My child is struggling 
Now that my child has 
For those students found eligible, the public school district where the private school is located may provide special education and related services. However, unlike students enrolled in public schools and public charter schools, eligible students in private schools are not entitled to a free appropriate public education. In other words, students enrolled in private schools by their parents do not have the same right to special education and related services as students enrolled in public schools.
Students in private schools who are found eligible for services under IDEA also have the option of enrolling in a public elementary or secondary school in order to receive full access to special education and related services. In such cases, the school district where the student resides is responsible for developing an initial Individualized Education Programs (IEP) through the process described in Chapter 7. If the parents have made it clear that they do not intend to enroll their child in the public school, the school district is not required to develop an IEP.
For every eligible student in private school who has been designated by the school district to receive special education services, the school district is required to formulate a “services plan" describing the specific special education or related services being offered. The school district must develop the services plan with a representative of the private school. However, the school district is responsible for determining the number of private school students who will be served each year based on the funding requirements of IDEA and for making the final decisions about all aspects of the services being offered.
The amount of funds the school district must spend on providing services to private school students is controlled by a funding formula specified in IDEA. IDEA outlines a process for determining the amount of funds the district must spend on special education or related services for eligible students in private schools.
Special education and related services may be provided to private school students on the premises of private schools, including religious schools, or at a public school. Services can be provided by school district personnel or through contracts by the school district with other individuals or agencies.
[New] Public school districts are now required to actively engage in consultations with private schools and parents of private school students regarding several topics, including:
- Child find (activities related to identifying children who may need special education)
- Funding (how the district will determine the amount of its funds that it will spend on services for students in private schools, how the services will be portioned out to eligible students and, if there are insufficient funds to serve all eligible students, how and when these decisions will be made)
- Provision of services (how, where and by whom special education and related services will be provided).
In addition to these new consultative activities required under IDEA 2004, private school officials now have the right to file a complaint with state education officials if they feel that the local school district did not engage in these consultations in a meaningful and timely way.
