Today, by a 6 to 3 vote, the Supreme Court ruled in Forest Grove School District v T.A. that the IDEA authorizes tuition reimbursement for private school special education services if the school district does not offer an appropriate public program, even though the student hadn’t previously received special education services through the public school.
School districts had argued that parents must first give public school programs a chance before placing a child in a private program and seeking tuition reimbursement. But parents and advocacy groups had strongly argued that parents should not be required to place a child in an inappropriate program and see the child fail, before seeking an appropriate private program.
Writing for the majority of the Court Justice Stevens said: “We conclude that IDEA authorizes reimbursement for the cost of special education services when a school district fails to provide a FAPE and the private-school placement is appropriate, regardless of whether the child previously received special education or related services through the public school.”
Filed under: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Special Education Law, children with disabilities
I have an 11 year old son who has been diagnosed with ADHD, Dyslexia and a Processing Disorder. He previously attended a Catholic school and was diagnosed while attending there. He has never attended public school, but we were told by doctors, diagnosticians and advocacy groups that he would not be eligible to receive services in our public school and if he did, it would not be the appropriate instruction that he needed. We chose to send him to a private school for children with learning differences for the past 3 years. He has progressed wonderfully, but it is a financial strain for our family at a cost of $15K per year. With this ruling today, how does a family seek reimbursement? Do we have to hire an attorney? And is it retroactive?
Thanks!
Hi Lori and thank you for your question. In order for a parent to receive tuition reimbursment for a private school placement the parent must establish that: (1) the placement offered by the school district is not appropriate, and (2) the private school placement selected by the family is appropriate. The parents must give the school district the opportunity to assess the child to determine eligibility for special education services and, if the student is found eligible for services, to offer a program. If the parents disagree with the public school program that is offered, or as in the Forest Grove case, that the student is not eligible for special education, and the parents find an appropriate private school program, the parents may be eligible for tuition reimbursement. But the parents must show that the public school decision of ineligilbity was incorrect or that the public school program was innappropriate and the private placement is appropriate.
Additionally, the parents need to notify the school district that they are rejecting the public school program and enrolling their child in a private school. The parents can do this by telling the school district of their concerns at an IEP meeting or by sending a written notice of the parent’s concerns and intent to remove the child from the public school and place him in a private school. Congress wanted parents to give the public schools a chance to fix the problem.
In the scenario you have outlined it appears that your son was placed in a private program before the school district assessed him for special education eligibility or offered a program. If that is the case, I think the first step in the process for you is to contact the school district and refer your son for an evaluation to determine his eligibilty for special education. If he is found eligible, then look at the program the school offers to meet his needs. If he is not found eligible or the program is innappropriate, then you might pursue tuition reimbursement as discussed above and in the Forest Grove case. Based on the information I have, I doubt that the reimbursement can be retroactive to cover past tuition to date. I don’t think you need an attorney to refer your son for an evaluation, etc. If it is necessary to go to a due process hearing to establish that the private school program is appropriate, then it would be best to use an attorney familiar with special education law. Moreover, there may be facts in your situation that I am unaware of, so you might want to contact an attorney now for advice. Good luck.
Randy,
Is the Forest Grove School District in Oregon? Just wondering what alternative placements are available to parents. Knowing the state would give me that information.
Thanks
Nita
Yes, Nita the Forest Grove School District is in Oregon, as is the private residential school where the son was placed. Thanks for your comment.
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I have a son with Asperger’s syndrome and have been told by many people, including our school’s autism classroom teacher, that there are no appropriate schools for him in Florida where we currently live. Several people, psychologists and social workers, have recommended schools in the New England area. Could our school system in Florida be made to help our family with the cost of tuition in a school out of state?
Hi Mary and thank you for the question. It is possible that the school district in Florida could be required to pay for tuition in an out of state private school, but it is an uphill battle. There are two ways the Florida district might pay for an out of state school. (1) If the IEP team in Florida agreed that their school district could not provide your son a free appropriate public education but the out of state school could, the IEP team could recommend the out-of-state placement. If so, the Florida district is required to pay for the out of state program. (See 34 CFR 300.146)
(2) If you decide to place your son in the out of state program and the IEP team in Florida does not agree that placement is appropriate and believes the Florida placement is appropriate, then you need to show that (a) the Florida program is inappropriate and (b) the out of state program is appropriate.
You can start that process in two ways. Either attend an IEP meeting and let the Florida district know that you are rejecting their program and enrolling your son in the private out of state program at the Florida school’s expense, or, you can write a letter 10 working days before removing your son from the Florida school telling the school district that you will be removing your son form their program and placing him in a private out of state program at the school district’s expense. In that case, if the Florida district opposes your decision you will need to prevail at a hearing.(see 34 CFR 300.148. I wish you the best of luck in getting appropriate services for your son.