PENNSYLVANIA
SPECIAL EDUCATION HEARING OFFICER
DECISION
DUE PROCESS HEARING
Name of Child: Student
ODR # 5968/05-06 AS
Date of Birth: xx/xx/xx
Dates of Hearing: 2/17/06; 2/23/06; 3/24/06, 4/3/06, 5/1/06, 5/3/06, 6/7/06, 6/8/06 1
CLOSED HEARING
Parties to the Hearing: Mr. and Mrs. Parent
Mrs. Betsy Guftason
Director of Secondary Special Education Pocono Mountain School District
P.O. Box 200
Swiftwater, PA 18370
Representatives:
Judith Gran, Esquire
PILCOP
125 South 9th Street, Suite 700 Philadelphia, PA 19107
Philip Drumheiser, Esquire P.O. Box 890
Carlisle, PA 17013
Erin Gilsbach, Esquire Jessica Lenhart, Esquire 1 West Broad Street Suite 700
Bethlehem, PA 18018
Date Transcript Received: June 13, 2006
Date of Decision: July 20, 2006
Hearing Officer: Marcie Romberger, Esquire
ISSUES
- Did the District fail in its Child Find requirement under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act by not diagnosing Student with a learning disability earlier?
- Was Student’s placement in an English for Speakers of Other Languages Class rather than identifying Student as learning disabled inappropriate?
- Was the Student inappropriately disciplined because the District knew or should have known that Student was a child with a disability?
- Was the Evaluation Report produced by the District inappropriate for failing to identify all of Student’s disabilities, specifically Other Health Impaired for his weakness in Executive Functioning?
- Did the District fail to appropriately consider and integrate the Independent Evaluation into the District’s Evaluation Report?
- Were the Individualized Education Plans offered by the District inappropriate?
If The answer to any of the above is in the affirmative, should the Student:
- receive compensatory education from March, 2000 to June, 2005 when he was placed in ESOL and not evaluated?
- receive a new reevaluation that considers the Independent Educational Evaluation and integrates its considerations?
- receive a new Individualized Education Plan including placement outside the District?
- receive compensatory education for the 2005-2006 school year for the failure of the District to offer an appropriate IEP to Student?