Ross Valley Partially Denied FAPE for Missing Counseling and Behavior Goals in 2013 IEP

What Happened

Student is an 11-year-old child with ADHD (classified under "other health impaired") who also had significant anxiety linked to his mother's serious long-term illness. He attended a Ross Valley District school through part of third grade, when his parents removed him in February 2012 and placed him at STAR Academy, a private non-public school. District agreed to partially reimburse STAR costs through a settlement covering through the 2012-2013 school year. In preparation for the 2013-2014 school year, District conducted psychoeducational, academic, speech and language, and occupational therapy assessments, then convened an IEP team meeting in May 2013. Parents rejected the IEP offer and kept Student at STAR for the 2013-2014 school year. District held another IEP team meeting in May 2014 for the 2014-2015 school year. Parents filed for due process in February 2014, arguing the district failed to properly assess Student, denied him appropriate goals and services, and could not meet his needs in its proposed placement.

Parents contended Student had auditory processing disorder, dyslexia, dysgraphia, sensory processing deficits, and severe social-emotional needs requiring a small, specialized classroom like STAR's. District argued that Student's apparent processing difficulties were actually caused by his ADHD, not separate disorders, and that its learning center program combined with general education support could meet his needs. The ALJ largely sided with the district on the assessment and disability identification questions, but found the May 2013 IEP deficient in specific, important ways.

What the ALJ Found

The ALJ ruled that District's assessments were thorough and accurate. Student did not have auditory or visual processing disorders, dyslexia, or sensory processing deficits — the behaviors that looked like those conditions were actually caused by his ADHD. The district's experts were found more credible than Student's expert, who failed to administer independent testing or adequately analyze existing results. District was not required to fund an independent neuropsychological evaluation.

However, the May 2013 IEP had two significant flaws. First, it contained no goal to address Student's core problem: his inability to stay on task due to ADHD. This was the very reason he qualified for special education, and the omission was significant given that he would spend half his school day in a general education class of 30 students. Second, the IEP failed to offer school-based counseling, even though District's own assessment recommended it due to Student's documented anxiety and poor self-esteem connected to his mother's illness. The behavior services offered ran only through the end of the 2013 calendar year with no explanation, leaving half the school year without adequate support. The ALJ found these omissions denied Student a FAPE for the 2013-2014 school year.

The May 2014 IEP, by contrast, corrected these errors. It included attention and behavior goals, direct school-based counseling, a functional behavior assessment within the first 30 days of school, and a detailed transition plan to help Student move from STAR to District's middle school learning center. The ALJ found the 2014 IEP offered an appropriate program.

What Was Ordered

1. District shall reimburse Parents $3,000 within 45 days — the amount Parents actually paid out-of-pocket to STAR Academy for the 2013-2014 school year.
2. District shall pay STAR Academy directly $42,380 within 45 days — the outstanding tuition balance owed for Student's attendance during the 2013-2014 school year, which Parents remained legally liable for.
3. Parents' requests for an independent neuropsychological evaluation, compensatory tutoring, Lindamood-Bell therapy, and ongoing placement at STAR were denied.

Why This Matters for Parents

1. An IEP must address the actual reason a child qualifies for special education. In this case, the district correctly identified ADHD as Student's primary disability but then failed to include a goal targeting attention and on-task behavior — the very core of his eligibility. If your child qualifies for special education because of ADHD or attention difficulties, make sure the IEP contains at least one measurable goal directly targeting those behaviors.

2. Counseling can be a required related service, not just a nice-to-have. When a district's own assessment recommends mental health support — as it did here — the district cannot satisfy that obligation by telling a child to "seek out a counselor if needed." An elementary-age child with documented anxiety and reluctance to ask for help cannot be expected to self-refer. Push for counseling to be written into the IEP as a scheduled, direct service.

3. If a district finds behavior services are needed, those services must last the full school year. The district here offered behavior support only through December, with no explanation for why it would end mid-year. If your child's IEP offers time-limited behavior services, ask in writing why they end when they do and what data supports that timeline.

4. Parents can recover private school tuition — including amounts still owed — when a district denies FAPE. The ALJ ordered the district to pay not just what parents had already paid, but also the remaining balance STAR was threatening to collect. If your child is at a private school because the district failed to provide FAPE, document all tuition costs carefully, including any amounts still owed, as those liabilities may be recoverable.