Del Mar Union Elementary School District’s special education program has long been the subject of controversy. While students have always excelled academically, over the years, legal claims to secure services, lawsuits and complaints to government oversight agencies have piled up.

Decline in Special Education Enrollment

The district’s special education figures have become something of an anomaly. Statewide, the number of kids with disabilities has exploded, rocketing up by more than 25 percent over the past decade. But at Del Mar, the figure plummeted. Since 2015, the number of students with disabilities has nearly been cut in half – the largest decrease of any district in California with at least 100 students with disabilities.

Local activist Janice Holowka said the district’s posture has left parents feeling like they have few choices. “Parents have to sue them in order to get supports and services for their kids,” Holowka said. “Many families would rather leave the district than fight with them.”

Disputes and Lawsuits

Disputes about what services, if any, kids may need are common. In fact, some district leaders have said they worry they’re overidentifying students, meaning they’re identifying nondisabled students as having disabilities. But for stakeholders who’ve sparred with the district, the data point feels like a confirmation that Del Mar makes it uniquely difficult for families seeking special education services.

Matt Storey, a special education attorney, said that in his experience, Del Mar Union is the only school district that regularly goes the due process route when there’s a disagreement about services. “Most districts would never take that step, because you’ve now just wasted money on attorneys and destroyed any relationship you could ever have with this family – you’re suing them about their child who has a disability,” Storey said.

Original reporting: Voice of San Diego — read the source article.