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Special Education in Charter Schools: The Basics

Special Education in Charter Schools: The Basics. Eileen M. Ahearn, Ph.D., Project Director National Association of State Directors of Special Education. Plan for this Session. What is a charter school’s responsibility for special education? What does LEA status mean?

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Special Education in Charter Schools: The Basics

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  1. Special Education in Charter Schools: The Basics Eileen M. Ahearn, Ph.D., Project Director National Association of State Directors of Special Education

  2. Plan for this Session • What is a charter school’s responsibility for special education? • What does LEA status mean? • What or who determines this status? • How have states handled this issue? • The critical policy tension between charter schools and special education.

  3. Charter School Responsibility for Special Education • Charter schools as a retrofitted element of our public education system. • Application of federal laws to all public schools. • But how is a charter school responsible?

  4. Charter School LEA Status • The primacy of state charter schools laws. • The problems they pose for special education. • The charter school as an LEA or Part of an LEA. • Implications of this status.

  5. LEA Status Determination • The 5 existing “types” of legal status: • All charter schools are LEAs • All charter schools are Part of an LEA • Status depends on the Authorizer • Status depends on the type of School • Status chosen by the Charter School

  6. Variation and Changein LEA Status • Frequency of changes in state laws. • Only a few have affected LEA status. • Colorado and Illinois as “similar but different” examples. • Georgia’s “charter school systems” and short-lived Charter Commission.

  7. The Policy Tension Between Special Education and Charters • The charter school concept. • The prescriptive nature of special education laws. • Examples of this tension • Preparing staff and administration to cope with this tension.

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