Parents argued district had to do more
The Haldane Central School District in December agreed to pay the parents of a student up to $70,000 to settle a claim that it did not provide their child, who has a disability, with the educational opportunities during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years that are required for special education students under federal law.
The district responded that it had offered the student what is known as a “free appropriate public education” but agreed to settle the case to avoid litigation.
The Current received the settlement agreement through a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request. The names of the student and parents were redacted by the district.
The district agreed to reimburse the parents half the tuition they paid to an unidentified private school where they enrolled their child during the current and most recent school year, up to $34,026 per year.
In return, the parents agreed to allow the student to be evaluated and observed at the private school by Haldane’s Committee on Special Education to develop an Individualized Education Program required for students who receive special education services.
