School psychologists throughout New York State were surveyed regarding their schools' policies to include parents in the special education eligibility process related to legal mandates and best practices. Differences were found in the implementation of legal mandates compared to implementation of best practices. Location differences were significant between suburban and large city schools in legal mandate implementation. No significant differences were found between enrollment or SES with legal mandate implementation. No significant differences were found on each factor (i.e., location, enrollment, SES) on the implementation of best practices. SES had a significant impact over enrollment when looking at implementation of legal mandates and best practices separately. These findings suggest schools are better at implementing legal mandate requirements than suggested best practices. Specific practices were found to be implemented more frequently than others, Implications are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]