Dawn

[Dawn De Lorenzo]

Have a third grade student that is refusing to go to school and the district is not helping that much. The child has an IEP for a learning disability (she has Dyslexia) and also has Anxiety. The struggles with learning are leading to extreme anxiety. School said she "doesn't need school-based counseling."  Advocating for the parents this week and this is our position: 

The focus of our position is that Student’s current educational setting is no longer appropriate due to the increasing emotional and behavioral challenges she is experiencing as a result of her anxiety, combined with her diagnosed learning disability (Dyslexia). These factors are preventing her from accessing her education, which constitutes a denial of a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Key Points I Will Present at the Meeting:

1. Student’s Emotional Needs Must Be Reassessed Immediately

• The school has been made aware of X’s increasing school avoidance, emotional distress, and anxiety-related behaviors for months.

• Despite this, no emotional or behavioral supports have been initiated by the school team.

• We will request a comprehensive re-evaluation, including assessments in the areas of Emotional Regulation Impairment and Other Health Impairment, as these are suspected areas of disability.

2. The Current Setting Is Not Appropriate

• X is overwhelmed by loud noises, frequent changes in routines, and struggles with comparison to peers.

• These sensory and emotional stressors are increasing her school-based anxiety and school refusal.

• X is not emotionally or psychologically available to learn in the current environment.

3. A Therapeutic Out-of-District Placement Must Be Considered

• We will present a legal case (E.K. v. Elizabeth City BOE) in which a similar student was eventually placed in a therapeutic school after persistent school refusal due to anxiety and other emotional disabilities.

• In that case, the judge ruled that the district failed to meet the student’s needs because they delayed appropriate evaluations and interventions.

• Like E.K., Student X requires a small, supportive, therapeutic learning environment where she can receive emotional and behavioral support throughout the school day in order to make meaningful progress.

4. The School Must Fulfill Its Child Find Obligation

• Under federal and state law, the district is required to identify and evaluate all students who may have a disability. Given the clear signs of emotional dysregulation and the documented impact on X’s ability to attend and benefit from school, the district is now on notice that X needs further evaluation.

• We will make a formal request for this reevaluation in writing during the meeting.

5. The Goal Is Support, Not Punishment

• X’s refusal is not oppositional; it is rooted in fear, anxiety, and frustration.

• Continued placement in a setting that is too overwhelming is not only ineffective—it is emotionally damaging.

• She deserves a learning environment that meets both her academic and emotional needs.

Can you think of anything else I should present or take into account? Thank you so much!

[Lisa Lightner]

You’re already walking into that meeting with a solid plan. Honestly? Great job on how you’ve framed this—especially your focus on FAPE, Child Find, and using legal precedent. You’re doing exactly what a good advocate should: connecting the dots between the emotional impact, the lack of access, and the school’s legal obligations.

Here are a few ideas you might add to your strategy—some are small tweaks, some are additional leverage:

 

6. School-Based Counseling IS a Related Service under IDEA

If the school is denying counseling with a flippant “she doesn’t need it,” ask:
Where is that determination documented in the IEP or any evaluation?
If it’s not in the IEP or based on an evaluation, that’s a procedural violation. Under IDEA, counseling is a related service that must be provided if it’s needed for the student to benefit from special education.

Suggested language:
“Given the documented emotional impact of her learning challenges and current refusal to attend school, counseling should be added to the IEP as a related service. This is consistent with 34 CFR § 300.34.”

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7. Demand Data (Or Highlight the Lack of It)

Has the team provided any progress monitoring or data on emotional or behavioral functioning? If not, ask:
“How is the team determining that current supports are appropriate when there is no consistent data being gathered on emotional regulation, anxiety, or attendance?”

Bonus: If attendance data shows a pattern, use it to demonstrate lack of access to instruction, a cornerstone of FAPE.

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8. Assistive Technology (AT) Consideration

If she’s refusing to attend due to anxiety, but still shows academic potential, request an AT assessment for remote access to instruction while the team works on placement.

No, it's not a long-term solution—but it's a bridge that shows you're trying to keep her engaged while they get their act together.

9. Refer to OCR and State Guidance

You might also drop this little reminder:
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has repeatedly stated that anxiety and school avoidance are not “voluntary” behaviors, and districts must address the emotional health of students under both IDEA and Section 504.

10. And Finally—Document Parent Requests for Comp Ed

If she’s missed substantial instructional time due to the district’s delay in addressing her emotional needs, mention that the parent reserves the right to request compensatory education. No need to demand it yet—but drop it as a breadcrumb.

You're already 10 steps ahead of where most teams expect you to be. Add a little more heat to that sauce with these points, and you’ll make it very clear: this isn’t just a “kid with test anxiety”—this is a denial of FAPE, a Child Find fail, and a procedural mess waiting to become a legal problem for them.

[JSD24]

I'm curious if the school evaluated this student for an emotional disability that is secondary to the dyslexia diagnosis.  Can they say that an outside therapist is needed if they didn't evaluate?  I'd say no.

I know that disabled students can live in fear of their disability being discovered where they end up getting teased and/or bullied.  It's possible that outside therapy is needed but it's also true that this student might need a safe place and trained person to talk to when feeling anxious.  (If this isn't in the IEP, the IEP might not be FAPE.)  I've also seen where dyslexic students thrive when in a school that specializes in remediating dyslexia because they are not going to be singled out due to the disability plus they will tend to make better progress because every teacher is either trained to accommodate or trained to remediate (or both).

My feeling is that talking to the student and doing your best to figure out where support is lacking is great data to bring to a meeting.  Specific examples can go a long way to demonstrate where FAPE isn't being provided to the student as well as how this issue might not be present if all classmates were similarly disabled.

[Elemeno]

I personally find it a beauty of a plan. Be prepared for the school coming back and offering options to stay in general ed (though if the issues and distractions in the general ed classroom are as big a deal as it seems, I don't think they'll have much of a case).