summer school opportunitiesA common scenario facing many school districts this time of year is how to address situations where special education students are deemed ineligible for Extended School Year (ESY) Services by the team, but are then enrolled in summer school by their parents.  Where the student meets the criteria for summer school and the family is willing to pay for it, school districts should not exclude students from these programs just because the IEP does not provide for ESY.

When summer school is a program/service offered by the school district, the student should be allowed to enroll in the program and provided with reasonable 504 accommodations (rather than IDEA accommodations) that support his/her access to the program.  These may be the same or similar accommodations provided for in the student’s IEP; however, there is no obligation to fully implement the IEP in the summer school program where the team has determined that the student does not qualify for ESY services.  School districts with questions regarding this situation or their individual obligations to a student should contact their NMP attorney for more information.