Time Has Come to Implement ISS Law

Beginning on July 1, 2010, schools will be required by law to implement the school suspension law first passed in 2007 creating a presumption for in-school suspension and whose implementation date was twice extended by the Connecticut legislature as recently as October 2009.

With the close of the May 2010 legislative session, the Connecticut legislature once again addressed the in- school law, but unlike in the past, it did not delay the implementation date. Imbedded in SB 438, An Act Concerning Education Reform in Connecticut is the repeal of the most recent permeation of Connecticut’s suspension law and the substitution of a new version of the statute. The new statute reiterates the previous standard that suspensions shall be in-school suspensions unless during a hearing with the student and school administration, the administration determines that the pupil being suspended poses such a danger to person or property or such a disruption of the educational process the pupil must be excluded from school. However, the substituted version of the statute allows school administration to suspend a student out of school if the student’s disciplinary history supports such action and the administration has made efforts through other means besides suspension or expulsion to address the misconduct and those efforts have not been successful.  The statute specifically states that such means may include positive behavioral supports.

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School District's Suspicionless Sweeps of School Parking Lots and Unattended Lockers Using Sniffer Dogs Upheld As Constitutional by Connecticut Superior Court

The Connecticut Superior Court in Burbank v. Canton Bd. Of Education,  2009 WL 3366272 (Conn. Super. 9/14/09)  ruled against parents and students who sought to prohibit the Canton Public School District from continuing its practice of using local police to conduct suspicionless sweeps of parking lots and unattended lockers at its middle and high schools using dogs trained to identify illegal drugs and other contraband. The parents and the students sought a preliminary injunction challenging the practice as unconstitutional. The Burbank court rejected all of the parents’ and students’ challenges and concluded that the dog sniffing sweeps are allowable to maintain the safety of students and staff and does not amount to a fourth amendment search or seizure and that the policy/practice at issue does not intrude in any meaningful way in the core parent and student relationship.

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GA Joint Committee on Education Hears Testimony Re: Due Process Hearing Burden of Proof

For the second year running, the Joint Committee on Education has raised the possibility of legislative override of the state regulation shifting the burden of proof in special education due process hearings to Connecticut school districts.  Yesterday, in a hearing that started at 3:30 in the afternoon and went late into the night, the Committee heard testimony from advocates pro and con, on this issue as well as others currently under consideration.  I was honored to testify before the Committee on behalf of the Connecticut Council of School Attorneys, an organization under the auspices of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education (CABE) working on behalf of Connecticut school districts.  According to CABE staffers, Connecticut is one of only 2 states in the country that always place the burden of proof on the school district; 48 other states place the burden of proof on the moving party, whether that party is the parent or the district.  Looking for a copy of my testimony?  Here it is.  Want to see what everyone had to say?  The entire hearing was televised on CTV.  Have some feedback of your own?  Write to your State Representative or State Senator and let them know.  The measure faces fierce opposition, even within the Committee itself.  Let your voice be heard.

CT DOE Circulates Draft Revised Special Education Regulations

In June 2007, the CT DOE started the process of revising the state special education regulations, and circulated its proposals for public comment.  Based on the responses, the Department decided to revise its proposal and restart the review process.  A new draft has emerged, dated February 3, 2010.  According to the accompanying memorandum from Commissioner McQuillan, a new public comment period will follow.  So, what's in the new draft that might be of interest to LEA's in Connecticut?  For the most part, the new draft more closely tracks the IDEA requirements and narrows the differences between state and federal regulatory requirements.  But there are some significant differences and changes from the earlier draft.

 

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When Is a Step-Parent a Parent for Purposes of Disclosing Educational Records?

An April 15, 2009 letter from the Family Policy Compliance Office (FPCO) addresses a complaint filed by a parent indicating that the school improperly disclosed the student's private educational information to a step-parent and grandparent during a meeting at school.  If the child's father has parental rights and permitted the disclosure to the step-mother and grandmother, FERPA does not prohibit the disclosure, despite the objection of the biological mother.  Furthermore, the term "parent" includes "an individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or a guardian".  The US DOE has determined that a parent is "absent" if he or she is not present in the day-to-day home environment of the child.  Therefore, if the step-parent is present in the home of the child on a day-to-day basis and the mother is not present, the step-parent would be considered a "parent" for purposes of FERPA and, according to the FPCO letter, disclosures of educational records to the step-parent would be permissible.

OCR: No Special Education Notation on School Transcripts

OCR's guidance letter issued October 17, 2008 In Re: Report Cards and Transcripts for Students with Disabilities, 108 LRP 60114 (OCR 2008) clarifies that references to special education services received by a student are acceptable on report cards intended for parent use in measuring student progress, but not acceptable on transcripts that may be disclosed to employers and post-secondary institutions.

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Forest Grove Case Drops Other Shoe

In a decision filed December 8, 2009, the United States District Court for the District of Oregon issued a ruling in the case that went all the way to the United States Supreme Court and back on the issue of whether a school district could be liable for tuition reimbursement to a private school in a case where the student had never before received special education services from the public school district.  In Forest Grove School District v. T.A., 129 S.Ct. 2484 (2009), the Supreme Court held that the IDEA does not pose a categorical bar to such reimbursement. On remand for a determination of whether the hearing officer's reimbursement order should stand, the United States District court reversed, denying reimbursement to the parents on equitable grounds.

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AG's Office Issues Report to Education Committee Re: BCBA Certification

In a report issued January 13, 2010, the Attorney General's office recommended "as a first step toward full licensure through the Department of Public Health" that the Education Committee of the Connecticut Legislature support one of three options for licensure or certification of behavior analysts operating within Connecticut school districts.  According to the AG's Office recommendation, any one of the three options would apply to providers of behavior analysis for all students with special education needs, not just those with autism spectrum disorders.  The three options are as follows:

(1) Licensure of behavior analysts through the Department of Public Health;

(2) certification and oversight through the Department of Education of behavior analysts and/or behavior analyst specialty certification for existing licensed school professionals; or

(3) statutorily require local boards of education to hire only behavior analysts who are certified by a national board such as the Behavior Analyst Certification Board or who, in their scope of professional practice, may engage in behavior analysis, such as school psychologists.

 

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School Reform Contract Agreed To In New Haven

In a deal that some National Education Leaders are heralding as a model for school reform throughout the nation, the New Haven Public Schools and the New Haven Federation of Teachers have struck a deal that paves the way for dramatic reform in the New Haven Public Schools and narrowing the achievement gap. In addition to providing compensation for improved student achievement, the agreement allows the school district to incorporate student performance into the teachers’ evaluation process and in exchange establishes a form of peer review and support. The School District will also have substantial latitude in “turnaround,” or poor performing schools to restructure work rules to improve student achievement.  

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Second Circuit Decision: Failure to Name Specific School Not a Procedural Violation for IEP

In a new decision issued October 9, 2009, T.Y. v. New York City Dept. of Education, 109 LRP 63646 (2d Cir. 2009), the Second Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that it is not a procedural violation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for the IEP not to name a specific school that is recommended for a child with special education needs.  Departing from the 4th Circuit view on this issue in a case decided in 2007, the 2nd Circuit ruled that the IDEA provision requiring IEP's to include the anticipated location of a child's services does not mean that the IEP must name a specific school, just a general type of educational program.

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