PENNSYLVANIA
SPECIAL EDUCATION HEARING OFFICER
REINSTATEMENT ORDER/
CLOSING ORDER AND MEMORANDUM
OF THE HEARING OFFICER
In Re: File Number 14277-1314KE
Special Education Due Process Hearing for K.N.
Having been informed by counsel that the parties reached a point where, despite a mutual understanding regarding all but one term of a settlement, the agreement could not be finalized because the School Board of the Tunkhannock Area School District (District) declined to approve the settlement agreement because of disagreement over that material term, which the parties were unable to resolve, it is HERBY ORDERED that the complaint in the above-captioned matter is REINSTATED.
It is FURTHER ORDERED that the undersigned hearing officer hereby asserts jurisdiction over the reinstated complaint for the sole purpose of resolving the parties’ dispute over the permitted use of the agreed settlement funds as set forth below.
It is FURTHER ORDERED that the compensatory education funds, in the amount to which the parties previously agreed, shall not be used by Parent on behalf of Student to pay for tuition, room and board, college textbooks or for other ordinary expenses required for matriculation at a two year or four year college or university for courses that earn college credits for Student, generally, or credits that may be applied toward an associate degree, a bachelor’s degree or a post graduate degree at a two year or four year college or university that confers such degrees.
It is FURTHER ORDERED that the compensatory funds to which the parties previously agreed, may be used by Parent on behalf of Student for any of the following purposes, in addition to such other purposes, if any, to which the parties previously agreed, and to which the School Board of the School District expressed no disagreement prior to the date Parent requested reinstatement of the complaint:
- Instruction/tutoring in basic academic skills and/or content areas, including but not limited to tutoring to assist Student in passing/benefitting from post-secondary education classes in any subject area, as well as non- credit remedial courses that may be required in order for Student to be admitted to a college or university to take college courses for credit, whether or not such courses/credits are included within a program expected to lead to a degree.
- Assistive technology, including but not limited to computers, tablets, and software/applications to assist Student in post-secondary education and/or employment/employment training. An assistive technology evaluation is explicitly included among the services which Parent may obtain for Student with compensatory education funds.
- Transition services/special education services of the type offered or provided to secondary education students, or IDEA-eligible students who may defer a diploma in order to receive additional special education/transition services within the District and/or Intermediate Unit 18, and/or any other program or training for which District provides or has ever provided funding for IDEA eligible students through age 21, other than college tuition for credit as described above. A transition evaluation is explicitly included among the services which Parent may obtain for Student with compensatory education funds.
- Employment skills training programs at any facility, such as traditional vo-tech schools, or technical institutes, that serve both secondary students who have not yet graduated from high school as well as adults, or that provide the same type of training available at institutions within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that serve secondary education students, even if the specific program accepts only post-secondary students.
- Social skills training, counseling and/or psychological/behavioral treatment services.
- Any other services or equipment to which the parties have agreed or may agree, provided that any unresolvable future disagreement will limit the parties to the uses of the compensatory education funds described in this order.
- The time in which the compensatory education award may be used shall be governed by the parties’ prior or subsequent agreement, provided that if there is no current or future agreement, the compensatory education funds shall be used by Student’s 26th birthday.
It is FURTHER ORDERED that based upon the representations of counsel that the parties satisfactorily resolved all other matters in dispute between them with respect to the above-captioned case, and the only issue in dispute preventing final settlement of this matter via approval of the School Board of the School District was use of compensatory education funds for post-secondary education services, which has now been resolved by this Order, any claims not specifically addressed by this order and memorandum are denied and dismissed, this case is DISMISSED and jurisdiction is relinquished.
DATED: May 7, 2014