State Board Administrative Review Process

Refer to K.S.A. 2015 Supp. 72-89d04(b) and K.A.R. 91-42-5 for complete information. The following provides a summary of the regulations regarding an administrative review initiated with the Kansas State Board of Education (KSBE).

• If a parent believes an emergency safety intervention was used in violation of K.S.A 2015 Supp. 72-89d01 through -89d09 or K.A.R 91-42-1 through -7 and the parent filed a written complaint with their local board of education, then this parent may request an administrative review of the local board’s decision from KSBE.

  • The request for administrative review must include the following information: 

    • Name of the student and contact information;
    • Names and contact information for all involved parties (teachers, aides, administrators, and district staff), to the extent known;
    • A detailed statement of the reason for requesting and administrative review;
    • Any supporting facts and documentation; and
    • A copy of the complaint filed with the local board, the local board’s final decision (if issued).
    • The written request for administrative review must be typed or legibly written and signed by the parent.
    • Relevant documents must be attached or, if unavailable, the documents must be referenced in the request for administrative review.
    • Written consent to disclose any personally identifiable information from the student’s education records necessary to conduct an investigation.

• The request for administrative review must be filed with the Commissioner of Education within 30 days of the local board issuing its final decision OR within 60 days from the date the parent filed a complaint with the local board, if the local board did not issue a final decision. You may mail this request to the Kansas State Department of Education, Landon State Office Building, 900 SW Jackson Street, Suite 600, Topeka, KS  66612.

• A Hearing Officer will be designated by KSBE. The Hearing Officer must send a copy of the request for administrative review to the local board.

• The Hearing Officer will consider the local board’s final decision and may initiate an investigation that could include:

  • A discussion with the parent, during which additional information may be gathered;
  • Contact with the local board or other district staff to allow the local board to respond to the request with information supporting its final decision; and 
  • An on-site investigation by Kansas Department of Education staff.
  • If new information is discovered that was not made available to both the parent and the local board during the dispute resolution process, the Hearing Officer may send the issue back to the local board.

• If sent back to the local board, the Hearing Officer’s case will be closed and the local board has 30 days to issue a written amended final decision.

• If the parent feels the local board’s amended final decision does not adequately address the issue, the parent may file a new request for administrative review with the commissioner by following the above process for requesting administrative review. This must be done within 30 days of the local board issuing its amended final decision. If the local board does not issue an amended final decision within 30 days, then the parent has 30 days from the date the Hearing Officer sent the issue back to the local board to file a request for administrative review with the commissioner.

• Within 60 days of receiving the request for administrative review, the Hearing Officer will, in writing, inform the parents, school administrator, district superintendent, local board clerk, and the state board of the results of the review. This time frame may be extended for good cause upon approval of the commissioner.

• The results of the administrative review will contain findings of fact, conclusions of law, and any suggested corrective actions. The Review Officer’s determination will include one of the following:

  • The local board appropriately resolved the complaint.
  • The local board should re-evaluation the complaint with suggested findings of fact.
  • The Hearing Officer’s suggested corrective action is necessary to ensure that the local board policies meet legal requirements.