Budget Shortages Lead to Focus on Charter School Treatment of Special-education Students

A recent article in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette (May 27, 2012) provides a good summary of the claims being made against charter schools in their efforts to educate students with special needs:

1.  Charters haven't drawn their fair share of special-needs students, especially those with more challenging disabilities to educate.  Consequently, public school boards fear they are being "left with the most challenging students, but with dwindling resources to educate them."

2.  Charters often identify students who have previously received regular education as being more suited to receive special education.

3.  Charters do not spend much of the increased tuition received to educate a special-needs student.  This allegation is made frequently against cyber charters.

4.  Charters re-classify special-needs students at PSSA test time to avoid triggering state reporting requirements and the opportunity to achieve AYP.

5.  Charters can't deny a student admission on the basis of a disability but they often subtly dissuade a student from applying for admission to the school.

6.  Charters do not spend resources on creating special classrooms for severely disabled students, instead favoring educating such students with all other students.

For Trustees and Administrators:  Given the budget deficits facing many school districts and the fact that tuition for special-needs students is nearly double the tuition charter receive for providing regular education, you should be aware that these arguments are likely to continue to be made by traditional public school officials.  It is essential to keep accurate records to support the basis for a special-needs designation and to support any change of that classification.  If, for example, a special-needs student's progress is not captured on state testing, you should be sure that other records evidence the decision to re-classify a student.  Administrators should also carefully identify the disability forming the basis for a student to receive special education.  Some students may have more than one disability and all should be captured in the students' files.      



This Charter School Alert was authored by Eric L. Silberstein, an attorney with Salvo Rogers & Elinski in Blue Bell, PA.  Mr. Silberstein, a member of Salvo Rogers & Elinski's Corporate and Real Estate Groups, has practiced law for 20 years and works closely with charter boards and administrators on governance, financing, special education, real estate, charter renewals and other charter matters.  Mr. Silberstein is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania, New York and Connecticut.  He can be reached at (215) 653-0110 or esilberstein@salvorogers.com.  Salvo Rogers is a boutique law firm started in 1988 that is committed to providing high quality, personal service and cost effectiveness to clients pursuing business transactions, commercial real estate matters, and trusts and estates planning.
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