Nobody at the school will schedule the IEP meeting I requested

You emailed or called to ask for an IEP meeting, and weeks later there is no date, no proposed times, and no reply, as if the request had never been sent. No: IDEA sets no count of days for a reply, but a refusal to change your child’s services after you ask has to come as prior written notice, and silence is not that notice (34 CFR 300.503(a)(2)). Start by pulling the IEP page or the letter the dispute turns on and writing down today’s date; every move below adds to that record.

By The Advocate Ally, checked against the rules it cites. Sources checked September 17, 2026.

What the rule says

“Each public agency must take steps to ensure that one or both of the parents of a child with a disability are present at each IEP Team meeting or are afforded the opportunity to participate …”
34 CFR 300.322(a)

Getting you into the room at every meeting it holds is the district’s job, notice and scheduling included.

What to do this week, in order

Save the email or note you sent asking for the meeting, along with the date it was sent.
The original request, saved with the date
Send one follow-up email that restates your original date and lists two or three dates you are available this month.
A follow-up email with a received timestamp
Check the current IEP’s date, since the team reviews it at least annually and a review coming due is reason enough to meet.
The IEP date and when the year runs out34 CFR 300.324(b)(1)(i)
Write the special education director, name the opportunity to participate the rule affords you, and ask when the team will meet.
A dated answer from the director, or its absence34 CFR 300.501(b)(1)
Once the district proposes a time, confirm in writing that it works, since the meeting is set at a mutually agreed time and place.
A confirmation of the time, in your sent folder34 CFR 300.322(a)(2)

What to put in writing

Replace what sits in brackets and send it by email, so the date is fixed.

To: Whoever chairs your child’s IEP meetings, with the principal noted

Dear [Team chairperson’s name],

On [date first sent], I asked for an IEP meeting about [concern, such as missed services or a placement change], and no date has been scheduled. Please share a few dates between [date range] when the team could meet, or tell me in writing if no meeting is planned and why. I can work around the team’s calendar, and I would like this settled soon.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Email] · [Phone]

If the answer is no, it arrives as prior written notice: what was refused, why, and the records the district relied on (34 CFR 300.503(b)).

When to escalate, and to whom

Escalate when the written answer is a no, or when the record you built this week draws no answer at all.

The path	The count	How it runs
A state complaint	60 days to a decision	A signed letter to your state education agency about a violation inside the past year; the state decides in writing within 60 days.34 CFR 300.152(a), 300.153(c)
Mediation	Voluntary, at no cost to you	You and the district sit with an impartial mediator the state pays for; it can start before any complaint and may not delay a hearing.34 CFR 300.506(b)
A due process complaint	2 years to file	A hearing before an impartial officer; the district holds a resolution meeting within 15 days, and the decision is due 45 days after the 30-day resolution period.34 CFR 300.507(a)(2), 300.510(a)(1), 300.515(a)

Those counts are IDEA’s; your state may set its own window for due process, and publishes its own complaint form.

This page explains the federal rule, and it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.

Have the pages this dispute is about read back to you, free.

The review reads every page you upload, names the service, goal or wording that is vague or missing, and gives you its page number.

Review my IEP — free

Free, no card. It reads your pages and contacts no one.

Where this comes from

Getting parents to the meeting (34 CFR 300.322)The scheduling duty quoted above.
Parent participation in evaluation and placement (34 CFR 300.501)Where the right to weigh in starts.
Once a year at least (34 CFR 300.324(b))The one clock the third move reads.
Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What every no owes you.

When the paragraph needs to become a full letter, the letter templates carry one for each request.