In a nutshell, when can a parent seek tuition reimbursement for a private placement under special education law?

When parents believe that a public school district is denying their child a free and appropriate public education (FAPE), the parents may choose to remove their child from the public school and seek a private placement.  However, parents who remove their child do so at their own financial risk.  This means that parents may have to pay in full for the cost of the private placement if they are unable to win or settle a case. Parents may seek reimbursement, from their public school district, for the private school placement if:

The individualized educational program (IEP), offered by the public school district, is inappropriate to meet the child’s needs.  Sometimes, no such program is ever recommended in the first place because the public school district fails to appropriately find and identify the child as requiring special education, referred to as a Child Find violation.

The private placement (often referred to as a unilateral placement) selected by the parents is appropriate.

When making a private school placement, parents are not held to the same standard as the school district when it comes to establishing the appropriateness of the private school program.  For example, the private school need not be a State-approved special education school.  Although it does not have to be perfect, the private school should be reasonably calculated to provide educational benefit to the student.  Generally speaking, this means the parents must show that the private school provides the child with some form of specialized instruction or services that he/she needs in order to be appropriately educated.

Equitable factors weigh in favor of reimbursement.

In order to be entitled to tuition reimbursement, equitable considerations relating to the reasonableness of your actions as parents, must also be in your favor. This means that cooperation with the school district is very important. Providing the school district with appropriate notice before you make a private placement and allowing the school district the opportunity to evaluate your child is part of this analysis.  We can help you understand all of the considerations that will work for you.

Contact us today, to find out if you have a case.

Parents: Do you need help navigating special education law to obtain an appropriate private school placement from your public school district?

Parents want to get the best education possible for their children, especially for those with disabilities and emotional issues. Unfortunately, public schools can only provide so much and they are not required by law to provide the best education possible for these students. Additionally, students with disabilities and emotional issues may need intensive academic and therapeutic services that the public school district cannot appropriately provide, or fail to provide. As a result, parents are sometimes left in a difficult situation where they must choose between placing their child in the public schools or pay for their child to attend a private school, which can be very expensive.

Fortunately, we have special education laws that can help. Although the public schools may not tell you this, public school districts may be responsible for either placing students in private schools or reimbursing parents for private school tuition. Under certain circumstances, parents may be entitled to tuition reimbursement if they themselves place their child in a private school (often referred to as a unilateral placement) and they bring a case under special education law against their public school district to recoup the tuition and other educational related expenses. Parents assume the risk, when they place their child in a private school and seek tuition reimbursement, because there is no guarantee that they will win or settle the case.

The rules regarding tuition reimbursement cases are complicated and difficult to navigate. Whether a child is entitled to private school placement or tuition reimbursement must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and depends on each child’s unique needs. These cases also depend on what the school district may or may not have offered your child before you made the placement in a private school. Furthermore, you must typically provide notice to the public school district before you make a placement in a private program or it can seriously hurt your case. This is why parents should always seek the advice and counsel of an experienced education attorney before making a placement in a private school and pursuing tuition reimbursement cases. In fact, parents should seek the advice and counsel of an experienced education attorney well before they place their child in a private placement in order help them most effectively navigate the law and increase their chances of success.