Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

The Coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on the normal functioning of schools across the country, but it has made addressing the needs of special education students particularly challenging. Schools continue to address the problems of providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) with school buildings shuttered or only partially open. In response to inquiries concerning the implementation of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) within the U.S. Department of Education issued a Question and Answer (Q&A) document “to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency polices.”

Finding that local educational agencies (LEAs) are “facing new and unexpected challenges in providing meaningful instruction to children, including children with disabilities,” OSEP also recognized that “ultimately, the health and safety of children, families and the school community is most important.” However, OSEP also emphasized “that no matter what primary instructional delivery approach is chosen, … LEAs, and individualized education program (IEP) Teams remain responsible for ensuring that a free appropriate education (FAPE) is provided to all children with disabilities.”

A few takeaways from the OSEP Q&A document are as follows: (1) IEP Teams should consider alternate available methodologies or deliveries, such as online instruction or videoconferencing; (2) a current IEP can be amended or modified, but that amendment cannot take the place of an annual IEP Team meeting; (3) if extended school year services (ESY) were unable to be provided during the summer, LEAs should consider providing ESY services during school breaks or vacations; and (4) if the pandemic prohibits face-to face meetings, IEP Teams can meet through alternate means.

For more detailed answers to your questions about implementation of the IDEA, please download OSEP’s Q&A Document.

The U.S. Department of Education recently issued a Questions and Answers document concerning the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District, which clarified the scope of the IDEA’s FAPE requirements. The Q&A document discusses the decision and the ramifications for school districts in applying the standards set forth in the Court’s decision.

In the first major decision on special education in 30 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has weighed in on school districts’ obligations under the IDEA. Download this summary to read the facts of this case, learn the Court’s findings and the likely impact of this decision going forward. 

Schools are using various methods to discipline students. However, improper and sometimes dangerous methods of discipline are leading to tragic results and liability. Recently, Munich Re published its white paper on the use of Restraint and Seclusion in Schools to delineate the principle a school should use in developing policies and procedures to implement such techniques. This memorandum is located for download here.

In conjunction, SLRMA members should also use SLRMA’s  pdf Disciplining Students with Disabilities Self-Audit Checklist/Best Practices and the Use of Restraint and Seclusion (495 KB) published last year. This checklist is the perfect complement the Munich Re memo to assist your district in avoiding liability for improper use of restraint and seclusion.

On June 11, 2013, The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special education and Rehabilitation Services recently released its model parental notification under the Individuals with Disabilities Act pursuant to regulations promulgated in February, 2013. To assist school district, Maree Sneed and Esther Haley Walker of Hogan Lovells provides the following client memo explaining a school’s obligations and a copy of the model written notification.