Part C Early Intervention Procedural Safeguard Notices: Are They Supporting Parents to Understand Their Rights?

A family-centered early intervention (EI) approach mandated by the U.S. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C, means involving parents fully in EI and ensuring they know their legal rights and responsibilities for participating. However, many parents report difficulty accessing information and decision-making in EI. IDEA mandates all jurisdictions provide parents with a procedural safeguard notice (PSN) outlining parents' rights and advocacy processes. Yet, it is unclear to what extent PSNs are accessible, particularly to parents with marginalized identities. This study analyzed PSNs from 56 Part C jurisdictions for the components required by law, understandability to the general public, and availability in multiple languages. The PSNs generally did not include all required information, necessitated grade-levels above high school, minimally attended to plain language, and were infrequently available in non-English languages, suggesting that many parents are prevented from information about EI. PSNs, therefore, are a source of bias in Part C.