Jefferson County Public Schools has to provide the speech services your child's IEP lists. If they don't happen, the Admissions and Release Committee (ARC) decides whether compensatory services are owed.
JCPS has not published a rule that missed speech therapy on an Individual Education Program has to be made up. Kentucky Department of Education guidance tells the ARC to decide, for that child, whether the miss denied a free appropriate public education (FAPE) and whether compensatory education is owed.
What does the speech line on the IEP require?
Federal rule 34 CFR 300.323 says that as soon as possible after the IEP is developed, special education and related services are made available to the child in accordance with the IEP. The state rule is 707 KAR 1:320. Section 1 says the IEP is implemented as soon as possible after an Admissions and Release Committee meeting, and not delayed while someone is still deciding who pays. Section 5 requires the projected start plus the anticipated frequency, location, and duration.
The JCPS family page on the IEP, checked October 13, 2026, uses the words Individualized Education Program for the same document. It also says you, or another member of the committee, may request a review of the current IEP at any time.
Before you start counting, read the line closely. Kentucky's related services guidance, reviewed Fall 2021 and still linked from the ARC and IEP page published September 18, 2026, says the minutes can be time with the child or time on behalf of the child. A block of pull out therapy is not the same entry as consultation with the teacher. It says administrators must ensure compliance with the IEP service minutes when they create therapist schedules.
The same JCPS page says the district will not arrange services until it has your informed consent. Unsigned consent, or consent you withdrew, is not a missed service.
Speech on the IEP describes a service, not a disability label. A child can have speech written as a related service under another eligibility.
Does a missed session have to be made up?
No JCPS page we found says so.
The family speech and language page is a set of milestone charts. It says to call the Communication Disorders Department at 502 485 3254, and the number was still listed there when we checked October 18, 2026.
The Kentucky Department of Education guide for the ARC on FAPE and compensatory education is dated April 15, 2021. It is guidance, not a regulation. The parent section says: "When special education services within a student's Individual Education Program (IEP) are not provided, compensatory education services may be needed as a remedy for the inability or failure to provide a FAPE."
It sets the gate: "In order for a student to be entitled to compensatory education, a denial of FAPE must have occurred." One approach is minute for minute. The other looks at the educational benefit the child lost. The guide says services should be decided on a case by case basis.
Under the Fall 2021 related services guidance, therapists are required to document services they deliver. When a service is not provided, the therapist should write the reason for that date. Weather closings, holidays, and student absences are listed as workload factors. The guidance does not sort those days into minutes owed and minutes forgiven.
What can you ask the ARC to decide?
The JCPS IEP page does not say how many days the school has to hold the meeting. The 2021 guide says that if a parent asks to discuss compensatory education, the district should respond promptly, schedule the meeting, and put those words on the invitation.
Once a date is set, 707 KAR 1:320 requires written notice at least seven days before the meeting, except for a disciplinary change of placement or a safety issue. The notice has to state the purpose, who will be there, and that you may invite someone with knowledge of your child. If you cannot attend in person, the district has to offer another way to participate, which can include a phone call or video. You are entitled to a copy of the IEP at no cost.
707 KAR 1:320 Section 3 makes related services personnel ARC members "as appropriate." Ask for the speech provider on the notice. If that person's area will be discussed, the district may excuse them only when you agree in writing and they send written input before the meeting.
Take the service line, the progress reports the IEP says you are supposed to receive, and the dates you believe a session did not happen. Ask for the service notes. Under 34 CFR 300.613, the district has to let a parent inspect education records without unnecessary delay and before any IEP meeting, and in no case more than 45 days after the request. Ask in writing.
If the committee decides compensatory education is owed, the 2021 guide says it sets the type, the location, and the amount in the conference summary. The guide's parent section says students may be served before or after school, on weekends, or over the summer. The guide says compensatory education and the transportation to it are at no cost to the parent, and that cost cannot be a determining factor in deciding the need for it. Compensatory education is not extended school year.
Where do you go if the meeting does not fix it?
A refusal to add services is a refusal to change the provision of FAPE. 707 KAR 1:340 says the district gives prior written notice within a reasonable time before it carries out that refusal. The notice describes what was refused, why, what else was considered, and which records were used. The regulation does not turn "a reasonable time" into a number of days.
The Kentucky Department of Education dispute resolution page, published August 4, 2026, says to contact the local director of special education before the formal options, and to know the IEP first. For JCPS, the Exceptional Child Education (ECE) division page lists 502 485 8500 and ece@jefferson.kyschools.us.
If the disagreement is still there, the regulation offers mediation, a formal written complaint, or a due process hearing. Mediation is voluntary, and the Kentucky Department of Education pays for it, under 707 KAR 1:340. Sessions are scheduled within 60 days. The regulation says mediation may address compensatory education. If you settle, the agreement is legally binding, and what was said in the room is confidential.
A formal written complaint alleges a violation of special education law. It has to reach the Office of Special Education and Early Learning within one year of the violation. The regulation says it is signed, names the child and the school, states the facts, and proposes a resolution if you know one. You send a copy to the district. The department has 60 days to issue a written decision unless the time is extended for exceptional circumstances, or because you and the district agree to extend it for mediation. An appeal to the commissioner is due within 15 business days of receiving the decision.
The complaint form opened for this story says only original signed copies will be accepted. It prints 300 Sower Blvd., 4th Floor, Frankfort, KY 40601, and 502 564 4970, checked October 18, 2026. The dispute page lists the same 4th Floor address and kdeideaformalcomplaints@education.ky.gov for formal complaints under the Division of IDEA Monitoring and Results, though its general office listing says 5th Floor. Keep a copy of what you send.
A due process hearing is the adversarial path. KRS 157.224 says a parent may request it within three years of the date the parent knew about the action, unless a longer period is reasonable because the violation is continuing, or unless the district failed to give required notices, falsely represented that it was resolving the problem, or withheld information relevant to the hearing. 707 KAR 1:340 says the district holds a resolution meeting within 15 days unless both sides waive it in writing or agree to mediate. During the hearing, the child stays in the current placement unless you and the district agree otherwise. Due process questions on the KDE page go to the Office of Legal Services at 502 564 4474, 300 Sower Blvd., 5th Floor, Frankfort, KY 40601.
The dispute page says the complaint process does not cover disability civil rights claims under Section 504 or the Americans with Disabilities Act. If the speech is written on a 504 plan and not an IEP, the split is the one in JCPS Insider's IEP and 504 comparison.
Write the school and ask for an ARC to review the speech line and to discuss compensatory education.