Special Education Action Page 15 of 44

Fairfax County Public Schools Recovery Services: Not Ready, Needing Reminders, and “We Are Not Responsible” Are Repeat Themes

2.8.21: Article first published. 3.2.23: Article republished with introduction in italics below.

Past really is precedent. Two years ago, I wrote the article below, yet the headline could be used today. One would just need to add compensatory education to the headline and article below to bring it up to date. In Spring 2022, when Office for Civil Rights released its findings on Los Angeles Unified School District, it was clear Fairfax County Public Schools would face the same findings, given it had engaged in many of the same noncompliant actions. Instead of preparing for OCR to release its findings on it, to include having training programs and plans to address the noncompliance underway, before OCR’s findings were released, FCPS waited. After OCR’s 11.30.22 release of its findings on FCPS, it was clear FCPS wasn’t prepared. Its staff trainings paint a picture of a county caught unprepared again, with thousands of students waiting, again, to have their unique needs addressed. Some of the videos below were later provided to OCR for its investigation into FCPS. The theme: FCPS caught unprepared again.

Fairfax County Public Schools did not have a finalized recovery services in place at the start of the 2020-21 school year.

FCPS stated that it needed to collect nine weeks of data on students in advance of recovery services.

Compensatory Education, Part II: Beware of Timelines

During what time period will compensatory education be provided? One year? Five weeks? Three months? Until all of it is provided?

When compensatory education is proposed, you might face a school district that wants to provide it within a set period of time. Consider, instead, asking that it be provided until each minute owed has been provided in full.

Why?

Where to Find It: Where the Information is Hiding

Years ago I had the honor of working with LTG Samuel Vaughan Wilson, who was the youngest of Merrill’s Marauders. After WWII, his career led him toward the intelligence arena, which later led him to making the observation that obtaining information is less about being James Bond and more about being Sherlock Holmes. The stories he shared were of Truth being out in the open, staring us in the face. (I wrote a bit on this in 2021, in the article “Less James Bond and More Sherlock Holmes”.)

This article will share some of my go-to places to obtain information. I’ll start with a few today and gradually update the list.

Compensatory Education, Part I: What is Compensatory Education?

The United States Department of Education defines compensatory services as services that “are required to remedy any educational or other deficits that result from the student with a disability not receiving the evaluations or services to which they were entitled.” This could include a school’s failure to provide appropriate and/or timely initial evaluations, re-evaluations, and/or services.

In its fact sheet, titled “Providing Students with Disabilities Free Appropriate Public Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Addressing the Need for Compensatory Services Under Section 504,” USDOE Office for Civil Rights ( cited 34 C.F.R. § 104.6(a) and Barnes v. Gorman, 536 U.S. 181, 189 (2002) in support of the above definition.

FCPS Ignores Office for Civil Rights; Noncompliance Continues, Part VI

This is part VI in a series about Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) ignoring Office for Civil Rights’ (OCR) November 30, 2022, letter of findings and resolution agreement with FCPS. The series discusses noncompliance that occurred before OCR’s findings, OCR’s findings, noncompliance that continues to occur, FCPS’s open defiance of OCR’s findings, FCPS modeling continued noncompliance to staff, and what FCPS is supposed to be doing pursuant to its own resolution agreement with OCR.

The focus of part V is FCPS’s failure to provide the related service of transportation.

The Problem with Compensatory Education? Too Often, Comp Ed Steals Music, Sports, Auto Tech, and Everything that Brings Happiness

Students who have disabilities are known to struggle with depression. By removing the joy from their lives because the school is required to provide compensatory education, one harm is traded for another. The student is provided instruction he is owed, but is denied happiness he needs.

When schools fail children, they end up having to provide compensatory education in return. In theory, it sounds great. The school district will make up for its errors, the student will receive help, all will be good. . . .

However, the reality is much different.

FOIA Release: Fairfax County Public Schools “Determining Compensatory Education Training Development” Training Videos and Materials Required by Office for Civil Rights

February 10, 2023: Article first published. February 22, 2023: Article updated to include second training video and transcript (see below). *At about the 20-minute mark of the second video below, Dawn Schaefer mentions that one of the points of contact within FCPS is the ombudsman’s office. Not long ago, Kathy Murphy was announced as FCPS’s new “ombuds”. Previously, Kathy was FCPS’s Section 504 expert, in the same office as Dawn and Dawn’s predecessor Jane Strong. Kathy’s name is all over records FCPS provided to OCR for its investigation and seems to have been FCPS’s contact with OCR. In addition, after OCR made its investigation public, Kathy filed a FOIA request with the U.S. Dept. of Education to obtain, among other thing, information on any parents who might have submitted OCR complaints. Jane left the county, Dawn stepped into Jane’s job, and then Kathy disappeared as the 504 Plan expert, only to reappear later as the ombuds.

Office for Civil Rights found Fairfax County Public Schools in massive noncompliance for denial of FAPE during April 2020 through June 2022.
Following its investigation, OCR entered into a resolution agreement with FCPS. As part of the agreement, FCPS is required to meet with families of the 28,000+ students who were enrolled in FCPS during the time period investigated, to determine compensatory education.

In this article, you’ll be able to access some of the training materials and one of the training videos FCPS provided to staff.

FCPS Ignores Office for Civil Rights; Noncompliance Continues, Part V

This is part V in a series about Fairfax County Public Schools ignoring Office for Civil Rights’ November 30, 2022, letter of findings and resolution agreement with FCPS. The series discusses noncompliance that occurred before OCR’s findings, OCR’s findings, noncompliance that continues to occur, FCPS’s open defiance of OCR’s findings, FCPS modeling continued noncompliance to staff, and what FCPS is supposed to be doing pursuant to its own resolution agreement with OCR.

The focus of part V is FCPS’s practice of equating provision of a computer with provision of a Free Appropriate Public Education—and then denying compensatory education.

Author: Callie Oettinger (page 15)