Office for Civil Rights Reaches Resolution Agreement with Nation’s Second Largest School District, Los Angeles Unified, to Meet
Categories: US Education News
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today resolved an investigation of the Los Angeles Unified School District in California with an agreement requiring it to take steps necessary to ensure that students with disabilities receive educational services, including compensatory services, during and resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. OCR found that during remote learning, the district:
Through implementation of the resolution agreement the district will:
- Develop and implement a plan to appropriately assess and provide compensatory education to students with disabilities who did not receive a FAPE during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Designate a plan administrator to implement the plan for assessment of compensatory education.
- Convene IEP and Section 504 teams to determine whether students were not provided the regular or special education and related aids and services designed to meet their individual needs during remote learning and determine compensatory education.
- Track and report to OCR the implementation of the plan for compensatory education. And,
- Conduct outreach to parents, guardians, students, and other stakeholders to publicize the plan for compensatory education and the roles of the plan administrator and independent ombudsperson.
The Department of Education made it a top priority since the beginning of the Biden Administration to reopen schools quickly and safely, and ensure all students, including students with disabilities, had equal access to high-quality education during the COVID pandemic. While the Department made clear that students learn best in-person and that states and districts should be using the $130 billion in American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds to bring students back to in-person learning, it also underscored the importance of supporting students with disabilities and other communities disproportionately impacted during the shift to remote learning.
As part of these efforts, OCR earlier this year released a fact sheet on the obligation to provide compensatory services to remedy educational or other deficits that result from students with disabilities not receiving evaluations or services to which they were entitled during the COVID-19 pandemic. Likewise, the Department’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services released guidance that addresses the requirement to provide compensatory services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).Under the American Rescue Plan ESSER fund, LA Unified School District received over $2.5 billion in funds to support the safe and sustained reopening of schools and recovery efforts.