On June 30, 2020, ISBE issued an FAQ document with the purpose of assisting school districts in the transition to in-person instruction. This document, which supplements ISBE’s general guidance on return to in-person...more
Less than a year ago, Public Act 101-0515 sent Illinois special educators scrambling to comply with an array of new procedural requirements. Now, as if you aren’t dealing with enough challenges related to remote learning and...more
Just as remote learning has become the new normal, we turn to planning for ESY and the 2020-21 school year. While the timeline for returning to school buildings remains uncertain, the eligibility of some students with...more
Last fall, in response to serious concerns raised about the use of isolated time out and physical restraint in schools, ISBE issued emergency rules to limit the use of those behavior management techniques. ...more
After three weeks of being out of school buildings and one week of remote learning, we can all see that the IDEA was not written for pandemics and widespread school closures. While requests for IDEA flexibility have been...more
As the issues related to the mandated school closures in response to the COVID-19 crisis continue to rapidly evolve, the Governor extended the closure through April 7, and in all likelihood, Illinois schools will remain...more
3/31/2020
/ Act of God ,
Business Closures ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
FERPA ,
IDEA ,
ISBE ,
School Closures ,
Special Education ,
Student Enrollment ,
Student Records ,
Students
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) recently issued a “Supplemental Fact Sheet” updating its earlier Questions & Answers and Fact Sheet on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and clarifying that schools should not refrain...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a webinar this week addressing online education and website accessibility. In the webinar, the Department of Education recognized that e-learning activities...more
In the wake of Governor Pritzker’s recent order requiring all Illinois schools to close between March 17 and March 30, many schools and school districts have been left guessing how to best serve students with disabilities and...more
3/17/2020
/ Attendance ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Crisis Management ,
Department of Education ,
Distance Learning ,
Educational Institutions ,
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) ,
IDEA ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
ISBE ,
Public Health ,
School Closures ,
School Districts ,
Special Education ,
State and Local Government ,
Students
In Illinois, the School Safety Drill Act requires K-12 public and private educational facilities to conduct several types of safety drills, including law enforcement drills, to address potential evacuation or lock-down...more
3/11/2020
/ Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Emergency Response ,
Mass Shootings ,
Private Schools ,
Public Safety ,
Public Schools ,
Risk Management ,
Safety Management Systems ,
Safety Precautions ,
Safety Training ,
School Districts ,
School Safety ,
School Shootings ,
Students
School personnel should expect to encounter a heated parent from time to time; parents are often understandably passionate about their children’s educations. But what happens when parental advocacy escalates from vigorous...more
3/10/2020
/ Disabled Children ,
Educational Institutions ,
FERPA ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Hostile Environment ,
IDEA ,
Independent Educational Evaluation ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Special Education ,
Students
You probably will not be surprised to learn that students with disabilities are more likely than their general education peers to be referred for a threat assessment. Indeed, students who have deficits in social...more
Last week, ISBE reversed course on isolated time out. After initially banning the practice in late November 2019, ISBE heard from many stakeholders that having a staff member in a time out room with an escalated student was...more
3/3/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
ISBE ,
New Guidance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
Students
On February 25, 2020, ISBE posted a second amendment to its emergency rules governing physical restraint and time out. This new amendment, which is effective immediately, is the most recent development in ISBE’s attempts to...more
2/26/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
ISBE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
Students
From federal guidance addressing FERPA and the School Safety Commission Report and DOE withdrawal of discipline guidance to Illinois law requiring threat assessment teams and the creation of the Illinois Educational Safety...more
2/26/2020
/ Best Practices ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Safety ,
Safety Management Systems ,
Safety Precautions ,
Safety Standards ,
School Safety ,
Students ,
Threat Management ,
Trump Administration
As an Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigator, I was surprised by the number of times I saw the same issues again and again in Title IX sexual misconduct investigations. Nowhere was this more evident than with...more
2/26/2020
/ Colleges ,
Confidential Information ,
Confidentiality Policies ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
FERPA ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Investigations ,
OCR ,
Rape ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Student Privacy ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
Litigants challenging the opening of women’s restrooms and locker rooms in schools to transgender females have roundly been defeated. While the Supreme Court could always change the trend, cases like Whitcare v. Kenosha...more
2/20/2020
/ Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Gloucester County School Board v G.G. ,
LGBTQ ,
Restroom Legislation ,
Right to Privacy ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
On February 18, 2020, ISBE approved revised proposed rules related to the use of physical restraint and time out in schools. The revised proposed rules follow ISBE’s receipt and review of over three hundredb comments on...more
2/20/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
ISBE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
Students ,
Training Requirements
On February 14, 2020, ISBE issued notice that it will no longer provide reimbursement for students placed at non-approved special education facilities, even if the placement is ordered by a hearing officer. In a brief...more
After receiving and reviewing questions and concerns from stakeholders regarding the practical implications of its emergency rules on the use of time out and physical restraint, the Illinois State Board of Education (“ISBE”)...more
1/10/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
ISBE ,
New Guidance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
Students
Within the last few weeks, there have been significant changes to the Illinois State Board of Education (“ISBE”) rules regarding time out and physical restraint. First, ISBE issued emergency rules, then it...more
1/10/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
ISBE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
Students ,
Training Requirements
After pushback from Illinois school districts, an amendment to the Illinois School Code’s special education provisions will alleviate some, but not all, frustrations related to a recent law that added significant procedural...more
12/10/2019
/ Disabilities ,
Disabled Children ,
IDEA ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Required Documentation ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Special Education ,
Students
In response to outcry from educators in and outside of Illinois about the legitimate need to use prone and supine restraint for certain diverse learners and the lack of notice to allow teams to identify alternative...more
12/5/2019
/ Amended Rules ,
Board of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Discipline ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Restraints ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
Students
IAASE recently reported that HB 3897 is currently making its way through the Illinois legislative process. This bill would expand special education eligibility to students through the school year in which they turn 22....more
12/4/2019
/ Disabled Children ,
Educational Institutions ,
Eligibility ,
Eligibility Determination ,
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Schools ,
Special Education ,
State and Local Government ,
Students
As we previously reported, effective immediately, school districts must comply with ISBE emergency rules for the use of seclusion and restraint....more
11/22/2019
/ Child Abuse ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Dear Colleague Letter ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Rule ,
ISBE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Restraints ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State Bans ,
Strict Compliance ,
Students