PENNSYLVANIA
SPECIAL EDUCATION HEARING OFFICER
DECISION
DUE PROCESS HEARING
Name of Child: J.H.
ODR #15046 / 13-14-KE
Date of Birth:
[redacted]
Dates of Hearing: September 9, 2014 September 12, 2014
OPEN HEARING
Parties to the Hearing: Parent[s]
Upper Darby School District 4611 Bond Avenue
Drexel Hill, PA 19026
Representative: Pro Se
Scott Gottel, Esquire Holsten & Associates One Olive Street Media, PA 19063
Date Record Closed: October 2, 2014
Date of Decision: October 10, 2014
Hearing Officer: Linda M. Valentini, Psy.D., CHO Certified Hearing Official
Background
Student1 is a teen-aged student who resides in the District [District] and was previously enrolled in the District’s public schools. Student is eligible for special education pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA] and Pennsylvania Chapter 14 under the classification of Other Health Impairment due to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. As of the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year Student was enrolled in a cyber-charter school and the District is no longer Student’s LEA.
Student’s guardian [Guardian] requested this hearing under the IDEA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, alleging that the District denied Student a free appropriate public education [FAPE] through failing to provide/implement appropriate Individualized Education Programs [IEPs].
An evidentiary hearing was previously held regarding the limitations period governing the scope of the hearing2. The hearing officer determined that neither of the two exceptions to the IDEA’s two-year limitations period exists and made this ruling on the earlier record. Therefore the period in the current matter to be addressed is from May 16, 2012 to the end of the school year in June 2014.
Issue
Did the District provide Student with a free appropriate public education during the relevant time period, specifically were Student’s IEPs appropriate and if so were they appropriately implemented?
J-H-Upper-Darby-ODRNo-15046-13-14-KE