Definition of school-endorsed activity

[J.D.]

I need help finding the supporting legal definition of “school-endorsed activity.” As I understood from IDEA 34 C.F.R. §§ 300.320, 300.107, and 300.117, IEPs also cover extracurricular activities as long as the activity is endorsed by school. What is the litmus test to determine if an activity is endorsed by the school? 

 

I would appreciate if you could provide as much detail as available for this test as extracurricular activities take so many different shapes and forms. Sometimes the activity is free to the students, sometimes there is a fee but the school allows the group to meet in the school grounds for free or just a symbolic fee, sometimes the activity has a fee but it is only for district students, sometimes the activity is fee-based but is scheduled during school hours and students’ attendance is waived.

 

As expected, school claims that after-school activities are not covered by IEPs because they are no mandatory, not part of the curriculum, and not for a grade. Therefore, no para support or any services will be provided.
 

I am looking at a particular after-school club right now but would need the detailed definition for other school activities that might be structured differently. 
 

Thank you!

[driven_cosmos]

I don't know that there is a specific legal definition of this in the law itself, but there is a lot of case law that could be helpful.  This looks like a great resource for your question, with a lot of examples of the types of activities that have been litigated in case law.  It also covers protections under both IDEA and Section 504, which is great because both laws can help you make a case for appropriate supports. 

IMO, if an activity is held on school grounds, led by school staff, and is included in correspondence from the school district (EX: mass emails, posting on the district website, included in a handbook / list of clubs and programs offered by the school) it would be really hard for the school to successfully argue that it is not a school sponsored activity.   

https://www.ksde.org/Portals/0/SES/legal/conf16/DHodgins_11-3_4-Nonacademic_Extracurricular_Activities.pdf?TSPD_101_R0=0812b43512ab20009d217104d1b72f79cda3d39aa524dae5ab9c087984a5b1bd0a015cabe94b776608c155e15514300039e8b6d14ae3d071aa87d4153a4121f6a69939f1afbad6d799ee64e3371bbb028044b21734429c27a78e1c4bfe9e0fc7

[driven_cosmos]

Another question you could ask is--if a student violated the school's code of conduct during this activity, would the school maintain the authority to discipline the student per their handbook (EX, suspension)?  If so, then it seems they would be admitting that they have sufficient authority / jurisdiction over the activity to be responsible for providing appropriate supports.

[Lisa Lightner]

Here's the US Dept of Ed guidance: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/dcl-factsheet-201301-504.html

[JSD24]

The way this was explained to me was using the word sponsored.  My school has an activity fee.  If you need to pay that fee, this is sponsored by the school & they need to provide an aide/support similar to during the school day.  (My friend's daughter is diabetic so the school needed a nurse to be there with her activities.)  There were also clubs that didn't need a fee & this was also where the school had to provide support.  If the PTO/PTA/HSA had an event, this wasn't school sponsored.  And the scouts rented space in the school - this also wasn't sponsored.  Things like the sports teams & cheerleaders, the school band or school musicals & plays would be school sponsored.  The Dear Colleague letter (https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-201301-504.pdf) has a lot of details and starts out explaining the importance of extracurricular activities to all students.  I'd start by reading though this & the other info in Lisa's link ^^.

If the school pays a stipend for a teacher to be there when a group meets, you can take this as being something that is endorsed by the school.  My district spells out who the teachers are, what they are paid & what things they oversee in their school board meeting minutes.  You can probably get a list for your district to see if something is 'endorsed' through a Right to Know request if it's not publicly available - if you are looking to see if an activity is endorsed by the school.