| February 19, 2006
At Woodside High in San Mateo County, college-prep classes awaited a 15-year-old boy with learning disabilities and anxiety. He would blend in with other college-bound students, but also receive daily help from a special education expert. He would get a laptop computer, extra time for tests -- and an advocate to smooth any ripples with teachers. If an anxiety attack came on, he could step out of class. But Woodside High wasn't what his parents had in mind. Instead, they enrolled him in a $30,000-a-year prep school in Maine -- then sent the bill to their local public school district.
| March 22, 2006
Imagine a world without special education, a world in which disabled children are no longer gobbling up scarce public-school dollars that could be used to educate "normal" kids. No more strange and troubling children taking up classroom space and teachers' time. No more taxpayers' money spent on paraprofessionals and therapists -- not to mention the occasional equestrian program and private boarding school. Imagine if all these kids -- along with their wheelchairs and walkers and hearing aids -- were simply to disappear.
| May 31, 2009
In a case with potential financial repercussions for school districts and families, the U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide when public schools must reimburse parents of special-education students for private-school tuition. The case before the court involves a struggling Oregon high school student whose parents enrolled him in a $5,200-a-month residential school after he became a heavy marijuana user and ran away from home. Although his guidance counselor had noticed his difficulties and arranged an evaluation, the boy, who is identified in court documents only as T.A., was found ineligible for special-education services at his high school in the Forest Grove School District.
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