IDEA B FAQ
Responses to Policy Revision to Age of Eligibility
May a student with a disability who turned 21 and exited during or after the 2022-2023 school term be allowed to re-enroll until age 22?
Yes. The student should be permitted to enroll until their 22nd birthday.
If a student re-enrolls for the 2023-2024 school term, can they remain enrolled for the entire school year?
No. Students are entitled to free appropriate public education (FAPE) until age 22. As a result, students may remain enrolled only until the day before they turn 22.
May the student enroll until their 22nd birthday, if a parent/guardian/student signed a Notice of Recommended Education Placement/Prior Written Notice (NOREP/PWN) related to graduation?
Yes. The student should be permitted to enroll until their 22nd birthday.
Will the Department of Education provide local education agencies (LEA) with the list of students who are eligible to re-enroll?
LEAs should review their July 2023 special education PIMs submission for students that turned 21 years old during the 2022-2023 school year.
LEAs may reach out to their Special Education Advisor in the Bureau of Special Education for the PA secure IDs of the students that received notification letters from the Department of Education.
Must LEAs revise IEPs for students with disabilities who are enrolling until they turn 22?
IEPs should be revised in accordance with the circumstances set forth in 34 C.F.R. § 300.324(b).
Must LEAs complete re-evaluations for students with disabilities who are enrolling until they turn 22?
Re-evaluations should occur in accordance with the circumstances set forth in 34 C.F.R.
§ 300.303(a).
Are LEAs required to provide Extended School Year services (ESY) to students that remain through 21?
LEAs are required to provide FAPE until the student turns 22.
Do the age range restrictions in Chapter 14 of the Pennsylvania Code apply to students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the school year?
Yes. A student with a disability may not be placed in a class in which the chronological age from the youngest to the oldest student exceeds these limits unless an exception is determined to be appropriate by the IEP team of that student and is justified in the IEP (22 Pa. Code § 14.146).
Do the facility restrictions in Chapter 14 of the Pennsylvania Code apply to students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the school year?
Yes. Each special education class must be composed of at least 28 square feet per student (22 Pa. Code § 14.144(3)(v)).
Should LEAs report students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the 2023-2024 school year in the October 1 Child Count, December 1 Child Count, and the July Submission PIMS Collections?
Yes.
Should LEAs include students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the 2023-2024 school year in their Act 16 reporting?
Yes.
Are LEAs eligible to receive Basic Education Funding (BEF) and Special Education Funding (SEF) for students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the school year?
Yes. School districts will receive both BEF and SEF for students with disabilities if they are 21 years of age and reported in the PIMS submissions for Child Accounting and Act 16, respectively.
Are LEAs eligible to receive IDEA funding for students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the school year?
LEAs will receive IDEA funding for students with disabilities if they are 21 years of age and are reported in the December 1 Child Count PIMS Collection.
What should an LEA do if a student with a disability was already marked as a student leaver for purposes of the Pennsylvania Post School Outcome Survey (PaPOS) and the student re-enrolls for 2023-2024 school year?
The LEA should remove the student from the sample during the post process and include the student in the PaPOS process for the 2023-2024 school year.
Do the case load limitations in Chapter 14 of the Pennsylvania Code apply to students with disabilities who turn 21 prior to the start of the school year?
No. These students do not count toward the caseload limitations.
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