DRP Administrative Complaint Results in Requirement that Special Education Services be Provided to Youth in Philadelphia Jails

After receiving a letter from a 20-year-old youth who was confined in a Philadelphia jail and asserted that he was not receiving special education services to which he was entitled, DRP filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Division of Compliance (“DOC”) on behalf of the individual client and similarly situated special education students incarcerated in Philadelphia’s jails.  DOC investigated our complaint and determined that the School District of Philadelphia did not comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in multiple ways.  DOC required the School District to remedy those violations through adoption and implementation of policy changes and to provide all affected students with supplementary programs and services.

The findings of the Pennsylvania Department of Education can be found here.