A New Jersey Administrative Law Judge has ruled that a district can scale back supports and services for a college-bound, high-school senior with disabilities.
The case involved an 18-year old with cystic fibrosis classified under the category “other health impaired.” He took general education classes with academic modifications and accommodations. The teen’s parents alleged that the district failed to provide FAPE by not providing the teen with a 1:1 aide, assistive technology, and other services and accommodations to which he had been accustomed.
The district acknowledged that numerous accommodations in the prior IEP had been removed for the 2010–2011 school year, arguing that a 1:1 aide and other supports were not necessary or appropriate for a college-bound student, and would have been “emotionally detrimental” and “academically harmful.” Although he failed the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) in reading, and still showed weakness in language arts, the district argued that he did not have a reading comprehension problem. In ruling for the district, the judge found that the IEP appropriately addressed the teen’s educational and medical needs through breathing therapy during the school day, accommodations and modifications to address frequent absences, extended time for testing and site alterations, among others. He noted that the teen must “begin the process of becoming independent,” and that a 1:1 aide would make him “reliant upon someone else to take his notes, record his homework assignments, and check to make sure he has all of his books and materials.”
