Chapter 5: Pupil Evaluation Team (PET)

The Pupil Evaluation Team (PET)

Schools offer several types of meetings for parents so that you can talk with teachers and other school personnel about your child's progress. These include parent teacher conferences and staffing meetings. A Pupil Evaluation Team (PET) Meeting is different from this type of informal discussion or conference because the PET has to follow certain rules defined by Maine Special Education Regulations (MSER), Chapter 101.

The PET, which includes the parent as an integral part of the team, is established by each school district for the purpose of:

• Reviewing the referral and discussing the need for evaluation(s);
• Determining eligibility, initial or ongoing;
• Developing an Individual Education Program (IEP); and
• Determining the Least Restrictive Educational Alternative (LREA) in which to implement the IEP.

This means that PET meetings are specific to special education.