Legal Question in Disability Law in Texas

Do my two disabled toddlers have the right to school

I have a 4yr old who attends Pre-K at an elementary school in Georgetown, Tx. He was able to attend because he is considered disabled by not having an immune system, and his speech was delayed. He was put in the PPCD program, but upon the teachers recommendation, was moved to a reg. pre-k class. My three year old also has the disabling immune disorder. Let me tell you, these two boys are all boys; they run, play soccer, fight with each other, everything nondisabled children their age do. They have NO physical, or mental limitations at all, but they are disabled because of the immune disorder. The school system won't let my 3yr old register for prek next yr, because english has to be the 2nd language, or the family has to show a financial need. The schoolsystem is saying Clayton, 3 yrs old, is not disabled becuase he has improved his speech. They will however put him in Special Ed, even though he is not speech delayed,nor mentally, or physically challenged. I feel like my child is being discriminated because we speek English, and we make too much money to qualify. Why should I allow the system to teach my children they are diffrent? Please advise......


Asked on 5/01/03, 11:58 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Re: Do my two disabled toddlers have the right to school

First let me direct you to Families and Advocates Partnership for Education (FAPE). Their website is www.fape.org

IDEA 97 is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997. It can be found at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:H.R.5.ENR:

Having said that...IDEA assures that all children with disabilities are to have a free public education, including special education and assistance, to meet the specific needs of the child. It also protects certain rights of children with disabilities and their parents or guardians, assists state and local authorities in providing education to children with disabilities, and provides mechanisms to assess and insure the effectiveness of these programs in educating the children with disabilities.

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Answered on 5/01/03, 12:44 pm


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