IEP Accommodations in Colorado
What IEP accommodations are available in Colorado?
Colorado IEPs must include a statement of supplementary aids and services, program modifications, and support for school personnel as required by 34 CFR 300.320(a)(4) and 1 CCR 301-8 (ECEA Rules), §4.03. Accommodations enable the child to be educated with nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate (least restrictive environment). The IEP must also specify individual appropriate accommodations for state and district-wide assessments under 34 CFR 300.320(a)(6); accommodation decisions must align with the Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) guidelines and the Colorado Academic Standards. If a child will not participate in a regular assessment or portion of it, the IEP must include a statement of why that assessment is not appropriate and which alternate assessment will be used. The IEP team must consider whether the child's disability requires assistive technology devices and services (34 CFR 300.324(a)(2)(v)). Colorado's assessment accommodation framework is administered by the Colorado Department of Education, which publishes the Colorado Accessibility Manual for state assessments.
What Colorado Requires
The IEP must include supplementary aids and services, program modifications, and support for school personnel to enable the child to be educated in the least restrictive environment (1 CCR 301-8, §4.03; 34 CFR 300.320(a)(4)).
Individual appropriate accommodations necessary to measure academic achievement and functional performance on state and district-wide assessments must be specified in the IEP (34 CFR 300.320(a)(6)(i)).
If the child will take an alternate assessment, the IEP must explain why the regular assessment is inappropriate and which alternate assessment will be used (34 CFR 300.320(a)(6)(ii)).
The IEP team must consider whether the child needs assistive technology devices and services and document the decision (34 CFR 300.324(a)(2)(v)).
The IEP must specify the extent to which the child will not participate with nondisabled peers in regular education, extracurricular activities, and nonacademic activities (34 CFR 300.320(a)(5)).
Assessment accommodations must be consistent with the Colorado Accessibility Manual; accommodations provided for instruction but not allowed for state assessment must be documented separately (CDE Assessment Accommodations Guidance).
Key Timelines
Accommodations must be reviewed and updated at each annual IEP meeting, at minimum every 365 days (1 CCR 301-8, §4.03(3)).
Accommodation needs for assessment must be considered during IEP planning to ensure timely implementation before state assessment windows (34 CFR 300.320(a)(6)).