J.W. ex rel. Jake W. v. New York City Department of Education

95 F. Supp. 3d 592, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39706
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMarch 27, 2015
DocketNo. 13-CV-6905 (JPO)
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 95 F. Supp. 3d 592 (J.W. ex rel. Jake W. v. New York City Department of Education) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
J.W. ex rel. Jake W. v. New York City Department of Education, 95 F. Supp. 3d 592, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39706 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

J. PAUL OETKEN, District Judge:

Plaintiffs J.W. and L.W. (collectively, “the Parents”) filed this action against the New York City Department of Education (“the Department”) pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq., and Article 89 of the New York State Education Law, N.Y. Educ. Law § 4401 et seq., seeking reversal of an administrative decision of a State Review Officer denying private school tuition funding for their minor son, Jake W. (“Jake”). Both parties now move for summary judgment. For the reasons that follow, the Court grants Defendant’s motion and denies Plaintiffs’ motion.

I. Background

A. Legal Framework

Congress enacted the IDEA “to ensure that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education” and “to ensure that the rights of children with disabilities and parents of such children are protected.” 20 U.S.C. § 1400(d)(1)(A), (B). States that provide a [596]*596free appropriate public education (“FAPE”) to all children who have disabilities are eligible for federal funding under the IDEA. Id. § 1412(a)(1)(A); see Cerra v. Pawling Cent. Sch. Dist., 427 F.3d 186, 192 (2d Cir.2005). A FAPE should “emphasize!]] special education and related services designed to meet [a disabled child’s] unique needs and prepare [the child] for further education, employment, and independent living.” 20 U.S.C. § 1400(d)(1)(A).

To receive federal funding, a state must provide each disabled child with an individualized education program (“IEP”). See id. § 1414(d)(1)(A). The IEP, “the result of collaborations [among] parents, educators, and representatives of the school district,” Lillbask ex rel. Mauclaire v. Conn. Dep’t of Educ., 397 F.3d 77, 81 (2d Cir.2005) (internal quotation marks omitted), is a “written statement that ‘sets out the child’s present educational performance, establishes annual and short-term objectives for improvements in that performance, and describes the specially designed instruction and services that will enable the child to meet those objectives.’ ” D.D. ex rel. V.D. v. N.Y.C. Bd. of Educ., 465 F.3d 503, 507-08 (2d Cir.2006) (quoting Honig v. Doe, 484 U.S. 305, 311, 108 S.Ct. 592, 98 L.Ed.2d 686 (1988)); see also 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(A) (defining “IEP”). The IEP must comply with the procedures set forth in the IDEA and must be “reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive educational benefits.” Bd. of Educ. v. Rowley, 458 U.S. 176, 207, 102 S.Ct. 3034, 73 L.Ed.2d 690 (1982); accord Gagliardo v. Arlington Cent. Sch. Dist., 489 F.3d 105, 107 (2d Cir.2007) (citing Walczak v. Fla. Union Free Sch. Dist., 142 F.3d 119, 122 (2d Cir.1998)). An IEP is not required, however, to “furnish every special service necessary to maximize each handicapped child’s potential.” Grim v. Rhinebeck Cent. Sch. Dist., 346 F.3d 377, 379 (2d Cir.2003) (alterations and internal quotation marks omitted).

New York State receives federal funds under the IDEA, and is therefore obliged to comply with the Act’s requirements. Walczak, 142 F.3d at 123. New York law charges local Committees on Special Education (“CSEs”) with developing IEPs for disabled children. N.Y. Educ. Law § 4402(1)(b)(1); R.E. v. N.Y.C. Dep’t of Educ., 694 F.3d 167, 175 (2d Cir. 2012), cert. denied, — U.S. —, 133 S.Ct. 2802, 186 L.Ed.2d 861 (2013). The CSE must include: the parents or guardians of the disabled child in question; the child’s regular education teacher; the child’s special education teacher; a school psychologist; and a district representative “qualified to provide or administer or supervise special education and ... knowledgeable about the general curriculum and the availability of resources of the school district,” among other individuals. N.Y. Educ. Law § 4402(1)(b)(1)(a). “In developing a particular child’s IEP, a CSE is required to consider four factors: (1) academic achievement and learning characteristics, (2) social development, (3) physical development, and (4) managerial or behavioral needs.” Gagliardo, 489 F.3d at 107-08 (internal citations omitted).

The IEP need not name a specific school placement for the child. T.Y. v. N.Y.C. Dep’t of Educ., 584 F.3d 412, 419 (2d Cir.2009). The New York City Department of Education’s practice “is to provide general placement information in the IEP, such as the staffing ratio and related services, and then convey to the parents a final notice of recommendation ... identifying a specific school at a later date. The parents are then able to visit the placement before deciding whether to accept it.” R.E., 694 F.3d at 191.

[597]*597A parent who believes that his or her disabled child has been denied a FAPE under the IDEA may unilaterally place that child in a private school and then seek reimbursement from the school district. 20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(10)(C)(ii); Hardison v. Bd. of Educ., 773 F.3d 372, 376 (2d Cir.2014); see also Sch. Comm. of Burlington v. Dep’t of Educ., 471 U.S. 359, 369-70, 105 S.Ct. 1996, 85 L.Ed.2d 385 (1985) (“Burlington”); Florence Cnty. Sch. Dist. Four v. Carter ex rel. Carter, 510 U.S. 7, 12, 114 S.Ct. 361, 126 L.Ed.2d 284 (1993) (“Carter”).

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Bluebook (online)
95 F. Supp. 3d 592, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39706, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jw-ex-rel-jake-w-v-new-york-city-department-of-education-nysd-2015.