ECOT Changes Surrogate Parent Policy in Response to OLRS Complaint
In response to a complaint by OLRS to the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT), a community/charter school that provides on-line educational services, has changed its policy on the appointment of surrogate parents. The complaint alleged that students served by ECOT and living in a residential treatment center did not have individualized education programs (IEPs) that were signed by a parent as required by federal special education law. Instead, the IEPs were signed by caseworkers from children's services boards who had custody of the students, a clear violation of law and a conflict of interest.
ODE found that ECOT was in violation of the surrogate parent requirement of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) which requires the appointment of a surrogate parent to advocate for the student whenever the student does not have a parent available to ensure the student's rights in the special education process. In response to the finding from ODE, ECOT developed a corrective action plan. The corrective action plan included the assignment of trained surrogate parents for current ECOT students who were the subject of the complaint and a change in ECOT's written policy on surrogate parents.
The change in the written policy requires ECOT to assign a trained surrogate parent for all students served by ECOT who are in the custody of children's services and who do not have a parent acting on their behalf. For more information on the surrogate parent requirements of IDEIA, see OLRS' publication, Surrogate Parents for Children with Disabilities.
Article posted June 9, 2008
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