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 “Education records” mean early intervention records
as defined in this document.
 “Educational” means early intervention under Part C.
 “Educational agency or institution” means the
participating agency defined in this document.
 “School officials and officials of another school or
school system” mean qualified personnel or service
coordinators under Part C.
 “State and local educational authorities” mean
WVBTT.
 “Student” means child under Part C.

THE RIGHT TO A SURROGATE PARENT WHEN A
PARENT IS NOT AVAILABLE

WVBTT ensures that the rights of children are protected if:
• No parent, as defined below, can be identified;
• The RAU or service coordinator after reasonable efforts,
cannot locate a parent; or
• The child is a ward of the State under the laws of West
Virginia.

Parent means:
• A biological or adoptive parent of a child.
• A foster parent, unless State law, regulations, or
contractual obligations with a state or local entity prohibit a
foster parent from acting as a parent.
• A guardian generally authorized to make early
intervention, educational, health or developmental
decisions for the child.
• An individual acting in the place of a biological or adoptive
parent (including a grandparent, stepparent, or other
relative) with whom the child lives, or an individual who is
legally responsible for the child’s welfare.
• A surrogate parent who has been appointed in
accordance with Part C of the IDEA.

Except as provided below, the
biological or adoptive parent (or
parents with joint custody),
when attempting to act as the
parent under Part C and when
more than one party is qualified
to act as a parent, must be
presumed to be the parent
unless the biological or
adoptive parent does not have
legal authority to make
educational or early
intervention service decisions for the child. In assigning surrogate
parents for children who are wards of the State or placed in foster
care, WVBTT must consult with the public agency that has been
assigned.

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