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Senate Bill 3606 Extends Reimbursement Eligibility for Public Special Education Programs

On May 23, 2024, Senate Bill 3606 (“SB 3606”) passed both houses. If signed into law by Governor Pritzker, SB 3606 will amend the Children with Disabilities Article of the Illinois School Code to provide for expanded state...more

OCR Announces Resolution Agreement with L.A. Schools over Remote-Learning Related Services to Students with IEPs and 504 Plans

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) recently announced a resolution agreement with  the Los Angeles Unified School District largely addressing issues related to OCR’s finding that the District...more

U.S. Department of Education to Amend Section 504 Regulations

The U.S. Department of Education recently announced its intent to amend the regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to “strengthen and protect rights for students with disabilities.” While the...more

COVID-19 Paid Leave Law: FAQ

The COVID-19 paid leave law has raised both legal and practical questions for school administrators. To further assist with following the mandates of the law, we have prepared a model form that schools can use when receiving...more

HB 1167 Provides Paid Administrative Leave to Vaccinated Employees for Absences related to COVID-19 and Requires Payment to...

Yesterday, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law a revised version of HB 1167, which provides paid administrative leave, with no deduction of sick leave days, to fully vaccinated teachers for absences related to COVID-19....more

Appellate Court Rules on COVID-19 Mitigation TRO

Just before midnight yesterday, the Appellate Court issued its decision on the appeal of the February 4, 2022 TRO enjoining the Governor from enforcing certain COVID-19 mitigation measures including universal masking. With...more

JCAR Decision Adds Further Uncertainty to Already Complex Situation on School Masking and Quarantine Rules

Since yesterday, there have been many reports about the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) vote against extending IDPH Emergency Rules regarding masking, vaccine and testing requirements in schools. This has...more

What to Expect This Week Following Mask Mandate TRO

On Friday, a court ruling in Springfield resulted in a temporary restraining order enjoining the Governor from enforcing certain COVID-19 mitigation measures including universal masking. Approximately 150 of Illinois’ 840...more

Governor’s Executive Order Requiring Exclusion of Students and School Personnel

Late Friday, Governor Pritzker issued Executive Order 2021-24 requiring schools to exclude students and school personnel for COVID-19 diagnosis, exposure, or symptoms. School districts, not the local health department, are...more

ISBE Releases Guidance on New Transition Laws

Earlier this summer, we let you know about two special education bills that had passed the Illinois legislature, which, if signed by the Governor, would provide additional services to some transition students. ...more

Two New Bills Offer Extended Special Education Services to Transition Students

Just hours before the conclusion of the spring legislative session, the Illinois General Assembly passed two bills that will significantly impact students who receive services until age 22.  The first, HB40, impacts students...more

Physical Restraint and Time Out Update

Prior to winter break, we wrote about proposed legislation that would further limit the use of physical restraint and time out in Illinois schools. While many expected the bill to pass during the lame duck session earlier...more

Teacher Dismissal Upheld for Conduct Not Directly Related to Previous Notice to Remedy

For school personnel administrators, it is a frustrating but typical experience to have a teachers’ union representative object to warnings and directives on the grounds that the warning is too broad, or not directly on point...more

Proposed State and Federal Legislation Would Further Reduce Physical Restraint and Time Out in Schools

Over the past year, the use of physical restraint and seclusion in schools has come under increased scrutiny. While ISBE issued emergency rules at the end of last November, followed by a series of updates and then final...more

They Said What? First Amendment Issues in 2020 [Audio]

A presidential election like no other in history, a global pandemic causing an unprecedented economic and emotional toll on our communities, and a remote learning environment where virtual communication reigns, whether in the...more

COVID School Landscape [Audio]

In this episode, we discuss the most top-of-mind issues and lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis....more

Illinois Health Department FAQ Leaves Many Unanswered Questions For Schools

On August 12, 2020, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) issued a “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)” for Schools.” In a statement by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) to stakeholders that same day, ISBE...more

Will Hearing Officers and Courts Order In-Person Instruction as Stay-Put?

While only a handful of cases have been reported related to districts’ provision of special education services remotely, we are watching carefully for lessons learned. So far, courts have not required in-person instruction as...more

Fall 2020 Guidance Released—All Districts Must Provide Remote Learning Upon Request

ISBE released a comprehensive guidance document today with learning recommendations for the return to school this fall. In a letter introducing this document...more

Planning for Return to In-Person Instruction: Special Education Considerations

ISBE and IDPH recently released their guidance related to Starting the 2020-21 School Year. The guidance addresses a broad range of topics, including some suggestions related to special education. The following week ISBE...more

Cheat Sheet for ISBE’s FAQ for Special Education on the Transition to In-Person Instruction

On June 30, 2020, ISBE issued an FAQ document with the purpose of assisting school districts in the transition to in-person instruction. This document, which supplements ISBE’s general guidance on return to in-person...more

Prepare for Special Education Procedural Changes Enacted in New Remote Learning Law

We recently let you know about a pending bill that would make changes to several special education procedures. Senate Bill 1569 has now been signed by Governor Pritzker as PA 101-0643....more

New Bill Would Bring More Changes to Special Education Procedures

Less than a year ago, Public Act 101-0515 sent Illinois special educators scrambling to comply with an array of new procedural requirements. Now, as if you aren’t dealing with enough challenges related to remote learning and...more

Hawaii Comp Ed Class Action: Don’t Panic. Plan.

And so it begins. While we have encouraged schools to focus on meeting student needs during the school closure and planning to meet student needs when we return to school buildings, we knew the temptation to jump ahead to...more

Special Education and Remote Learning: Back to Basics

After three weeks of being out of school buildings and one week of remote learning, we can all see that the IDEA was not written for pandemics and widespread school closures. While requests for IDEA flexibility have been...more

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