My son is in 10th grade now he has been in self contained classes since 5th grade last year in 9th grade I placed him in a charter school this year they changed coordinators and the special ed teacher retired so now they are telling me he has to attend regular classes because they don’t have a self contained class but he will be assisted by the coordinator. She said they have no other self contained students and most of there student are independent. Learners they cater to high academic children. However it is a public charter school. Is it illegal for them not to create a self contained class for my child ?
The Team’s placement decision should, of course, be based on your child’s needs and not the school’s available resources. You do have options for disputing the Team’s decision, if you disagree with it.
Also note that some states have their own rules regarding charter schools. I would suggest that you connect with your state’s parent center: http://www.parentcenterhub.org/find-your-center/. They should be able to help you understand charter school policies in your state, as well as navigate the dispute resolution options that are available to you.
Under IDEA, most charter schools are considered either a school within a public school district or their own public school district. School districts are required to make available a continuum of placement types. Districts can offer these options in-house, or can work with another entity to offer them.
Let’s assume that your child’s charter school is considered it’s own school district. If the IEP Team believes that he requires a separate classroom, they would either need to create the program in-house OR work with another entity to provide it (like a local school district).
If the charter school is considered a school within a district, then this responsibility falls upon the district itself.