Charter SELPA - Independent Study-Placement Considerations for Students with Disabilities

Independent Study-Placement Considerations for Students with Disabilities

Legal Obligations and IEP Team Considerations

When developing an IEP for a student in an independent study program, the IEP must clearly outline that the following have been considered: the student’s individualized needs to determine goals and services, alternative placement options, and how FAPE will be provided to the student within the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) in the independent study program. The IEP placement recommendation should reflect the independent study program. It is recommended that the LEA/district consider the following information when developing the student’s IEP:

Assessment Areas to Address:
- Academic Functioning
- Adaptive Daily Living Skills, including those related to self-direction, such as starting and completing tasks, keeping a schedule, following time limits, following directions, and making choices.
- Social-emotional Skills
- Communication Skills
- Behavioral Skills
- Language Skills for students who are English Learners
- Social skill development of the student, including needs for social interaction, peer modeling, and generalization of skills learned with peers
- Consider assistive technology to support curriculum access. This may include tools addressing fine or gross motor challenges for independent study tasks.
- Transportation Needs
- Health or Medical Needs
Special Education Services and Supports:
- Review the accommodations and/or modifications needed for the student
- Consider the services and supports required to meet the student’s needs within the independent study program, including all related services, such as specialized academic instruction, occupational therapy, speech and language services, educationally relevant mental health (ERMHS) services, behavior intervention services, assistive technology services, etc. C
  - Where and how special education services will be delivered- including the frequency, duration, and how and where the student will access service minutes
  - If in-person services are required, and if so, how frequently?
Ongoing Monitoring and Evaluation:
- Review the student’s current IEP goals based on the student’s individual needs, including progress on IEP goals, which are individually monitored
- Establish a clear progress monitoring plan to regularly evaluate the appropriateness of the independent study program and ensure the student receives meaningful educational benefits.

Determining Placement for Students from Restrictive Settings

Independent study programs are increasingly enrolling students with more restrictive settings, such as a Special Day Class (SDC), Non-Public School (NPS), or Residential Treatment Facility (RTC), on their most recently consented-to IEP. At times, this is due to parents seeking an alternative placement in independent study, hoping that the opportunities for flexibility and personalization of these programs can better meet their student’s needs. Charter schools are required by law to admit students with disabilities, regardless of their current placement, program structure, or disability type. Students with disabilities coming from an SDC or NPS placement are entitled to the same rights per this Office of Civil Rights document explaining the rights of students with disabilities in charter schools:

“[The Office of Civil Rights] FAPE requirements for placements are separate from requirements related to admission procedures. [The Office of Civil Rights] provides that a charter school’s admission criteria may not exclude or discriminate against individuals on the basis of disability, and that a school may not discriminate in its admissions process.”
“A charter school may not counsel out, i.e., try to convince a student (or parents) that the student should not attend (or continue to attend) the school because the student has a disability.”

According to the Office of Civil Rights, schools cannot discriminate against students with disabilities during admission or counsel them out after enrollment. Admission decisions must not be influenced by the student’s current placement or support needs.

However, the LEA has an obligation to provide each student with FAPE ultimately, and therefore, the IEP team must consider whether independent study is an appropriate placement.

When evaluating whether Independent Study is an appropriate placement, IEP teams should consider three factors outlined in the Sacramento City School District v. Rachel H. case (9th Cir. 1994):

Academic benefit (e.g., progress on IEP goals).
Non-academic benefit (e.g., social, emotional, or behavioral progress).
Impact of the student’s presence on the learning environment (e.g., class and teacher dynamics).

Conversely, factors that may NOT be considered in determining if independent study is an appropriate placement are:

Category of disability
Severity of disability
Configuration of delivery system
Availability of special education or related services
Availability of space
Administrative Convenience

Initially, LEAs are required to provide comparable services to all new students who transfer in with an IEP. Then the LEA is required to hold an interim 30-day IEP meeting within 30 days of enrollment to determine FAPE (EDC § 56325). At this meeting, LEAs (through IEP team discussion) will essentially have two pathways to consider:

1. Implement the last IEP

a. The student will retain their previous placement, which means the LEA will be responsible for building or funding the more restrictive program to provide FAPE

2. Develop a new IEP

a. The student will have their placement changed to Independent Study, which means the LEA will be responsible for providing FAPE in their own program

Considerations and Best Practices for IEP teams when determining these options:

- - Engage Families Early
    - Have proactive communication with parents about their concerns and goals for their students, including what the previous placement looked like
    - Invest time in strong onboarding early on to help families get set up for success and understand their roles in navigating the typical school day as well as any technology platforms
    - Consider holding IEP meetings sooner than the 30-day requirement to start discussions and meet as often as needed while data is being gathered
    - Establish consistent points of contact between parents and school staff so that concerns can be addressed quickly
  - IEP Team Considerations
    - Use diverse data collection methods to build a comprehensive understanding of the student’s current needs, such as:
      - Moving up upcoming triennial IEPs
      - Formal assessments like an FBA or ERMHS
      - Virtual/classroom/home observations by school psychologists
      - Academic work samples and class assessments
      - Feedback from all stakeholders, including parents, teachers, Education Specialists, related service providers, etc.
      - Progress monitoring data on current IEP goals
      - Behavior data collection (e.g., ABC data, frequency data, etc.)
      - Attendance and engagement logs from instructional or service sessions
      - Work completion and grades
    - Review and discuss the student’s current IEP goals, which will help drive accommodations and services
    - Discuss potential harmful effects and the Least Restrictive Environment based on a full continuum of placement options and the current data reflecting the student’s needs
      - Consider the student’s access to typically developing peers and the impact on their social/emotional development
        
        Put appropriate behavior goals, plans, and supports in place to promote safety and to avoid excluding students from access to in-person services and activities due to behaviors toward staff or peers
    - Remember that LEAs have the legal obligation to provide the offer of FAPE, and the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process may need to be engaged if there is ongoing parent conflict and disagreement around appropriate placement
  - Use Creativity to Design Individualized Programs
    - Consider how a hybrid option may be utilized to provide the student with both independent study at home and time with peers or instructors in person
    - Consider using para-professionals to provide more individualized support to help students with academic or behavior-related needs (virtually or during in-person instruction)
    - Consider contracting with agencies to provide in-home services and wraparound support for students with more intensive behavior needs
    - Consider ways to provide more inclusion and opportunities for students with disabilities to engage with typically developing peers (e.g., co-taught virtual instruction, virtual or in-person clubs, field trips, lunch, etc.).
  - Interim Support Between Placements
    - Provide robust interim support to meet IEP requirements when working to secure a more restrictive placement. Strategies include:
      - Consider assigning para-professionals for individualized academic or behavioral support (Special Circumstances Instructional Assistance (SCIA) assessments and services may need to be considered if 1:1 support is needed)
      - Consider contracting with external agencies for wraparound services
      - Reach out to potential NPS/RTC and/or other school programs immediately and maintain communication to prevent unnecessary delays in placement
      - If a student is enrolling in IS from an NPS/RTC directly, consider contacting that NPS or RTC to inquire about placement there again/continued placement, funded through the LEA.
      - When no placement location (e.g., NPS/RTC) is available, LEAs must continue providing comparable IEP services or implement an interim offer of FAPE while maintaining efforts to secure a placement "as soon as possible."
      - Delays caused by factors beyond the LEA’s control do not negate the requirement to deliver IEP-aligned services in the interim

The El Dorado Charter County SELPA NPS/RTC Guidelines also provide LEAs with additional guidance on IEP team considerations and the LEA's responsibilities and obligations before, during, and after students are placed in these restrictive settings.

Diagnostic Placement

In some instances, the LEA needs more information than can be obtained in the 30 day interim period to determine a newly enrolled student’s placement. A longer period of 60 days to gather data and assess may be necessary instead, therefore, the IEP team may consider discussing a diagnostic placement.

The U.S. Education Department has explained that an IEP must precede placement into special education; however: "This requirement does not preclude temporarily placing an eligible child with a disability in a program as part of the evaluation process -- before the IEP is finalized -- to assist a public agency in determining the appropriate placement for the child. It is essential that the temporary placement not become the final placement before the IEP is finalized." See In re: Student with a Disability, 115 LRP 32147 (SEA NM 05/21/15). See also Charles County Pub. Schs., 121 LRP 8601 (SEA MD 07/29/20).

A diagnostic placement is a short-term educational setting designed to collect additional data on the student's abilities, challenges, and responses to specific supports or interventions. Neither the IDEA nor the California Education Code explicitly defines a “diagnostic placement.” In practice, diagnostic placements have emerged as a method for IEP teams to evaluate a student's needs when existing data is insufficient to determine the appropriate educational placement or services in extenuating circumstances. Importantly, a diagnostic placement is part of the evaluation process and is not considered an educational placement under the IDEA. When implemented, a diagnostic placement should be strategic, and data-driven to ensure that the IEP team makes informed, individualized decisions for the student. Instances for when a diagnostic placement may be appropriate could include:

Safety: when a student’s physical safety, emotional regulation, or elopement behaviors require further observation to identify appropriate placement and services.
Transition to a new setting: when a student is transitioning from one educational environment (e.g., home/hospital, private school, independent study, or nonpublic school) and the IEP team needs additional data to determine the least restrictive environment within the public school system.
Complex Needs: When a student presents with a unique or rare cognitive, neurological, or medical condition that significantly impacts learning, additional observation/data is needed to determine how these factors influence their educational needs and access to the curriculum.

Diagnostic placement is a method of evaluation designed to gather additional data, not an educational placement under the IDEA. Based on guidance established by The U.S. Department of Education (1999) [KP2] the following steps are recommended for the use of diagnostic placements:

Set a specific timeline (e.g., 30 days) for completing any necessary evaluations, finalizing the IEP, and determining the appropriate placement for the child.
Utilize the Prior Written Notice within the Assessment Plan to develop an interim IEP for the student that sets out the specific conditions and timelines for the trial placement during the assessment timeframe (not to exceed 60 days).
Ensure that the student’s educational rights holder agrees to the interim placement before it is carried out and that they are involved throughout the process of developing, reviewing, and revising the child's IEP.
Conduct an IEP meeting at the end of the trial period to propose an Offer of FAPE.

Diagnostic placements should not be a substitute for other assessment procedures, such as a comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation. Instead, they should be used in conjunction with information gathered from recent evaluations to inform placement and service decisions further. These placements are intended to provide additional data when existing information is insufficient, but they should not be the sole basis for determining a student's needs. Diagnostic placements must be clearly documented as temporary. As part of the evaluation process, a diagnostic placement for a specified period generally does not establish a student's “stay put” placement, given that it is intended only to be a temporary arrangement.

Question	Response
What is required for an LEA to justify a diagnostic assessment requiring a change in placement?	The LEA must demonstrate that the proposed diagnostic assessment is necessary and aligns with the student’s educational needs. This burden of proof is essential to validate the proposed assessment plan when proposing a diagnostic assessment that changes a student’s placement.
Why is it important to establish a methodology and criteria for a diagnostic placement?	A clear methodology and specific criteria ensure the diagnostic placement is purposeful. The assessment plan should define how the placement will evaluate the student’s ability to engage in the LEA’s academic program or address identified concerns, providing transparency and accountability.
Is parental consent required to implement a diagnostic placement as part of an assessment?	Yes, parental consent is required for any change in placement, including diagnostic placements. Without consent, the LEA cannot proceed.
Should the IEP Offer of FAPE Services Page be updated to reflect a diagnostic placement setting?	Yes. The Offer of FAPE Services Page should include proposed start and end dates. The comments section should be utilized to further describe the temporary nature of the change in placement/services for diagnostic purposes. [GU3]

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