Denied admission to public school???

[Angie64]

Hi there,
I just googled forums for parents of kids with ADHD and here i am.

I inquired at a local public charter school to possibly have my 9 year old son attend next school year. They are a Montessori/independent study school. You can choose which you would like to do. I want to do the independent study side. They also offer 2 days of classes. So I would home school 3 days and send him for 2 days.

I let them know he is kind of behind in his reading. He can read fairly well at a 2nd grade level, but is still very slow and needs a lot of help with it. Every other subject he is great in.
They told me he would not be accepted to their school unless he was at his grade level in all subjects... and that was that. I thought it sounded awful, but didn't really question them about it and left.
I told someone what happened and they told me what they did was illegal. That if they are a public school, they cannot turn a student away for being behind in one subject.

Does anyone know? I emailed the principal about it and am waiting for a response.

[ginniebean]

http://www.parentcenterhub.org/repository/charters/

It seems these people are violating fape. Does your child have a diagnosis? If not, he'd need one to prove they are violating fape I think.

ADHD is considered a disability, if your son also has learning disabilities that also counts. I would ask the principal about this violation of FAPE. Just the mention of FAPE should cause him/her to squirm.

[Angie64]

Thanks so much. He is diagnosed with ADHD by Kaiser. By 2 different psychologists, but I didn't tell them that. I will keep this article. I am hoping the principal gets back to me and if/when she does this article will be helpful

[sarahsweets]

Here in NJ charter schools have wiggle room when it comes to their admission standards.

[Caco3girl]

Originally Posted by sarahsweets

Here in NJ charter schools have wiggle room when it comes to their admission standards.

Agreed....the words "Public School" are not universally the same from school to school. The "public school" my son is zoned for according to our address is required to participate in FAPE by federal and state law because it is "publicly funded." Any school you have to apply to be admitted to is not under the same government regulations as the public school you are zoned for.

Part of FAPE is "The "free" public education means educational services must be provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without charge to parents except for fees that are charged for all students"

Often times charter schools and Montessori in particular are not funded by "public money", i.e. the school tax. And are therefor not part of that structure. They can literally pick and choose who they want in their school.

[brittni1226]

Be careful, because Montessori schools and charter schools are not one and the same! Most Montessori schools are essentially private schools, and can deny admission for any variety of reasons- not the least of which is a student not being at-or-above grade level in any or all subject areas.

Charter schools, though some do receive some public funding, are also another form of private school, just typically with less stringent admission guidelines than those of your typical 'private school'.

Do find out exactly what type of school you're dealing with here before going any further, especially if they said that he would likely not be accepted before finding out about any disability. That means that they are not singling him out because of a disability, they are simply stating their admissions guidelines.

Much luck to you!