Every public agency is required to, under Section 300.106 of the IDEA’s federal regulations, guarantee that extended school year services are available as needed to provide a child with a free appropriate public education (FAPE). A child is entitled to extended school year services when it is deemed necessary to fulfill a FAPE. The child’s IEP team is responsible for determining whether extended educational services are necessary for the provision of FAPE for the individual child. This decision is made on an individual basis for each student.
In Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has created guidelines to determine ESY eligibility. 22 Pa. Code § 14.132 requires school districts to consider specific factors to determine eligibility for ESY services. No one factor should be considered determinative. Factors include:
- Whether a student reverts to a lower level of functioning as a result of an interruption in educational programming.
- Whether the student’s disability is considered severe.
- Whether the student’s difficulties with regression and recoupment cause an inability to maintain skills and behaviors relevant to IEP objectives.
- The progression a student has made on a valuable skill or behavior when educational programming would be interrupted.
- The crucialness of a skill or behavior for the student to meet IEP self-sufficient goals and gain independence from caretakers.
- The effect to which consecutive interruptions in the student’s educational programming causes a withdrawal from the learning process.
- Whether a student holds the capacity to recover skills or behaviors that have regressed because of an interruption in educational programming.
In addition, Pennsylvania requires that if a student has a severe disability, he or she must have an expedited determination of eligibility to receive extended school year services. If a student has a diagnosis of autism/pervasive developmental disorder, serious emotional disturbance, severe intellectual disability, degenerative impairments with mental involvement, they are considered to have a severe disability, and an IEP annual review meeting should be conducted no later than February 28th of every school year. The decision for ESY eligibility should be determined at the annual IEP meeting. Another deadline parents should look out for is March 31st of every school year. A Notice of Recommended Educational Placement (NOREP) should be issued to parents of students with severe disabilities by March 31st of each school year. The NOREP should contain information such as physical location, dates, specific services the student will receive during ESY.
Parents are able to request educational data on their student prior to the decision of eligibility for ESY. Through the data provided by the school, parents can see and compare previous results from earlier school years. This data can show if a student has made regression in any of the student’s IEP goals.
The most important thing for a parent to remember when having discussions about ESY services is that like everything else in a student’s IEP, ESY services must be individualized. If a student requires something different than the standard ESY program offered to all students in a school district or charter school, then the school must offer it.
For more information regarding extended school year services, parents can look to 34 C.F.R. §300.106 of the IDEA and specifically in Pennsylvania, 22 Pa. Code § 14.132. Parents can also reach out to legal counsel or educational advocacy for additional help in guiding through the ESY and special education procedures.
The information within this article is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. Please consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your personal situation.