SAN DIEGO — A ruling by the U.S. Department of Education has affirmed the rights of private school students with special needs.
Issued Aug. 3, it came in response to complaints filed by Leticia Oseguera, superintendent of diocesan schools in the Diocese of San Diego, and by Christopher Fisher, her counterpart in the Archdiocese of San Francisco.
“The results are truly promising,” Oseguera said in a message to local Catholic school leaders.
She explained that both the North Coastal Consortium for Special Education and the San Francisco Unified School District were found to be non-compliant in critical areas regarding the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which requires equitable services for private school students with documented learning disabilities.
“These findings will spark significant changes … statewide, paving the way for much better access to special education and related services for our Catholic school students,” Oseguera said.
For example, it was determined that the required IDEA consultation conducted by the North Coastal Consortium and San Francisco Unified did not meet federal requirements, because private-school representatives were not always afforded meaningful participation and due consideration before important decisions were made.
The ruling requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to complete major statewide
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