Preschool children eligible for special education under the category of 'Developmental Delay' typically cannot move onto kindergarten and remain eligible for special education without receiving a re-evaluation to determine school-age eligibility. Given the COVID-19 pandemic and ordered school-building closure, a temporary change has been made to EMIS reporting requirements for preschool children with disabilities entering kindergarten allowing them to retain eligibility for ‘Developmental Delay’ through Dec. 1, 2020.
This change only applies to preschool students who were receiving services under the ‘Developmental Delay’ disability condition in the 2019-2020 school year who are entering kindergarten in the 2020-2021 school year without having had a re-evaluation completed to identify their school-age disability conditions.
These students can be reported in EMIS when they enter kindergarten for the 2020-2021 school year with the ‘Developmental Delay’ disability condition. Please note the following:
• This temporary change in reporting is only effective for the 2020-2021 school year with effective date records between July 1, 2020 through Dec. 1, 2020.
• Districts should complete the re-evaluation for these students as soon as possible so their school-age disability conditions can be properly identified.
• Effective Dec. 2, 2020, for the 2020-2021 school year, the ability to report a kindergarten student as ‘Developmental Delay’ will end. From that date forward, the EMIS reporting requirement will only allow children with a grade of “preschool” to have the ‘Developmental Delay’ disability condition.
For questions about evaluations or serving children in special education coming into, being served in or exiting preschool, please email [email protected].
For questions about EMIS reporting, please contact an Information Technology Center.