public agencies, service providers,
and parents regarding the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA) requirements pertaining to surrogate parents. Its purpose is
to provide guidance to public agencies in selecting and training surrogate parents.
This document covers the major considerations under federal law when surrogate
parent appointments are made for students ages 3 through 21, including the:
The Michigan Administrative Rules for Special Education (MARSE) have included the
federal definition of parent with an addition at R 340.1701b(d)(viii) as follows:
The affected student or youth with a disability when the student or youth with a
disability reaches 18 years of age, if a legal guardian has not been appointed by
appropriate court proceedings.
(a) General. Each public agency must ensure that the rights of a child are
protected when—
(1) No parent (as defined in § 300.30) can be identified;
(2) The public agency, after reasonable efforts, cannot locate a parent;
(3) The child is a ward of the State under the laws of that State; or
(4) The child is an unaccompanied homeless youth as defined in section
725(6) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
11434a(6)).
(b) Duties of public agency. The duties of a public agency under paragraph (a) of
this section include the assignment of an individual to act as a surrogate for
the parents. This must include a method—
(1) For determining whether a child needs a surrogate parent; and
(2) For assigning a surrogate parent to the child.
For parents whose educational rights are intact, reasonable efforts to contact them
must be documented. Attempts to contact include, but are not limited to, the
following:
• Telephone calls.
• Letters.
• Visits to the parent’s last known address and/or place of employment.
LEAs should continue to send notices to the parent whose educational rights may
still be intact, even during the process of appointing a surrogate parent. If the
parent is located, the surrogate parent appointment should be terminated. It is
Recruitment Guidelines: When recruiting a surrogate parent, the LEA should give
first preference to a relative, friend, or court-appointed advocate. If none of these
individuals is willing or able to act as a surrogate parent, the LEA must be prepared
to appoint another qualified adult. An involved human service agency may be a
source for identifying a surrogate parent who already knows and has a relationship
with the student. Appropriate community groups can also be contacted for the
purpose of recruiting surrogate parents. It is recommended that such groups be
given a clear explanation of the roles and responsibilities of surrogate parents as
well as an overview of the time commitments. Examples of community groups could
include the following:
• Is not an employee of the SEA, LEA, or any other agency that is involved in
the education or care of the student.
• Has no personal or professional interest that conflicts with the interest of the
student that the surrogate parent represents.
• Has knowledge and skills that ensure adequate representation of the student.
Note: A public agency may employ a person solely to serve in the capacity of a
surrogate parent. In this case, the person is allowed to serve as the surrogate, and
the employee conflict of interest does not apply.
Once volunteers have been trained to act as surrogate parents, the ISD should
maintain a list of qualified surrogate parents. The LEA then contacts the ISD when a
surrogate parent is needed.
As a child who, as determined by the State where the child resides, is—
1. A foster child.
2. A ward of the State.
3. In custody of a public child welfare agency.
Exception: Ward of the State does not include a foster child who has a foster
parent who meets the definition of a parent in § 300.30.
Courts overseeing a student’s case may appoint a surrogate parent for wards of the
state. When a court makes an appointment, not all of the criteria for selection of a
surrogate parent apply. The person selected cannot be an employee of an agency
involved in the education or care of the student, but the other criteria do not apply
to appointments by courts.
If the court does not appoint a surrogate parent for a ward of the State, an LEA
must assign a surrogate parent.