Charter Schools

First and foremost, charter schools are public, not private schools.  All schools, including charter schools, must comply with special education laws -- the IDEA, Section 504, the ADA, and the ADA Amendments Act -- and have affirmative duties to serve students with disabilities. Charter school status does not relieve these institutions of any special education obligations or treat them differently from traditional public schools for the purpose of compliance with the special education laws.

 

There are two main types of charter school status, dependent and independent charters, and their status impacts how they provide for a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) for students with disabilities.  Traditionally, a “dependent” charter school is treated as another school of the authorizing local educational agency (LEA), or school district, for all purposes.  The authorizing district supports the charter school with service delivery for students at site, and the SELPA and authorizing district work together to oversee FAPE, provision of placement and services, and staffing.

Traditionally, an “independent” charter school is considered to be it's own local educational agency (district) for the purposes of providing special education.  The school participates in SELPA governance; carries legal responsibility for special education and FAPE; receives, spends, and allocates special education funds; is responsible for its own state and federal compliance; and must ensure a continuum of placement and services for its students with disabilties.