District's link to after-school program duty to provide 1-to-1 aide

Case name: Morris Bd. of Educ., 48 IDELR 295 (SEA NJ 2007).

Ruling: While a New Jersey district did not violate the IDEA by failing to provide a child with a one-to-one aide in an after-school program, its actions amounted to a violation of Section 504. An administrative law judge ordered the district to reimburse the child's parents for expenses they incurred when they hired a private aide to assist their daughter in the program.

What it means: A district is not exempt from Section 504's requirements merely because it does not provide funding for a particular school-based program. If the district has any connection to the program, it must be prepared to provide any accommodations a child with a disability might require in order to participate. The fact that the district in this case referenced the program on its Web site, distributed information about the program, and approved various policies regarding the program's operation showed that the program was operated by a federally funded entity.

Summary: A New Jersey district had to pay $9,000 to the parents of a 9-year-old girl with autism, all because it did not provide a one-to-one aide to accompany the student in an after-school program. An administrative law judge concluded that the district discriminated against the child in violation of Section 504.

The ALJ acknowledged that the district did not have to offer after-school services under the IDEA if the child's IEP offered sufficient opportunities for interaction with typically developing peers. However, the ALJ explained that Section 504 prohibits public school districts from excluding children with disabilities from school-operated programs or otherwise denying them the benefits of such programs.

Although the district pointed out that it did not fund the program and required parents to pay an enrollment fee, the ALJ concluded that the district was clearly connected to the program's operations.

"The district provides information about the program, acts as a financial outlet, and approves various policies at board meetings," the ALJ wrote, noting that the policies in question addressed the staffing, operation and control of the program. Finding that the program was subject to the requirements of Section 504, the ALJ ordered the district to reimburse the parents for the cost of a private one-to-one aide.

Susan Coll-Guedes, Ed.M.
Parent Group Specialist- START Project
Statewide Parent Advocacy Network
Phone: 609-442-4132 Email: scollguedes@...
www.spannj.org