Court Ruling: Hawaii DOE Failed Autistic Student
The Hawaii Department of Education can’t put the burden on parents to ensure that children with learning disabilities get what is due to them from the state鈥檚 public schools, according to a significant U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision issued Thursday.
Reversing a previous decision by the U.S. District Court in Hawaii, the appellate decision concluded that the Department of Education violated federal law by failing to provide Spencer Clark, an 18-year-old autistic student, with a 鈥渇ree appropriate public education.鈥
鈥淭he needs of the special education student are more important than the DOE鈥檚 desire for convenience,鈥 the student’s victorious lawyer Keith Peck wrote in reaction to the decision.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires public schools across the country to create an Individualized Education Program for each student with a disability.
Such programs outline specialized education objectives, and stem from ongoing meetings with parents, teachers, school administrators and medical professionals.
In this case, the court ruled that the Department of Education violated the federal act because Maui High School officials finalized Spencer鈥檚 educational program when his parents were absent from their planned scheduling session in 2010 with the flu.
Maui High School officials decided to place Spencer in a new school against his parents鈥 will. Such transitions can be especially jarring for autistic kids, who often have difficulty with abrupt changes to their environment.
Spencer’s mother Cindy Clark said she and her husband have been battling the DOE for years in several difference lawsuits. “Having an autistic child is a hardship, and it’s a sad thing,” she said. “But then they (the DOE) put knives in it, and they twist it.”
The appellate court emphasized that logistical issues, such as scheduling conflicts, aren鈥檛 an excuse for a school’s failure to collaborate with parents and violate federal law.
鈥淭he DOE cannot take what is supposed to be its responsibility and place it on the parents,鈥 the family’s attorney explained when contacted by Civil Beat.
The appellate court鈥檚 decision marks a significant shift in how the DOE must handle students with disabilities, according to Peck.
Department officials can no longer blame parents 鈥渇or not doing their job鈥 鈥 an excuse that Peck said has come up time and time again in the hundreds of DOE disability rights cases he says he has brought to court in the last two decades.
Such proceedings force Hawaii to pay out millions of taxpayer dollars in dozens of cases each year. And many special-needs students, including Spencer, are ultimately enrolled in private schools at the DOE’s expense.
In a response to questions from Civil Beat about the ruling, the DOE said that it is reviewing the appellate decision and that the department intends to comply with all federal requirements.
