Reimbursement For Private Placements In Non-Approved Schools
by
Herbert D. Hinkle, Esq. and Ira M. Fingles, Esq.
Herbert D. Hinkle
Law Office
2651 Main Street
Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648
(609) 896-4200 or (215) 860-2100
In the past, we have written about parents’ rights to be reimbursed
for the costs they incur in placing their children into private
schools when they disagree with the special education services offered
by public school districts. Many times, the private schools selected
by parents of students with disabilities are not “approved” or
“accredited.” As a result, school districts often argue that the
parents are not entitled to be reimbursed for the placement.
A federal judge recently struck down this argument in a case handled
by this office. In L.M. v. Evesham Twp. Bd. Of Ed., the parents of L.M.
disagreed with the educational services that were offered by their
local school district and thus placed him in a private school that
specialized in educating students with learning disabilities. However,
the school was not approved by the State or accredited by any other
organization. Moreover, it was a Quaker school.
When the parents filed a request for a due process hearing, the
hearing officer dismissed the case because the school was not
accredited and was a “sectarian” school. This allegedly violated New
Jersey’s “Naples Amendment” which requires that special educations
students be placed into accredited, non-sectarian schools.
(Pennsylvania has a similar law.)
On appeal, the federal judge issued a sweeping ruling which held that
parents may be reimbursed for a private placement even if the school
is not approved or accredited, and even if the placement is in a
religious school.
Of course, it is best that parents and school districts agree on an
appropriate placement. However, if this is not possible, the L.M.
decision eliminates some of the risk for parents who are forced to
make private placements to ensure that their children receive the
appropriate educational services to which they are entitled.
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Herbert D. Hinkle,
and his colleagues, Ira M. Fingles and S. Paul Prior, maintain a statewide
law practice with offices in Lawrenceville, Marlton, and Florham Park,
New Jersey, and Yardley, Pennsylvania. They lecture and write frequently
on topics of law, aging, disability and estate planning and are available
to speak to groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania
at no charge.
Comments and suggestions
for future articles should be mailed to: The Law Offices of Herbert
D. Hinkle, 2651 Main Street, Suite A, Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648-1012.
Copyright 2003
Herbert D. Hinkle. All rights reserved.
