Giving students with disability more
The Endrew vs. Douglas County case of 2010 is an example of why stakeholders should be diligent in their efforts to build IEPs that truly give students access to grade appropriate content and activities. Endrew was an autistic fourth grade student whose parents believed that the local school failed to adequately educate their child, claiming that the local school essentially duplicated the same IEP goals and objectives over a four year span (U.S. Department of Education, 2017). In their frustration with the local school and school district, Endrew’s parents withdrew him from the local school program and enrolled him into a specialized private school program for students with autism. Endrew instantly began to make significant progress both behaviorally and academically, prompting his parents to seek reimbursement for the private school tuition through a due process hearing. The district court, however, denied the reimbursement request by parents citing Endrew did not experience a FAPE violation because he received an educational benefit that was more than de minimis or more than trivial.
Supreme Court Overturns the District Court’s Decision
Endrew’s parents ultimately appealed the decision of the district court to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Supreme Court overturned the decision of the district court citing that an educational benefit of a child must be sufficient (U.S. Department of Education, 2017). The Court also contended that the IEP must enable a child to make sufficient progress in accordance with the child’s abilities. The court added that every child should be granted the opportunity to tackle challenging goals and objectives. The Supreme Court rejected the notion that a de minimis educational program offering is appropriate for students with disabilities citing that IDEA demands more in the development of IEPs which in effective should embed rigor and challenges to push the academic potential of students with disabilities.
The Impact on IDEA/ESSA
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) ensures that schools are held accountable for maintaining an academic standard of excellence while also ensuring that students are making adequate progress. The Endrew case impacts IDEA because it ensures that all IEPs are reasonably constructed and calculated to support students with disabilities in making progress commensurate with their skills and abilities (Geraghty, 2023). The case, in effect, ensures that students with disabilities are held to high standard through the effective development of their IEP goals and objectives. IEP goals and objectives must, therefore, be aligned to grade appropriate curricular standards to include rigorous ambitious targets, and frequent progress monitoring.
References
Geraghty, T. (2023, September 8). What Can We Learn from the Endrew Decision? Kit from SLP Toolkit. https://kitforteams.com/what-can-we-learn-from-the-endrew-decision/
U.S. Department of Education. (2017). Questions and Answers (Q&A) on U. S. Supreme Court Case Decision Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District Re-1. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. https://sites.ed.gov/idea/questions-and-answers-qa-on-u-s-supreme-court-case-decision-endrew-f-v-douglas-county-school-district-re-1/
Links to learn more about the Endrew vs. Douglas County Case
Advocating for the underdog 
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