Child Find is a process that school districts use to identify, locate, and evaluate all children, birth through twenty-one, who are suspected of having a disability which may result in a need for special education and related services.

Population of Children

School districts have Child Find responsibility for all children suspected of having disabilities, regardless of the severity of their disabilities. 

This includes:

• Children, birth through three, who may or may not be referred to and served by the State’s early intervention program, Babies Can’t Wait;
• Preschool children, ages three through five, who may not be enrolled in a Georgia-funded pre-kindergarten and kindergarten including children who are parentally placed in private preschools or daycare centers outside the system;
• Children who are enrolled in a public school within the system including public charter schools;
• Children who are parentally-placed in private and home-schools;
• Children who are attending charter schools within the system or in the area if it is designated as an individual system;
• Highly mobile children, including migrant children;
• Children served in community programs such as a rehabilitation center, daycare centers, etc.;
• Any other children suspected of having disabilities.

Students with Disabilities Enrolled in Private Schools

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA), local school systems have the responsibility to identify all the private school students in their district and conduct Child Find activities with them to identify eligible children.

Under current guidelines, the Paulding County School District is required to allocate a proportionate share of IDEIA funds to provide services to some students who have been placed or enrolled by their parents in private schools. In order to determine which services should be provided, which children should receive the services, and how and where the services should be provided, the local system must consult with the private schools within their district and representatives of parents of students with disabilities who attend those schools. 

Students with Disabilities Enrolled in Home Schools

In Georgia, references to “parentally placed children in private schools” includes children who are home schooled by their parents. Local school systems have the responsibility to identify all the private school and home school students in their district and conduct Child Find activities with them to identify eligible children.

Under current guidelines and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA), the Paulding County School District is required to allocate a proportionate share of IDEIA funds to provide services to some students who have been placed or enrolled by their parents in private or home schools. In order to determine which services should be provided, the local system must consult with the private schools within their district, representatives of parents of students who attend those schools, and representatives of parents of home schooled students with disabilities. 

For additional information please contact Student Services at 770-443-8030.