another question re. IEP

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can a parent appeal if a kid is denied an IEP because she/he got diagnosed by school psychologist as having something not covered by IEPs?

Your rights depend on the laws where you live. If you live in the USA, you can appeal. The child's right to an IEP is dependent on whether s/he has a disability that negatively impacts his/her ability to access education. It is not dependent on what the diagnosis is - there is "other health impairment" to cover those disabilities that have an impact but are not enumerated in the list.

If an evaluation was done, and you disagree with the results of the evaluation, you need to disagree with the evaluation, and ask for an independent educational evaluation (IEE). The school district has to either pay for such an evaluation to be done, or go to due process and prove that there is no basis for your claim that the one the did was inadequate.

Yes, you can appeal it. It helps if you have an advocate that can provide support for you.

Thx!

what if the kid does get an IEP, but for reasons the parents consider wrong? IE the mom thinks kid is PDD but the school psych says kid has developmental development.

The point of an educational evaluation is to assess a student's strengths and weaknesses, not to make a diagnosis. Many school districts don't make an actual diagnosis at all (depending on what a student's issues are) - as long as a student's areas of need are correctly defined, it really doesn't matter. What is important is that the areas of need are properly defined, and that the kinds of intervention needed to address them are identified and implemented. PDD is a developmental delay, so whether the school district considers your child "developmentally delayed" or PDD is not nearly as important as that the specifics of your child's needs be properly understood, and that your child receive the supports and services needed.

The IEP is a tool to help get your child the resources, interventions, and accomodations they need to be successful in school. While some parents are probably very concerned about a proper diagnosis and labels and whatnot, I learned several years ago that there is so much overlap in the criteria for different diagnoses, that I stopped focusing on the label and started focusing on getting my son the help he needs. Best of luck!