Mind By Design

Independent Educational Evaluations: A Second Set of Eyes, Working for Your Child

When you need a deeper understanding of how your child learns, we provide an objective, collaborative evaluation designed to bring teams together, not pull them apart.

A parent and an evaluator review materials together during an independent educational evaluation

What an IEE Can Be

An Independent Educational Evaluation, or IEE, is your right as a parent when you disagree with your school district’s evaluation. It’s a second opinion from a qualified professional who doesn’t work for the district, and it’s publicly funded when certain conditions are met.

That’s the legal definition. But an IEE can be so much more than a legal process. At Mind by Design, we think of an IEE as a bridge. A chance to bring new information to the table, answer the questions the first evaluation left open, and help a team of people (you, the district, the teachers, the specialists) move forward together on behalf of your child.

We’ve found that IEEs work best when they aren’t used as a weapon. When the goal is understanding rather than winning, everyone around the table tends to listen more carefully. The district is more open to recommendations. The family feels heard. And most importantly, the child is more likely to get the support they actually need.

That’s the kind of IEE we provide.

A parent and teen review materials together at a table

How We Approach Every IEE

We Stay in the Middle.

Our job is to understand your child, not to take sides. We know that the most useful IEE is one that keeps the relationship between your family and the district intact. Districts are more willing to consider recommendations when the evaluator comes to the table as a collaborator rather than a critic. And when that collaboration happens, your child is the one who benefits.

We Center Your Child.

Every decision we make during an IEE comes back to the same question: what does this child need for us to understand about them, and how can we help the people in their life get there? We don’t write reports to prove anyone wrong. We write them to help a team do right by a kid.

We Focus on the Unanswered Questions.

A good IEE doesn’t necessarily repeat everything the district already did. We start by understanding where the breakdowns happened, what questions still feel unanswered, and where the real disagreement lies. Sometimes that means a full re evaluation. Sometimes it means a more targeted look at specific concerns. And sometimes it means we focus on observation, interviews, and record review rather than additional testing. We tailor the scope to what your family and your child actually need.

We Write Reports People Will Actually Use.

Our reports are clear, thorough, and designed to be useful. We provide clinical diagnoses when the data supports them, and we look at eligibility under Ed Code because that’s what matters in an IEP context. We make specific, practical recommendations about the kinds of services, goals, and intervention techniques your child needs, while leaving decisions about specific programs and tools to the district. That balance, being specific enough to be useful without stepping outside our lane, is what makes an IEE report something an IEP team can act on.

Why Families Choose Our Team for IEEs

The evaluators who conduct IEEs at Mind by Design are all licensed educational psychologists, and every one of them built their career working inside schools before joining our private practice. That matters. It means we understand how IEP teams think, how eligibility decisions are made, and what it feels like to sit on the other side of the table. It also means we know that the best recommendations are the ones districts can realistically implement.

You also get more than one set of eyes. Even though one psychologist leads your child’s evaluation, our entire psychology team is available for consultation along the way. We talk through cases together. We bring different experiences to bear on complex profiles. No single evaluator is operating alone. That kind of collaborative backbone is rare in private practice, and it’s one of the reasons our IEE reports consistently hold up at the IEP table.

And psychoeducational evaluations aren’t the only kind of IEE we offer. Because Mind by Design is a multidisciplinary practice, we also conduct Functional Behavior Assessments, speech and language, and transition IEEs. If the unanswered questions about your child fall outside the psychoeducational scope, our team can take on those evaluations directly.

What to Expect from Start to Finish

Phase 01

Getting Started.

Most families come to us directly. You’ll connect with our Director of Client Experience to talk through your questions about the IEE process and whether our approach feels like the right fit. If you decide to move forward, you’ll connect us with your district contact so we can begin the contracting process.

Phase 02

Contracting with the District.

We have all the insurances and credentials districts typically require, and we’re quick with our turnaround. Most of the time, any delay in getting started isn’t on our end. District approval is required, and it can take a few weeks for the contract to be finalized. Plan on about three weeks to a month from contract signing to the start of your child’s assessment, which typically begins with a school observation rather than testing.

Phase 03

Before Testing Begins.

Once the contract is in place, we reach out to the district for all the records we need: psych reports, IEPs, report cards, bell schedules, attendance records, and anything else that helps us understand your child’s history. We also arrange an observation of your child at school and coordinate interviews with teachers and other school staff. Reviewing the district’s prior report is a standard part of our process. We know some families feel nervous about us seeing it, but it doesn’t influence the conclusions we come to. It gives us important context about what’s transpired and what may have changed.

Phase 04

During the Evaluation.

Testing takes place at our Campbell or Morgan Hill office. Your child will work one on one with their evaluator over two sessions of about three hours each. If additional sessions are needed, we’ll add them. We also interview you as the parent, gather input from teachers, and reach out to any outside providers who work with your child (therapists, tutors, specialists) so we have a complete picture. The report is typically complete three to four weeks after the last testing session, assuming the district has provided everything we need. In practice, districts sometimes lag on records or logistics, which can stretch that timeline a bit.

Phase 05

Your Feedback Session.

We share the completed report with you and the district at the same time, and we always schedule a dedicated feedback session with your family before the IEP meeting. This is your chance to understand the findings, ask questions, and sit with the information before discussing it in a larger group. It’s not a strategy session. It’s a space for clarity and understanding, so you walk into the IEP meeting feeling informed rather than blindsided.

Phase 06

Helping the IEP Meeting Happen Quickly.

Once the report is complete, the district schedules the IEP meeting. We encourage families to advocate for that meeting to be scheduled as soon as possible. It’s better for your child, because the information is current and the recommendations can start being acted on sooner. It’s also better for the evaluator, who will walk into the meeting with your child’s profile fresh in mind rather than having to revisit a case after a long gap. A little gentle pressure from the family tends to move things along.

Phase 07

At the IEP Meeting.

Attending your child’s IEP meeting is always included as part of our IEE. The contract covers one meeting for up to two hours. We join as the evaluator, present our findings, answer questions, and participate in the broader discussion. We don’t act as advocates. Our role is to offer the team our professional perspective and let them make the decisions that are theirs to make.

Wondering If Our Approach Feels Right for Your Family?

Every family’s situation is different. If you want to talk through what’s going on and whether an IEE with our team is the right next step, we’d be glad to have that conversation. No commitment and no pressure.

What You Can Expect From Us, and What You Can’t

We know families come to IEEs with very different expectations. Being upfront about our approach helps everyone decide whether we’re the right fit.

What We Do

  • Conduct thorough, objective evaluations tailored to the questions your family needs answered.
  • Review the district’s prior evaluation and all relevant records as part of our process.
  • Provide clinical diagnoses when the data supports them, and determine eligibility under Ed Code.
  • Make specific, practical recommendations about services, goals, and intervention approaches.
  • Attend the IEP meeting to present our findings and answer questions.
  • Work alongside advocates and attorneys with respect for the role they play in supporting families.

What We Don’t Do

  • Take an adversarial stance or write reports designed to make the district look bad.
  • Conduct an IEE without access to the district’s prior evaluation and records.
  • Provide clinical diagnoses or eligibility determinations not supported by the data.
  • Recommend specific programs, curricula, or intervention tools, since those decisions belong to the district.
  • Attend the IEP meeting as an advocate or as a representative of the family’s interests.
  • Take direction from attorneys or advocates about what our report should say.

If what you’re looking for is an evaluator who will take an adversarial stance on your behalf, we’re not the right practice for you, and that’s okay. The collaboration between advocate or attorney and evaluator works best when everyone understands their lane: the advocate or attorney supports the family’s interests, and we stay focused on the data and what’s right for the child.

Your Child’s Evaluators

IEEs at Mind by Design are conducted by licensed educational psychologists who each built their careers working inside school systems. That experience shapes how we approach every evaluation, from the questions we ask during the parent interview to the way we write recommendations the IEP team can actually use.

Jana Parker

Jana Parker

Licensed Educational Psychologist #3272, Certified ADHD Professional (ADHD CCSP), Board Certified School Neuropsychologist (ABSNP).

Jana built her career in school systems before founding Mind by Design. She knows how IEP teams think, how eligibility decisions are made, and how to present evaluation data in a way that leads to action.

Bethanie Sheaffer

Bethanie Sheaffer

Licensed Educational Psychologist #3657, Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP), Board Certified School Neuropsychologist (ABSNP).

Bethanie’s extensive school based experience and advanced neuropsychological training make her especially effective at translating complex assessment findings into the specific language school teams need to hear.

Claire Baldal

Claire Baldal

California Licensed Educational Psychologist LEP #4927

Over the past six years, Claire has worked as a school psychologist in both public and independent school settings, partnering with students, families, and educators to understand each child's unique learning profile. She emphasizes clear, actionable reports designed for families to use, not to sit in a file.

Jenny Ortega

Jenny Ortega

Licensed Educational Psychologist #3766

Jenny brings 20 years of school psychology experience across Bay Area districts, from small private schools and charters to large urban schools, along with deep knowledge of special education law. Raised speaking Spanish and English, she focuses on how cultural and linguistic differences shape learning and welcomes complex cases.

For IEEs outside psychoeducational evaluation, our multidisciplinary team includes:

Catie Palumbo

Catie Palumbo

Speech Language Pathologist #24750, M.Ed., CCC SLP.

Catie conducts speech and language IEEs with a child centered, evidence based approach drawn from experience in school, clinic, and home based settings.

Desiree Corvi

Desiree Corvi

Speech Language Pathologist #17656, CCC SLP.

Desiree conducts speech and language IEEs with 18 years of experience across public school, private practice, and contracting work. Her focus is compassionate, evidence based assessment that produces practical recommendations families can act on.

Kendra Holmes

Kendra Holmes

Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA).

Kendra conducts Functional Behavior Assessment IEEs, bringing years of experience understanding the why behind challenging behaviors and building practical, respectful support plans.

If your child’s needs extend beyond psychoeducational evaluation, our team can address them directly.

Frequently Asked Questions About IEEs

Understanding IEEs

Our Approach

The Process

Logistics & Cost

Ready to Talk About What an IEE Could Look Like for Your Child?

If you’ve read this far and our approach feels like a fit, we’d love to hear from you. Our Director of Client Experience will walk you through the process, answer your questions, and help you figure out whether an IEE with our team is the right next step. And if another approach would serve you better, we’ll tell you that too.