Fape - Criteria For FAPE Today

Criteria For FAPE Today

The "free" public education means educational services must be provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without charge to parents except for fees that are charged for all students. In Board of Education v. Rowley the United States Supreme Court set forth a two-part inquiry for determining whether a school district has satisfied the FAPE requirement. First, the state must have "complied with the procedures set forth in the Act." These procedures enable parents of a disabled child to examine school records, participate in meetings, and present complaints. Parents must also be given notice of any proposals to change the educational placement of a child, and they are entitled to an independent educational evaluation. They can initiate an impartial due process hearing for failure to comply with the Act and bring a subsequent civil action challenging an adverse determination at the hearing. Second, the IEP that is developed must be "reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive educational benefits." Therefore, if the child is being educated in the regular classrooms of the public education system the IEP must be designed to enable the child to achieve passing marks and advance from grade to grade.