Am I the only person who was taken aback by the Court’s decision to grant the parents reimbursement for their private placement (even though the child had not received special education in the public school) for several reasons, including the fact that the legal process takes too long! Oh my. Where is the justice for all?
The timing:
Parents sought a due process hearing in 2003.
The District Court issued its ruling in 2005.
And here we are in 2009, with the Supremes–almost a year after the student graduated from high school!
A ridiculous scenario, of course. We all know that. See lots of good work by Common Good on these issues. www.commongood.org.
The due process review is ponderous, says the Court, so it decides to ‘avoid detriment to the child’s education’ and grant the parents reimbursement.
We all know the process is onerous for everyone. So what to do? Change the process. Get rid of it. Streamline it. Do something systemic….
We should not put one hand on the scale for one side (parents) but not the other (our public schools). Schools did not create this flawed and out-of-control due process system. Congress did, more than 30 years ago. The courts continue it, adding layers upon layers.
We need to change the process–not use it to create further injustice.
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