Common IEP Acronyms Parents Should Know

Common IEP Acronyms Parents Should Know

The special education world is brimming with an alphabet soup of Individualized Education Program (IEP) terms constantly used in discussion and writing. While navigating their child’s special education process and participating in challenging IEP meetings, parents can benefit from understanding the most common disability-related acronyms’ meanings.

Acronyms are abbreviations of the first few letters of other words, names, and phrases. However, IEP acronyms can confuse many parents, who may think their child’s teachers and educational therapists communicate in an unfamiliar language. 

As experts in pediatric therapy services, we have assembled a helpful reference guide of IEP acronyms to help parents, teachers, and educational therapists effortlessly comprehend the definition of the most critical terms used in the disability community. So, without further ado, here’s our comprehensive list of the most frequently used IEP acronyms and the words/phrases they mean. 

A: IEP Acronyms

  • AAC: Alternative Augmentative Communication
  • ABA: Applied Behavioral Analysis
  • ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act
  • ADD: Attention-Deficit Disorder
  • ADHD: Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • ADLs: Activities of Daily Living
  • ADR: Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • AIM: Accessible Instructional Materials
  • APE: Adaptive Physical Education
  • APR: Annual Performance Report
  • ARD: Admission Review and Dismissal
  • ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorders
  • ASL: American Sign Language
  • AT: Assistive Technology
  • AYP: Adequate Yearly Progress

B: IEP Acronyms

  • BD: Behavioral Disorder
  • BIP: Behavioral Intervention Plan
  • BOE: Board of Education

C: IEP Acronyms

  • CAP: Client Assistance Program 
  • CAPD: Central Auditory Processing Disorder
  • CBA: Curriculum-Based Assessment
  • CC: Closed Captioning
  • CCSS: Common Core State Standards
  • CD: Cognitive Delay
  • CDA: Child Development Associate
  • CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • CEIS: Coordinated Early Intervening Services
  • CESA: Cooperative Educational Service Agency
  • CF: Cystic Fibrosis
  • CFR: Code of Federal Regulations
  • CHIP: Children’s Health Insurance Program
  • CIFMS: Continuous Improvement and Focused Monitoring System
  • COP: Community of Practice
  • COTA: Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant
  • CP: Cerebral Palsy
  • CSHCN: Children with Special Health Care Needs
  • CSPD: Comprehensive System of Personnel Development
  • CST: Child Study Team

D: IEP Acronyms

  • DB: Deaf-Blind
  • DD: Developmental Delay
  • DD Act: Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act
  • DD Council: Developmental Disabilities Council
  • DIS: Designated Instruction and Services
  • DOC: Department of Corrections
  • DOE: Department of Education
  • DOH: Department of Health
  • DOR: Department of Rehabilitation
  • DPH: Due Process Hearing Officer
  • DREDF: Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund
  • DS: Down Syndrome
  • DSM: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders by the American Psychiatric Association

E: IEP Acronyms

  • EBD: Emotional and Behavioral Disorder
  • EBP: Evidence-Based Practice
  • EC: Early Childhood
  • ECE: Early Childhood Education
  • ECI: Early Childhood Intervention
  • ECSE: Early Childhood Special Education 
  • EDGAR: Education Department General Administrative Regulations
  • EHDI: Early Hearing Detection and Intervention 
  • EI: Early Intervention
  • EIS: Early Intervening Services
  • ELL: English Language Learner
  • EPSDT: Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment
  • ESD: Extended School Day
  • ESEA: Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
  • ESL: English as a Second Language
  • ESSA: Every Student Succeeds Act
  • ESY: Extended School Year 
  • EYS: Extended Year Services

F: IEP Acronyms

  • FAPE: Free Appropriate Public Education
  • FAS: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
  • FBA: Functional Behavioral Assessment
  • FC: Facilitated Communication
  • FEOG: Full Educational Opportunity Goal
  • FERPA: Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
  • FIE: Full Individual Evaluation
  • FIIE: Full Individual and Initial Evaluation
  • FM: Focused Monitoring
  • FOIA: Freedom of Information Act

G: IEP Acronyms

  • GE: General Education
  • GPR: General Program Revenue
  • GPRA: Government Performance and Results Act
  • GT: Gifted and Talented

H: IEP Acronyms

  • HI: Hearing Impaired
  • HO: Hearing Officer
  • HOH: Hard of Hearing
  • HQT: Highly Qualified Teacher

I to K: IEP Acronyms

  • IA: Instructional Assistant
  • IAES: Interim Alternative Educational Setting
  • ID: Intellectual Disability
  • IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
  • IEE: Independent Educational Evaluation
  • IEP: Individualized Education Program
  • IES: Institute of Education Sciences
  • IFSP: Individualized Family Service Plan
  • IHE: Institution of Higher Education
  • IPP: Individual Program Plan
  • ITCA: Infants and Toddlers Coordinators Association
  • ITP: Individualized Transition Plan

L: IEP Acronyms

  • LD: Learning Disability
  • LEA: Local Education Agency
  • LEP: Limited English Proficiency
  • LPP: Local Performance Plan
  • LRE: Least Restrictive Environment

M: IEP Acronyms

  • MD: Muscular Dystrophy
  • MDR: Manifestation Determination Review
  • MH: Multiply Handicapped
  • MOU: Memorandum of Understanding
  • MTSS: Multi-Tiered System of Support

N: IEP Acronyms

  • NASDSE: National Association of State Directors of Special Education
  • NCLB: No Child Left Behind Act 
  • NEA: National Education Association
  • NECTAC: National Early Childhood and Technical Assistance Center
  • NIH: National Institutes of Health
  • NIMAS: National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard
  • NIMH: National Institute of Mental Health
  • NPRM: Notice of Proposed Rule Making

O: IEP Acronyms

  • OCD: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
  • OCR: Office for Civil Rights
  • ODD: Oppositional Defiant Disorder
  • OEO: Office of Equal Opportunity 
  • OHI: Other Health Impairment
  • OI: Orthopedic Impairment
  • O&M: Orientation and Mobility Services
  • OSEP: Office of Special Education Programs
  • OSERS: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
  • OT: Occupational Therapy

P to Q: IEP Acronyms

  • PAI: Protection and Advocacy, Inc.
  • PALS: Peer-Assisted Learning System
  • PARCC: Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers
  • PASS: Plan for Achieving Self-Support
  • PBIS: Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports
  • PBS: Positive Behavioral Supports
  • PCA: Personal Care Attendant
  • PD: Physical Disability
  • PII: Personally Identifiable Information
  • PLAAFP: Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance
  • PLEP: Present Level(s) of Educational Performance
  • PLP: Present Level(s) of Performance
  • PP: Paraprofessional
  • PS: Preschool
  • PT: Physical Therapy
  • PTAC: Parent Technical Assistance Center
  • PTI: Parent Training and Information Center
  • PWN: Prior Written Notice

R: IEP Acronyms

  • RCC: Residential Care Center
  • RDA: Results-Driven Accountability
  • RFP: Request for Proposals
  • RS: Related Services
  • RSN: Regional Service Network
  • RSP: Resource Specialist Program
  • RTI: Response to Intervention
  • RTTT: Race to the Top 

S: IEP Acronyms

  • SA: Self-Assessment
  • SAS: Supplementary Aids and Services
  • SAP: School Age Parents
  • SAT: Student Assistance Team
  • SB: Spina Bifida
  • SBS: School-Based Services
  • SDC: Special Day Class
  • SDD: Significant Developmental Delay
  • SEA: State Educational Agency
  • SEAC: Special Education Advisory Committee
  • Section 504: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
  • SED: Serious Emotional Disturbance
  • SELPA: Special Education Local Plan Area
  • SEP: Special Education Plan
  • SEPAC: Special Education Parent Advisory Council
  • SERR: Special Education Rights and Responsibilities
  • SI: Sensory Integration
  • SIG: State Improvement Grant
  • SIMR: State-Identified Measurable Results for Children with Disabilities
  • SIP: State Implementation Plan
  • SLD: Specific Learning Disability 
  • SLI: Specific Language Impairment
  • SLP: Speech Language Pathologist
  • SPDG: State Personnel Development Grant
  • SPED: Special Education 
  • SPP: State Performance Plan
  • SSDI: Social Security Disability Income
  • SSI: Supplemental Security Income
  • SSIP: State Systemic Improvement Plan
  • SST: Student Study Team

T: IEP Acronyms

  • TANF: Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
  • TBI: Traumatic Brain Injury
  • TDD: Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf
  • TP: Transition Plan
  • TS: Tourette Syndrome
  • TTA: Training and Technical Assistance
  • TTY: Teletypewriter
  • TWWIIA: Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act

U: IEP Acronyms

  • USDOE: United States Department of Education

V: IEP Acronyms

  • VI: Visual Impairment
  • Voc Ed: Vocational Education
  • VR: Vocational Rehabilitation

W to Z: IEP Acronyms

  • WIC: Women, Infants, and Children 
  • WWC: What Works Clearinghouse

Parents and educational therapists, which of these acronyms do you most commonly use during IEP meetings? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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