How to request your child's records

Six steps

1. 1

   Decide who to send it to

   Send it to the special education director or records custodian for the district, and copy the principal. Sending it only to your child's teacher is the most common reason a request goes nowhere.

2. 2

   Put it in writing — always email

   A phone call starts no clock. Email creates a dated record of exactly what you asked for and when, which is the whole point.

3. 3

   Ask for the complete record, then name the parts

   Say 'complete education record' first, then list the specific items you know exist. General requests get general folders; named items are harder to leave out.

4. 4

   Ask for electronic copies

   Request PDFs by email or on a drive. Some districts charge a per-page copying fee for paper, and none of it is searchable.

5. 5

   Note the deadline in the request

   Under FERPA a school must let you inspect the record within 45 days, and sooner if it's needed before an IEP meeting. Saying the date of your meeting in the request makes that concrete.

6. 6

   Log what arrives

   When the file comes, check it against your list. Missing items are normal and usually not sinister — reply the same day naming what's still outstanding.

What to name in the request

• All current and prior IEPs, and any draft IEPs prepared for upcoming meetings
• All evaluations and assessment reports, including protocols and raw scores where releasable
• Progress reports on IEP goals for the past two years
• Prior Written Notices (PWNs) issued about your child
• Meeting notes and attendance sheets from every IEP or eligibility meeting
• Attendance, discipline, and behavior incident records
• Report cards and district or state test results
• Health, nursing, and any therapy service logs
• Emails and correspondence about your child between staff members
• Any RTI/MTSS or intervention data collected before referral

Replace everything in brackets. Send it as the body of an email, not an attachment — attachments get opened later, or not at all.

Subject: Written request for complete education records — [Child's full name], DOB [00/00/0000]

Dear [Name], Director of Special Education, [District],

I am the parent/guardian of [Child's full name], a [grade] student at [School]. Under FERPA (34 CFR 99.10) and the IDEA (34 CFR 300.501, 300.613), I am requesting to inspect and receive copies of my child's complete education record.

Please include, at minimum:
- All current and prior IEPs, including any draft IEP prepared for an upcoming meeting
- All evaluations and assessment reports, including raw or subtest scores where releasable
- Progress reports on IEP goals for the past two years
- All Prior Written Notices issued regarding my child
- Meeting notes and attendance sheets from all IEP and eligibility meetings
- Attendance, discipline, and behavior incident records
- Report cards and district or state assessment results
- Health, nursing, and related-service logs
- Staff correspondence, including emails, concerning my child
- Any RTI/MTSS or pre-referral intervention data

Please provide these as electronic copies (PDF) by email to [your email], or let me know if another format is necessary.

We have an IEP meeting scheduled for [date], so I am asking to receive the records no later than [date at least 5 business days before the meeting], and in any case within the 45-day period required by FERPA.

Please confirm receipt of this request. Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Phone] | [Email]
[Date]

If nothing comes back

• Day 46 with nothing: reply to your original email, note the date you sent it, and ask for a date certain.
• Told to pay first: you can be charged a reasonable copying fee, but not a fee that effectively prevents you from inspecting the record — and inspection itself is free.
• Given a partial file: reply the same day listing precisely what's missing. Keep it factual, not accusatory.
• Still stuck: contact your state's Parent Training and Information Center (free), then your state department of education's special education complaint office. A FERPA complaint goes to the U.S. Department of Education's Student Privacy Policy Office.