Charter School Denied FAPE Through Flawed Assessments and Missing Services for Autistic Teen

A parent filed a due process complaint against Classical Academy High School, a public charter school, on behalf of a student with autism and ADHD. The ALJ found the school conducted inadequate occupational therapy and speech-language assessments, failed to develop an updated behavior intervention plan, and improperly reduced services without adequate justification. The student was awarded compensatory speech-language services, occupational therapy, behavior intervention services, a funded independent functional behavior assessment, and mileage reimbursement.

What Happened

Student is a teenager eligible for special education under the categories of autism and other health impairment (ADHD). Student enrolled at Classical Academy High School, a public charter school in El Dorado County, for the 2021-2022 school year after Parent chose to leave the previous nonpublic school placement. Student participated in the school's Personal Learning Center, an independent study program combining on-campus classes three days a week with home-based instruction. From the start, Student had significant needs in sensory regulation, expressive and receptive language, behavior, and academic achievement. Classical Academy conducted a round of assessments in fall 2021, held an IEP meeting on October 22, 2021, and offered Student a revised program — but Parent raised serious concerns that the assessments were incomplete and the resulting IEP failed to address Student's actual needs.

Parent filed a due process complaint in October 2023 covering three school years: 2021-2022, 2022-2023, and 2023-2024. The complaint raised dozens of issues involving the quality of assessments, adequacy of IEP goals and services, implementation failures, a concussion suffered in August 2022, bullying, and whether Classical Academy remained responsible after Student transferred to Fusion Academy, a private school, for the 2023-2024 year. After eleven days of videoconference hearings and written closing briefs, ALJ Rommel P. Cruz issued a detailed ruling finding in Student's favor on many — but not all — of the claims.

What the District Did Wrong

Inadequate occupational therapy assessment (2021): The occupational therapist relied on only one standardized tool — a self-rating scale completed by Student — and did not ask Parent or teachers to complete parallel ratings. She did not observe Student in noisy, busy settings like the lunch period or hallways, despite Parent reporting that noise caused Student to become dysregulated and overwhelmed. Her report concluded Student's sensory regulation affected his academic performance, but her data did not actually support that conclusion. The ALJ found this procedurally deficient and determined it denied Parent the information needed to meaningfully participate in the October 2021 IEP, which itself denied Student a FAPE.

Inadequate speech-language assessment (2021): The speech-language pathologist did not conduct comprehensive testing of Student's expressive and receptive language skills, even though Parent had specifically requested more thorough testing at a prior IEP meeting. The pathologist concluded Student had no expressive or receptive deficits, but an independent evaluation obtained later found Student struggled with oral expression, stuttering, comprehension of long passages, and following directions. The ALJ credited the independent evaluator's testimony and found the original assessment failed to rule out these deficits, denying Student appropriate speech-language services for over a year.

Missing behavior intervention plan and goals: Classical Academy failed to develop an updated behavior intervention plan following the October 2021 IEP, even though Student's behaviors were documented as impeding his learning. The school also failed to offer IEP goals targeting behavior from October 2021 onward, and failed to offer goals in expressive and receptive language. The ALJ found these omissions denied Student a FAPE across both the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years.

Failure to implement and offer appropriate specialized academic instruction: Classical Academy failed to provide Student with specialized academic instruction using explicit and multi-sensory teaching methods. The school also failed to implement the instruction it did offer for several weeks at the start of the 2021-2022 school year and again in the 2022-2023 school year. These failures were compounded by a second inadequate functional behavior assessment in November 2022.

What Was Ordered

Classical Academy shall provide Student 26.5 hours of compensatory speech-language services through a certified nonpublic agency of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
Classical Academy shall provide Student 23.5 hours of compensatory occupational therapy services through a certified nonpublic agency of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
Classical Academy shall fund an independent functional behavior assessment by a board-certified behavior analyst of Parent's choice, capped at $3,000 or the SELPA maximum. Parent must identify an assessor by July 30, 2025. The school must also fund up to four hours of the assessor's time to attend an IEP meeting to present results.
Classical Academy shall provide Student 18 hours of compensatory behavior intervention services from a board-certified behavior analyst of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
All compensatory services are capped at $200 per hour per service type.
Classical Academy shall reimburse Parent $1,823.52 in mileage for transporting Student to and from Learning for All educational therapy sessions (58 sessions at 48 miles per roundtrip at the IRS rate).
Classical Academy shall reimburse Parent for mileage to transport Student to future compensatory services upon proof of attendance.
Student's requests for reimbursement of Fusion Academy tuition ($76,243), compensatory counseling, compensatory social skills services, and a publicly funded mental health evaluation were denied.

Why This Matters for Parents

A self-rating scale alone is not a sufficient occupational therapy assessment. When your child has sensory regulation needs, the assessor must gather information from multiple sources — including you as the parent and your child's teachers — and must observe your child in the real settings where problems occur, not just a quiet testing room.
If you ask for more thorough testing at an IEP meeting, document it in writing. Parent in this case specifically requested more comprehensive expressive and receptive language testing at a meeting before the assessment even began. The school ignored that request. A written record of your requests creates an evidentiary record if you later need to challenge the assessment.
A flawed assessment can deny FAPE even if services are offered. Classical Academy provided Student with some services, but because the assessments were inadequate, the IEP team — including Parent — didn't have accurate information to make real decisions. The law recognizes that bad information at the assessment stage undermines everything that follows.
Private school reimbursement requires proof the private school met your child's special education needs. The ALJ denied reimbursement for Fusion Academy because its instructors lacked special education credentials, were not trained in specialized instructional methods, and did not provide the related services (speech, OT, behavior) Student needed. Good grades alone are not enough — you must be able to show the private placement was specially designed to address your child's documented disabilities.
Parents who make unsupported accusations against school staff can undermine their own case. The ALJ found that Parent's accusation against the school social worker — which was not supported by evidence — led directly to a gap in counseling services. The ALJ placed the blame for that gap on Parent, not the school. Credibility matters throughout a due process hearing.

What Happened

What the District Did Wrong

What Was Ordered

Classical Academy shall provide Student 26.5 hours of compensatory speech-language services through a certified nonpublic agency of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
Classical Academy shall provide Student 23.5 hours of compensatory occupational therapy services through a certified nonpublic agency of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
Classical Academy shall fund an independent functional behavior assessment by a board-certified behavior analyst of Parent's choice, capped at $3,000 or the SELPA maximum. Parent must identify an assessor by July 30, 2025. The school must also fund up to four hours of the assessor's time to attend an IEP meeting to present results.
Classical Academy shall provide Student 18 hours of compensatory behavior intervention services from a board-certified behavior analyst of Parent's choice, accessible through July 30, 2026.
All compensatory services are capped at $200 per hour per service type.
Classical Academy shall reimburse Parent $1,823.52 in mileage for transporting Student to and from Learning for All educational therapy sessions (58 sessions at 48 miles per roundtrip at the IRS rate).
Classical Academy shall reimburse Parent for mileage to transport Student to future compensatory services upon proof of attendance.
Student's requests for reimbursement of Fusion Academy tuition ($76,243), compensatory counseling, compensatory social skills services, and a publicly funded mental health evaluation were denied.

Why This Matters for Parents

A self-rating scale alone is not a sufficient occupational therapy assessment. When your child has sensory regulation needs, the assessor must gather information from multiple sources — including you as the parent and your child's teachers — and must observe your child in the real settings where problems occur, not just a quiet testing room.
If you ask for more thorough testing at an IEP meeting, document it in writing. Parent in this case specifically requested more comprehensive expressive and receptive language testing at a meeting before the assessment even began. The school ignored that request. A written record of your requests creates an evidentiary record if you later need to challenge the assessment.
A flawed assessment can deny FAPE even if services are offered. Classical Academy provided Student with some services, but because the assessments were inadequate, the IEP team — including Parent — didn't have accurate information to make real decisions. The law recognizes that bad information at the assessment stage undermines everything that follows.
Private school reimbursement requires proof the private school met your child's special education needs. The ALJ denied reimbursement for Fusion Academy because its instructors lacked special education credentials, were not trained in specialized instructional methods, and did not provide the related services (speech, OT, behavior) Student needed. Good grades alone are not enough — you must be able to show the private placement was specially designed to address your child's documented disabilities.
Parents who make unsupported accusations against school staff can undermine their own case. The ALJ found that Parent's accusation against the school social worker — which was not supported by evidence — led directly to a gap in counseling services. The ALJ placed the blame for that gap on Parent, not the school. Credibility matters throughout a due process hearing.