Law Commons^™

Meeting The Needs Of Students With Disabilities, Charles J. Russo, Allan G. Osborne Jr.

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2005) requires states, through local school boards, to provide students with disabilities with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment consistent with the content of their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). As important as it is to educate students with disabilities, the cost of serving these children is much higher than that of their peers in regular education.

Most recently, the Tenth Circuit upheld Rowley’s “some educational benefit” standard in Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District RE-1 (2015). In Endrew F., the panel affirmed that a school board in …

Special-Education Law In Mexico And The United States, Charles J. Russo, Ricardo Lozano

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The challenges of meeting the requirements of students with special needs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and other laws are a particularly timely topic, as large numbers of native Spanish-speaking students move into the United States.

Against that backdrop, this article reviews the laws for special education in Mexico and the United States. The focus on the laws in Mexico stems from the fact that many students cross the border daily to attend public schools in the United States, and because Mexico has many laws in place dealing with special education. We offer school district leaders a comparative …

Has Time Expired For Time-Out Rooms?, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

An issue that continues to raise serious concerns for education leaders surrounds the treatment of students with disabilities who behave unacceptably. In Honig v. Doe (1988), the Supreme Court acknowledged that in such cases, among the procedures available to educators is “the use of study carrels, timeouts, detention, or the restriction of privileges” (p. 325). Time-out rooms—typically small rooms where students who misbehave are sent until they can safely regain their composure—continue to be used in most jurisdictions, subject to state oversight via statutes and regulations (U.S. Department of Education 2010).

Assistive Technology And Students With Disabilities, Charles J. Russo, Allan G. Osborne Jr.

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

As part of providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to students with disabilities, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school boards to offer assistive technology when necessary to ensure that students receive the educational benefits to which they are entitled.

As important as related services such as assistive technology (AT) are, the Supreme Court noted that school boards must provide such help only to the extent that it is necessary for students with disabilities to benefit from the programming identified in their individualized education plans (Irving Independent School District v. Tatro 1984). Although the related services mandate …