Private School/Home School

SERVICES TO STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO HAVE BEEN UNILATERALLY ENROLLED IN A PRIVATE SCHOOL

1. Students with disabilities who are unilaterally enrolled in private schools (this term applies to all students in private schools, religious schools, and home schooled situations) are entitled to have special education and related services made available to them, although the school is not required to provide the same level of service that the student would receive if attending public school.

2. The school corporation in which the private school is located is responsible for identifying, evaluating, and providing services to eligible students with disabilities attending the private school, regardless of the student's school corporation of legal settlement.

3. The procedures for initiating a referral for an educational evaluation for a private school student are similar to those for public school students:

a. The parent or the private school on behalf of the parent contacts the Director of Academic Programs for the Alexandria Community School Corporation. The Director will pass on the request for an evaluation to the school psychologist. The school psychologist will set up a meeting with the child's parents. The private school will also be asked for information regarding any General Education Interventions or Response to Instruction that have been put in place for the student. Data such as grades, ISTEP scores, or other test scores may be requested as well.

b. The school psychologist will explain the evaluation process and the parents will be given a copy of the Parent's Rights Procedural Safeguards Notice, with an explanation.

c. The referral form is completed and consent to begin the evaluation is obtained.

4. When a private school student has been referred for an evaluation, the evaluation must be conducted, and a case conference committee must be convened within fifty (50) school days of the date the public school receives signed parent consent to test.

5. The case conference committee meeting must be convened at a mutually agreed upon date, time, and location.

6. The case conference committee participants for a private school student are the same as for a public school student. Additionally, the school must ensure that a representative of the private school participates in each case conference committee meeting, either in person or by telephone. If it is impossible for the private school representative to participate in person or by telephone, the school should obtain the representative's input to share with the case conference committee.

7. If the case conference committee determines a private school student eligible for special education and related services, an IEP must be developed. This IEP is written as if the student were attending a public school.

8. After the IEP is developed and declined, a Private School Service Plan must be developed and implemented if the parent chooses for the student to remain in the private school. The public school determines how, when, where, and by whom special education and related services will be provided to the student if the parents choose for the student to remain in the private school. This includes the types of services and the service delivery mechanisms. The IDEA states that parentally-placed private school students with disabilities may receive different amounts of services than children with disabilities in public schools. Therefore, the services included in the student’s Private School Service Plan must be based on the services in the IEP; however, students unilaterally placed in private schools are only entitled to services that have been determined through the consultation process. For example, if the IEP includes speech therapy at 30 minutes weekly if the student was enrolled in public school, the Private School Service Plan would continue to provide speech therapy to the student in private school, but only 15 minutes weekly, based on its consultative process with private schools.  Any special education or related services provided by the private school should be noted on the Plan. The public school may not provide related services to a student unless either the public or private school is providing some level of special education service.

9. Special education and related services provided to private school students are delivered at a location determined by the public school.

10. If more than one service is included in the Private School Service Plan, every effort will be made to coordinate service delivery.

11. If services are provided at the public school or a neutral site, the public school is responsible for transportation. The public school is not required to transport the student from the student's home to the private school. If the school and the parent agree that the parent will transport the student to the public school or a neutral site, the parent is entitled to reimbursement at the mileage rate paid to local school corporation employees.

12. If any services are provided to a private school student as part of a Private School Service Plan, the student is included in child count and teacher of record data.

13. If a student who has been enrolled in the public school enrolls in a private school, the public school must convene a case conference, review the current IEP, and develop a Private School Service Plan. In this situation, steps 7-11 must be followed. If for some reason the parent chooses not to participate in the case conference, the meeting must still be held and the components described in this paragraph must be completed. All requirements for case conference notification must be applied and documented.

14. The case conference committee must convene annually, as long as the student attends the private school and qualifies for special education. The case conference committee will consider reevaluation at least once every three years, in accordance with state requirements.

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