The Bureau of Special Education Appeals ("BSEA"), an independent subdivision of the Division of Administrative Law Appeals, conducts mediations and due process hearings to resolve disputes among parents, school districts, private schools and state agencies. [1] The BSEA derives its authority from both federal law and regulations (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, "IDEA") and Massachusetts law and regulations. (MGL ch.71B).
A parent or a school district may request mediation and/or a due process hearing on any matter concerning the eligibility, evaluation, placement, individualized education program (IEP), provision of special education, or procedural protections for students with disabilities, in accordance with state and federal law. [2]
In addition, a parent may request a hearing on any issue involving the denial of a free appropriate public education guaranteed by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Mediations and hearings are conducted by impartial mediators and hearing officers who do not have personal or professional interests that would conflict with their objectivity in the proceeding. The BSEA comprises six hearing officers (all of whom are attorneys), six mediators, a coordinator of mediation, a scheduling coordinator, administrative staff and a director.
What follows is a summary of BSEA data for fiscal year 2023 (covering the period July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023).
Rejected IEPs
There were approximately 12, 560 rejected IEPs received by the BSEA during FY 2023, representing an increase from the 11,830 received in the prior year.
Facilitated IEP TEAM Meetings
This year the BSEA conducted 204 facilitated IEP Team meetings, an increase from the 186 conducted during the previous year. (Note that 49 requests for facilitated IEP Team meetings had to be declined by the BSEA this year owing to staff unavailability.)
Mediation
There were 1,236 requests for mediation received in FY 2023, representing an increase from the 1091 requests the prior year. BSEA mediators conducted 715 mediations in FY 2023, an increase from the 588 conducted during the prior year, with an agreement rate of 85%.
Due Process Hearings
The BSEA received 391 hearing requests during FY 2023, a slight increase from the 381 requests received in the prior year. BSEA hearing officers conducted full hearings resulting in the issuance of 12 decisions (a decrease from the 14 decisions issued in the previous year). In addition, 78 substantive written rulings were issued (as compared to 57 in FY 2022).
Prevailing Party: parents; public school district; other
Of the 12 decisions noted above, parents fully prevailed in 4, school districts fully prevailed in 6, and mixed relief was granted in 2.
Representation
Statistics with respect to outcome in relation to representation are as follows:
--of the 4 cases in which parents fully prevailed:
parents were represented by counsel in 1 matter, and an advocate in 3 matters; the school district was represented by counsel in 3 matters;
--of the 6 cases in which school districts fully prevailed:
parents were represented by counsel in 3 matters, by an advocate in 1 and and appeared pro se in 2s case; the school district was represented by counsel in all 6 matters;
--of the 2 cases which involved mixed relief, parents appeared pro se in both and the school district was represented by counsel in both matters.
Settlement Conferences
As of the date of this report, settlement conferences were held in 43 of the cases that were filed for hearing in FY 2023 (as compared to 48 held in FY 2022 cases). Of these, 39 were fully settled and one case resulted in an interim agreement.
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[1] In addition to mediation and due process hearings (both of which must be offered pursuant to federal law), the BSEA offers alternative dispute resolution processes including IEP Team meeting facilitations and settlement conferences.
[2] A school district may not, however, request a hearing on a parent's failure or refusal to consent to initial evaluation or initial placement of a child in a special education program, or to written revocation of parental consent for further provision of special education and related services.