Phyllene W. Ex Rel. M.W. v. Huntsville City Board of Education

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[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
________________________
No. 15-10123
Non-Argument Calendar
________________________
D.C. Docket No. 5:13-cv-01596-CLS
PHYLLENE W.,
individually and as mother and next friend of M.W., a minor,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
versus
HUNTSVILLE CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION,
Defendant - Appellee.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Alabama
________________________
(October 30, 2015)
Before TJOFLAT, WILSON and ROSENBAUM, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
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Appellant Phyllene W., the mother of a student who received special-
education services from Appellee Huntsville City Board of Education (the
“Board”), appeals the district court’s final judgment in favor of the Board, denying
her claims under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20
U.S.C. § 1400, et seq. After a thorough review of the briefs and the record, we
reverse the judgment of the district court.
I.
The IDEA was enacted, in part, “to ensure that all children with disabilities
have available to them . . . a free appropriate public education that emphasizes
special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs and
prepare them for further education, employment and independent living.” 20
U.S.C. §1400(d). Under the IDEA, state and local educational agencies may
receive federal assistance if they have in place policies and procedures designed to
ensure that they provide a free appropriate public education (“FAPE”) 1 to students
1
The IDEA defines FAPE as special education and services that
(A) have been provided at public expense, under public
supervision and direction, and without charge,
(B) meet the standards of the state education agency,
(C) include an appropriate preschool, elementary, or secondary
school education in the state involved, and
(D) are provided in conformity with the individualized education
program required by the Act.
2
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with disabilities. CP v. Leon Cty. Sch. Bd. Florida, 483 F.3d 1151, 1152 (11th Cir.
2007); 20 U.S.C. § 1412. Satisfying the IDEA’s duty to provide a FAPE requires
the state or local educational agency to offer “‘personalized instruction with
sufficient support services to permit the child to benefit educationally from that
instruction.’” CP, 483 F.3d at 1152 (quoting Bd. of Educ. of Hendrick Cent. Sch.
Dist. v. Rowley, 458 U.S. 176, 203, 102 S. Ct. 3034, 3049 (1982)).
Among other things, the IDEA requires schools and parents together to
develop an individualized education program (“IEP”) that addresses the child’s
unique needs. See RL v. Miami-Dade Cty. Sch. Bd., 757 F.3d 1173, 1177 (11th
Cir. 2014). An IEP, in turn, is a
written statement that describes the child's academic
performance and how the child's disability affects her
education, states measurable educational goals and
special needs of the child, establishes how the child's
progress will be measured and reported, and states the
services available, based on peer-reviewed research, to
enable the child to attain the goals, advance
educationally, and participate with disabled and
nondisabled children.
K.A. ex rel. F.A. v. Fulton Cty. Sch. Dist., 741 F.3d 1195, 1201 (11th Cir. 2013)
(citing 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(A)(i)). The IEP is meant to be the “culmination of a
collaborative process between parents, teachers, and school administrators,
20 U.S.C. § 1401(9).
3
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outlining the student’s disability and his educational needs, with the goal of
providing the student with a [FAPE].” RL, 757 F.3d at 1177. (citations omitted).
While the IEP should be “reasonably calculated to enable a child to receive
educational benefits,” RL, 757 F.3d at 1177 (citations omitted), the IDEA does not
require an IEP to maximize the potential of each child with a disability comparable
to the opportunity provided to children without a disability. Rowley, 458 U.S. at
200, 192 S. Ct at 3048. Nor does the IDEA require an IEP to meet “any particular
substantive educational standard.” Id. Instead, the student with a disability must
receive “personalized instruction with sufficient support services to permit the
child to benefit educationally.” Id. The IDEA requires that the IEP team reviews
the IEP at least annually to determine whether the goals of the child are being met.
20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(4)(A).
If the child’s parents are dissatisfied with the IEP and believe that it does not
comply with the IDEA’s requirements, they may file a complaint with the state
administrative agency. RL, 757 F.3d at 1177. During this process, the parents
receive a due-process hearing before an Administrative Law Judge or Hearing
Officer to resolve the dispute. Id.; 20 U.S.C. § 1415(f)(1)(A). If either party
disagrees with the outcome of the due-process hearing, that party may appeal the
decision by filing suit in state court or in the United States District Court. RL, 757
F.3d at 1178 (citing 20 U.S.C. § 1415(i)(2)(A)).
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We use a two-part test to analyze whether a defendant has provided a
qualifying FAPE in cases arising under the IDEA: “(1) whether the state actor has
complied with the procedures set forth in the IDEA, and (2) whether the IEP
developed pursuant to the IDEA is reasonably calculated to enable the child to
receive educational benefit.” Sch. Bd. of Collier Cty., Florida v. K.C., 285 F.3d
977, 982 (11th Cir. 2002) (citing Rowley, 458 U.S. at 206-07, 102 S. Ct. at 3051).
With respect to the first prong, a procedurally defective IEP does not automatically
result in a violation of the IDEA. G.J. v. Muscogee Cty. Sch. Dist., 668 F.3d 1258,
1270 (11th Cir. 2012). Rather, in order to determine whether a procedurally
defective IEP has deprived a student of a FAPE, the court must also consider the
impact of the defect, which is encompassed in the second prong. Id. (citation
omitted). 2
The standard encompassed in the second prong—that of “some educational
benefit”—has become known as the Rowley “basic floor of opportunity” standard.
2
A procedurally defective IEP violates that IDEA when it:
(I) impeded the child's right to a free appropriate public education;
(II) significantly impeded the parents' opportunity to participate in
the decisionmaking process regarding the provision of a free
appropriate public education to the parents' child; or
(III) caused a deprivation of educational benefits.
T.P. ex rel T.P. v. Bryan Cty. Sch. Dist., 792 F.3d 1284, 1293 (11th Cir. 2015) (citing 20 U.S.C.
§ 1415(f)(3)(E)(ii)).
5
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CP, 483 F.3d at 1153. The IDEA does not require that the educational services
offered maximize the child’s potential. Todd D. v. Andrews, 933 F.2d 1576, 1580
(11th Cir. 1991) (citing Rowley, 458 U.S. at 199, 102 S. Ct. at 3048). Rather, the
IDEA guarantees the child only education which confers some benefit. Id. “If the
educational benefits are adequate based on surrounding and supporting facts,
[IDEA] requirements have been satisfied.” JSK By and Through JK v. Hendry Cty.
Sch. Bd., 941 F.2d 1563, 1573 (11th Cir. 1991). Adequacy is determined on a
case-by-case basis in light of the child’s individual needs. Id.
II.
M.W. was born on March 6, 1997. Appellant Phyllene W. is M.W.’s
mother. When M.W. was twenty-one months old, she underwent the first of many
surgeries to place tympanostomy tubes in her ears. At that time, audiometric
testing revealed that M.W. had mild hearing loss. Before starting kindergarten,
M.W. had two additional surgeries to replace the tubes in her ears, and by the time
M.W. was sixteen years old, she had undergone seven surgeries to place or replace
the tubes in her ears. Over the course of these years, audiometric testing revealed
that M.W. had fluctuating hearing loss ranging from slight to moderately severe.
M.W. began kindergarten in the Huntsville City School District during the
2002-2003 school year. From the time that she began attending school, and
continuing until her mother withdrew her from public school in tenth grade, M.W.
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encountered significant difficulties in the areas of reading and math. She also
experienced problems with her ability to organize her schoolwork and succeed on
standardized tests.
Due to M.W.’s difficulties, M.W.’s mother hired a private tutor, who worked
to increase M.W.’s reading and math skills after school. The tutor first met with
M.W. twice a week for an hour after school. But, beginning when M.W. was in
second grade, she received tutoring services daily for an hour after school. Ms. W.
provided this tutoring at her own expense from the time M.W. was in second grade
and continuing until at least when M.W. withdrew from public school in her tenth-
grade year. Despite daily tutoring, over the years, M.W. was unable to meet
Alabama’s content standards in the required areas for math and reading.
The Board determined that M.W. qualified for services under the IDEA
towards the end of her second-grade year. Based on her observations of M.W.’s
difficulties in the classroom, M.W.’s second-grade teacher recommended that
M.W. undergo an evaluation to determine whether she had a learning disability.
At this point, M.W. had already been diagnosed with Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (“ADHD”). The Board conducted an evaluation of M.W.
in March 2005 that included measuring her intelligence, behavior, and abilities in
math and reading. The Board conducted a Stanford Binet I.Q. test and a DAB-3
Diagnostic Achievement Battery. The I.Q. test revealed that M.W.’s range of
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intelligence was average, but the achievement test showed that M.W. was
functioning below her grade level. At the same time, the Board tested M.W.’s
vision and hearing, both of which fell within normal limits. Because a discrepancy
existed between M.W.’s I.Q. score of 91 and her score on the achievement test,
though, M.W. was labeled as having a Specific Learning Disability, which
qualified her for special-education services.
Following the evaluation, in April 2005, the Board convened a meeting with
Ms. W. to develop an IEP for M.W.’s third-grade year. The IEP indicated that
M.W. was performing at a first-grade level in reading and math and included the
following goals: raising her math and reading levels to the second-grade level by
the end of the school year. In order to accomplish these goals, the Board
implemented a plan for M.W. to receive small-group instruction for thirty minutes
a day in the school’s resource room.
During the summer before third grade, Ms. W. brought M.W. to a private
school, where she received assistance in reading and math. At Ms. W.’s expense,
the private school also assessed M.W. and determined that she exhibited the
characteristics of dyslexia. The private school recommended that M.W. receive
“direct dyslexia intervention” and “multi-sensory language instruction,” and it
suggested that M.W. may need additional time taking tests. Ms. W. provided the
Board with these results during an IEP meeting in August of 2005. Although Ms.
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W. suggested two computer programs to address M.W.’s dyslexia, the Board did
not offer to provide such instruction. The Board did agree, however, to provide
M.W. with additional time to take tests and complete writing assignments, and it
agreed that M.W.’s teacher would not penalize her for spelling and grammar
mistakes. Later that year, the IEP team agreed to allow M.W. to take tests in the
resource room where there were fewer distractions.
For the next few years, M.W. received similar special-education services but
continued to have difficulty in math and reading—working below grade level. At
the end of M.W.’s fifth-grade year, Ms. W. met with the IEP team and informed
those in attendance that M.W. suffered from hearing loss. Significantly, the IEP
for M.W.’s sixth-grade year reflects that when Ms. W. met with the IEP team, she
told them that M.W. had a “history of having tubes in her ears and her hearing in
her left ear is worse than it was two years ago.” Notes from the IEP also reflect the
conversation and add the following: “parents are going to pursue treatment.”
But the record does not contain any evidence that demonstrates that the
Board followed up with Ms. W. regarding the outcome of any treatment. Nor did
the Board schedule an evaluation of M.W.’s hearing following the receipt of this
information. The IEP again developed goals in the areas of reading and math, with
M.W. working in the resource classroom with a special-education teacher twice a
week for an hour on both subjects. M.W. was also to be given preferential seating
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in her regular classroom to reduce distractions. But, the IEP did not address the
fact that M.W. might have a hearing impairment, which would qualify her for
separate services under the IDEA.
M.W.’s triennial reevaluation was due at the same time that her sixth-grade
IEP was developed. The IEP team, however, recommended that M.W. not be
reevaluated at the time because they suggested that she might “test out” of special-
education services. Ms. W. accepted the Board’s recommendation, and M.W. was
promoted to sixth grade still eligible for special-education services.
Over her the next few years, M.W. continued to receive private tutoring and
special-education services relating to her Special Learning Disability, but the
Board did not test her hearing, despite the fact that she underwent additional
surgeries to replace the tympanostomy tubes in her ears. M.W. was also promoted
from grade to grade despite failing to meet the content standards on the Alabama
Reading and Math Test (“ARMT”) in the sixth and seventh grades. Similarly, an
eighth-grade assessment test revealed that M.W. was not proficient in all areas of
reading and was not proficient in most areas of math. Despite these scores, M.W.
was promoted to ninth grade. M.W. continued to meet with a tutor daily for math
and reading, and she attended a learning-strategies class during school hours to
address her deficiencies in these academic areas.
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In order to develop M.W.’s IEP for tenth grade, Ms. W. completed a parent
survey and met with the IEP team in April 2012. In the parent survey, Ms. W.
stated that she believed that M.W. needed the most help with math, note taking,
and organization. Ms. W. also expressed additional concerns regarding the scores
that M.W. had recently received on the ninth-grade achievement test, as well as her
general inability to take standardized tests. The results of the achievement test
revealed that despite the fact that she was entering the tenth grade, M.W. was
reading at a 3.6-grade reading level, and her math abilities were at a 2.6-grade
level. M.W. was also having substantial issues with hearing loss. Significantly,
the IEP survey reveals that Ms. W. told that IEP team that M.W. was being fitted
for a hearing aid.
M.W.’s tenth-grade IEP memorialized her mother’s concerns, M.W.’s
results on the ninth-grade achievement test, and the fact that M.W. continued to
struggle with organization despite the implementation of various strategies. It also
noted that M.W. had been diagnosed with dyslexia and “will be fitted for a hearing
aid.” As in prior years, however, the IEP provided goals in only the areas of
reading, math, and transition. With respect to transition, the IEP noted that M.W.
lacked the ability to demonstrate personal management and communication skills.
The goal selected with respect to transition was, by the end of the school year,
M.W. would be able to distinguish between effective and ineffective
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communication skills with 80% accuracy. M.W.’s special-education teacher
explained that the transition goal was meant to improve M.W.’s ability to
communicate her ideas, feelings, and needs to adults because she was a shy student
who didn’t talk much.
Despite the fact that the IEP team was informed that M.W. was going to be
fitted for a hearing aid and her special-education teacher found it necessary to
develop a goal with respect to M.W.’s communication skills, it did not explore the
need to evaluate M.W.’s hearing loss or whether that hearing loss had an effect on
her academic progress.
A few months following the development of the IEP, Ms. W. made the
decision to remove M.W. from public school and place her in a private school for
tenth grade. On July 24, 2012, Ms. W. filed a request for a due-process hearing
because she believed that the Board had failed to properly evaluate M.W. and
provide her with adequate services.
Following removal from public school, on August 29, 2012, Ms. W. brought
her daughter to a speech language pathologist, Laura Promer, to conduct an
independent evaluation of M.W. The results of Promer’s assessment were that
M.W. evidenced “profoundly impaired language skills with poor receptive and
expressive abilities.” Although M.W.’s reading skills were found to be adequate,
her written expression was below average. Due to this discrepancy, Promer
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recommended further assessment in the area of auditory processing. Promer also
recommended that M.W. receive language intervention three-to-five times weekly
for one-hour sessions from a speech pathologist with the goal of improving M.W.’s
receptive and expressive language skills.
Based upon Promer’s recommendation, Ms. W. took M.W. for an auditory-
processing evaluation, which was conducted by audiologist Julibeth Jones on
March 1, 2013. Jones found that M.W. demonstrated the presence of longstanding,
fluctuating conductive hearing loss and M.W. had moderate to severe difficulty
understanding speech in the presence of competing background noise. According
to Jones, M.W.’s hearing loss was permanent, and her hearing was so poor that she
spent the vast amount of her energy in school just trying to hear what was being
said.
Among other things, Jones recommended that M.W. receive language
intervention from a speech therapist three-to-five times weekly for one-hour
sessions. In Jones’s view, M.W. qualified for special-education and related
services under the category “hearing impaired.” Further, Jones opined that M.W.
“may benefit from use of a personal FM system during all academic instruction.
FM systems are a group of tools or ‘assistive listening devices’ that are widely
used by children and adults with hearing loss.” Next, Jones believed that a strong
probability existed that “complex interactions exist between [M.W.’s] hearing loss,
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listening difficulties, ADHD, dyslexia, and language deficit that contribute to the
academic challenges [M.W.] has encountered.”3 Finally, Jones testified that if a
parent had told her that a child was being fitted for a hearing aid, it would be an
immediate “red flag” that the child requires further assessment by the school.
Beginning on March 4, 2013, a Hearing Officer heard testimony relating to
Ms. W.’s due-process complaint. The hearing lasted seven days. Following the
lengthy hearing, the Hearing Officer found in favor of the Board and against Ms.
W. In doing so, the Hearing Officer concluded that Ms. W. had not met her burden
to show that the Board had violated the IDEA by failing to properly evaluate M.W.
4
or to provide her with a FAPE. Ms. W. appealed the decision of the Hearing
Officer by filing a complaint in the District Court for the Northern District of
Alabama. After reviewing the record and holding a hearing, the district court
entered an order affirming the decision of the Hearing Officer. Ms. W. then filed
her notice of appeal.
III.
The question of whether an educational program provided an adequate
education under the IDEA is a mixed question of law and fact. Draper v. Atlanta
3
In a follow-up report, Jones recognized that M.W. had been seen by an ENT physician,
who completed a procedure to remove cerumen from M.W.’s right ear and replace the T-tube in
her left ear. The physician recommended that M.W. be fitted for a hearing aid for her right ear.
In light of this information, Jones updated her report to include this recommendation.
4
The Hearing Officer, however, memorialized the fact that the Board agreed to pay for
the independent evaluations conducted by Promer and Jones.
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Indep. Sch. Sys., 518 F.3d 1275, 1284 (11th Cir. 2008) (citation omitted). We
review de novo questions of law, such as the interpretation of a federal statute. Id.
We review specific findings of fact for clear error. Id. Here, where the district
court’s findings are based on a cold administrative record, “we stand in the same
shoes as the district court in reviewing the administrative record and may,
therefore, accept the conclusions of the ALJ and district court that are supported by
the record and reject those that are not.” R.L. v. Miami-Dade Cty. Sch. Bd., 757
F.3d 1173, 1181 (11th Cir. 2014) (citation omitted).
IV.
We begin by noting that the IDEA creates a presumption in favor of the
education placement established by a child’s IEP, and the party attacking its terms
bears the burden of showing why the educational setting established by the IEP is
not appropriate. Devine v. Indian River Cty. Sch. Bd., 249 F.3d 1289, 1291-92
(11th Cir. 2001) (citation and brackets omitted).
Here, Ms. W. contends that the Board failed to comply with the procedural
requirements of the IDEA because it did not “timely and comprehensively”
evaluate her daughter, particularly with respect to her hearing and language
capabilities. She also asserts that the Board failed to provide special-education
programs sufficient to enable M.W. to make reasonable progress, so it denied
M.W. a free appropriate public education.
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According to Ms. W., a proper evaluation would have uncovered the cause
of M.W.’s skill deficits so that that Board could have better identified how to meet
her needs. Ms. W. also avers that, in affirming the Hearing Officer’s decision, the
district court improperly placed the burden on her to request an evaluation of her
daughter’s hearing. Because both the Hearing Officer did not recognize that the
Board, itself, had a duty to evaluate when conditions so warrant—even absent a
parent’s request—we find that the Hearing Officer erred in this case.
The IDEA requires the Board to conduct a “full and individual initial
evaluation” of M.W. to determine whether she was disabled and qualified for
special-education services. 20 U.S.C. § 1414(a)(1)(A)-(C). Ms. W. does not
appear to assert that the Board failed to conduct an initial evaluation of M.W., nor
could she in light of the fact that the Board conducted a comprehensive initial
eligibility evaluation in 2005, which assessed M.W.’s I.Q., achievement, behavior,
hearing, and vision.
The IDEA, however, also requires reevaluations to be performed “if the
local educational agency determines that the educational or related services needs,
including improved academic achievement and functional performance, of the
child warrant a reevaluation; or . . . if the child's parents or teacher requests a
reevaluation.” 20 U.S.C. § 1414(a)(2)(A) (emphasis added). Reevaluations shall
occur “not more frequently than once a year, unless the parent and the local
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educational agency agree otherwise; and . . . at least once every 3 years, unless the
parent and the local educational agency agree that a reevaluation is unnecessary.”
20 U.S.C. § 1414(a)(2).
Although M.W.’s triennial evaluation was due in April 2008, Ms. W.
concedes that she agreed to forego reevaluation at the time due to the IEP team’s
concerns that M.W. might “test out” of special-education services. But Ms. W. is
correct that her acquiescence to forego reevaluation in 2008 does not excuse the
Board from conducting any future reevaluation of M.W. or an evaluation for a
disability separate from M.W.’s learning disability.
The salient question here is whether the Board was on notice that the
circumstances warranted a reevaluation. Ms. W. contends that it was because the
Board knew that M.W. had hearing loss and that she was being fitted for a hearing
aid. According to Ms. W., this information should have alerted the Board of the
need to evaluate M.W. for hearing and language impairments. We agree.
Aside from the requirements with respect to reevaluations, the IDEA
provides that “[e]ach local educational agency shall ensure that . . . the child is
assessed in all areas of suspected disability.” 20 U.S.C. § 1414(b)(3)(B) (emphasis
added). This provision places upon school districts “a continuing obligation . . . to
identify and evaluate all students who are reasonably suspected of having a
disability under the statutes.” P.P. ex rel. Michael P. v. W. Chester Area Sch.
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Dist., 585 F.3d 727, 738 (3d Cir. 2009). A hearing impairment constitutes a
disability under the IDEA. See 20 U.S.C. §1401(3)(A)(i). And the recognition of
such an impairment potentially qualifies the student for special education and
related services under the IDEA.
On this record, at least twice, Ms. W. informed the IEP team that M.W.
suffered from hearing loss. This information should have alerted the Board that an
evaluation of M.W.’s hearing was necessary. Beginning with the later information,
Ms. W. clearly provided notice to the Board of M.W.’s substantial hearing loss
when meeting with the IEP team to develop her daughter’s tenth-grade IEP in
April 2012. Significantly, Ms. W. informed the team that M.W. “will be fitted for
a hearing aid.” At the same time, Ms. W. voiced her concern about M.W.’s results
on the ninth-grade STAR test, which showed that she was reading at a third-grade
level and performing in math at a second-grade level. M.W. also continued to
struggle with organization despite the implementation of various strategies. The
IEP developed for M.W.’s tenth-grade year specifically memorialized that M.W.
“will be fitted for a hearing aid” and noted that M.W. lacked the ability to
demonstrate personal management and communication skills.
In addition to this notice, at the end of M.W.’s fifth-grade year, her mother
told the IEP team that M.W. had a “history of having tubes in her ears and her
hearing in her left ear is worse than it was two years ago.” Notes from the IEP
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meeting add that M.W.’s “parents are going to pursue treatment.” We recognize
that, perhaps, a statement that a student’s hearing is “worse” than it was two years
ago may not, in and of itself, prompt a school board to suspect a hearing
impairment. But here, the statement was coupled with information that the hearing
loss was significant enough to require treatment. The fact that the Board knew that
Ms. W. was actively seeking treatment for M.W.’s hearing loss supports a finding
that the Board should have at least “suspected” that a hearing impairment might be
present. Cf. Draper, 518 F.3d 1275, 1281 (11th Cir. 2008) (student who wrote
letters and numbers backwards put school on notice that an evaluation for dyslexia
should have been performed); N.B. v. Hellgate Elem. Sch. Dist., 541 F.3d 1202,
(9th Cir. 2008) (once becoming aware of doctor’s suspected diagnosis of autism,
school was on notice that student likely suffered from a form of autism and an
evaluation was required).
The Hearing Officer seems to suggest that the information provided to the
Board in 2008 regarding M.W.’s hearing loss should not be considered because it
is outside the applicable statute of limitations. If this is what was meant by the
Hearing Officer, we disagree. Statutes of limitations operate to bar claims that
mature outside the applicable limitations period—here, the period more remote
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than the two years prior to Ms. W.’s filing her claim in July 2012.5 But, evidence
that is relevant to establish claims maturing within this limitations period is
admissible. See e.g., Draper, 518 F.3d at 1287-88; Cf. Burton v. City of Belle
Glade, 178 F.3d 1175, 1189 n.11 (11th Cir. 1999) (district court’s suggestion in §
1983 case that evidence outside the limitations period would not be considered was
erroneous); Williams v. City of Dothan, Ala., 745 F.2d 1406 (11th Cir. 1984)
(district court erred in limiting discovery to events occurring years before
commencement of limitations period, where evidence was relevant to
discriminatory intent during the limitations period).
Here, the 2008 comment—that M.W. had a “history of having tubes in her
ears and her hearing in her left ear is worse than it was two years ago”—is
evidence that further supports the 2012 evidence that the Board was on notice of
the need to reevaluate M.W. While M.W.’s hearing in 2008 may not have been
bad enough for Ms. W. to realize that her daughter needed a hearing-assistive
device at that time, the comment nonetheless put M.W.’s hearing on the Board’s
radar screen, and in view of subsequent communication and other difficulties that
M.W. was experiencing in school, certainly provided support for M.W.’s claims
that later accrued within the limitations period. Because the 2008 conversation
regarding M.W.’s hearing loss constitutes relevant evidence, it should have been
5
20 U.S.C. § 1415(f)(3)(c) provides a two-year statute of limitations with respect to
claims brought under the IDEA.
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considered by the Hearing Officer. The Hearing Officer’s apparent refusal to
consider this evidence was error.
We find that both of these pieces of evidence—particularly when viewed
against M.W.’s myriad of other problems in school—put the Board on notice that
M.W. suffered from a hearing disability that warranted further investigation. Nor
do we find the Hearing Officer’s reason for reaching the opposite conclusion that
Ms. W. “must have been aware of the problems, yet there does not appear to be
any evidence that [Ms. W.] ever expressed a need or desire for further evaluation. .
.”—justifies the Hearing Officer’s decision to overlook the Board’s shortcoming in
this regard. While it is certainly true that Ms. W. did not request an evaluation of
her daughter’s hearing, the fact that she did not do so did not absolve the Board of
its independent responsibility to evaluate a student suspected of a disability,
regardless of whether the parent seeks an evaluation. See 20 U.S.C. §
1414(b)(3)(B). Even where a parent is aware of a suspected disability, the Board is
required to act. Cf. Hellgate, 541 F.3d at 1209 (school did not fulfill obligations of
IDEA by simply referring parents to facility for testing because such action does
not ensure that student is assessed); see also Union Sch. Dist. v. Smith, 15 F.3d
1519, 1523 (9th Cir. 1994) (holding that a parent’s failure to obtain evaluation did
not excuse the school district’s obligation under the IDEA to secure the
evaluation).
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Indeed, the Board had a separate and independent responsibility to propose
an evaluation when faced with evidence of M.W.’s hearing loss and subpar
academic performance. See M.C. on Behalf of J.C. v. Cent. Reg'l Sch. Dist., 81
F.3d 389, 397 (3d Cir. 1996) (“[A] child's entitlement to special education should
not depend upon the vigilance of the parents. . . . Rather, it is the responsibility of
the child's teachers, therapists, and administrators—and of the multi-disciplinary
team that annually evaluates the student's progress—to ascertain the child's
educational needs, respond to deficiencies, and place him or her accordingly.”).
By the time the Board first became aware of M.W.’s hearing loss, she was already
being treated for SLD and she continued to struggle academically.
While it is true that the Hearing Officer noted that M.W.’s special-education
teacher testified that he had no information to create a suspicion that M.W. had a
hearing disability that necessitated special education services and that Board
witnesses testified that they had “no information to create a suspicion that [M.W.]
had a hearing disability that necessitated special education and related services, nor
did the IEP team have any indication that a hearing evaluation was needed,” the
objective record flatly contradicts the Board’s witnesses. Ms. W. told the IEP team
that her daughter was being “fitted for a hearing aid.” For this reason, the Board’s
contention that it did not have “any indication that a hearing evaluation was
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needed” was objectively wrong, especially when coupled with the knowledge that
M.W. lacked adequate abilities to demonstrate communication skills.
We also disagree with the Board’s contention that it lacked sufficient time to
conduct an evaluation of M.W. because her mother withdrew her from school
before her tenth-grade year. The IEP team and Ms. W. met on April 12, 2012, to
develop M.W.’s tenth-grade IEP, but Ms. W. did not withdraw M.W. from school
until after the IEP team prepared M.W.’s tenth-grade IEP and M.W. completed her
ninth-grade year—some two months later. Accordingly, the Board had at least two
months before M.W. left the school to conduct or, at a minimum, schedule a
hearing evaluation. Moreover, at the time that the Board developed M.W.’s tenth-
grade IEP, the Board had no idea that Ms. W. would later withdraw her daughter
from school.
And even if the Board believed that it lacked time during the ninth-grade
school year to provide for such evaluation, it could have memorialized its future
intent to do so in the April 2012 IEP. 6 The IEP was intended to develop goals and
strategies for the upcoming school year. The fact that the IEP, as finalized, does
not mention any further provision of evaluation or services with respect to M.W.’s
hearing demonstrates that the Board had no intention of evaluating M.W.’s
hearing. We also emphasize that the Board’s duties with respect to M.W. did not
6
We also note that the School Board’s duties do not subside over the summer months.
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end when her mother enrolled her in private school. See 34 C.F.R. § 300.132; 71
Fed. Reg. 46593.
Ultimately, we find that that the Board was aware that M.W. had undergone
seven ear surgeries, had hearing that was worsening in her left ear to the point that
treatment was necessary, and was later being fitted for a hearing aid. M.W.’s
special-education teacher himself also recognized that M.W. lacked appropriate
communication skills. Under these circumstances, the Board should have at least
“suspected” that M.W. had a hearing impairment. 7 It was, therefore under a duty
to assess this area of suspected disability pursuant to 20 U.S.C. § 1414(b)(3)(B).
Under 20 U.S.C. § 1414(a)(2)(A), conditions warranted reevaluation of M.W. by
the Board. Indeed, notification that M.W. was being fitted for a hearing aid, alone,
should have raised a red flag that an evaluation was necessary to determine
whether M.W. suffered from a hearing impairment necessitating further services.
Here, however, the Board failed to evaluate M.W.’s hearing, and it does not appear
that the Board even bothered to follow up on any hearing tests performed by
M.W.’s own doctors. The Board appears to have simply ignored M.W.’s hearing-
loss issues.
7
The Board’s expert witness also testified that the obligation to conduct an evaluation
under the IDEA arises upon a student’s being suspected of having a disability and in need of
special-education services.
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We conclude that the Board violated the procedural requirements of the
IDEA by failing to evaluate M.W. when faced with evidence that she suffered from
a suspected hearing impairment. See e.g., Draper, 518 F.3d at 1281. As a result of
its failure to obtain necessary medical information regarding M.W.’s hearing, the
Board further failed to provide her with a FAPE. The lack of medical information
rendered the accomplishment of the IDEA’s goals impossible because no
meaningful IEP was developed, and the IEPs put into place lacked necessary
elements with respect to the services that M.W. should have been provided. In
short, the Board’s failure to evaluate M.W. with respect to her hearing loss
deprived M.W. of the opportunity to benefit educationally from an appropriate
IEP. See Hellgate Elem. Sch. Dist., 541 F.3d at 1208 (failure to meet obligations to
evaluate student in all areas of suspected disability was a procedural error that
denied student a FAPE; without evaluation that student had autism, it was not
possible for IEP team to develop a meaningful plan); see also Amanda J. v. Clark
Cty. Sch. Dist., 267 F.3d 877, 892 (9th Cir. 2001) (“An IEP which addresses the
unique needs of the child cannot be developed if those people who are most
familiar with the child’s needs are not involved or fully informed.”).
V.
For the reasons discussed above, we reverse the judgment of the district
court in favor of the Board and against Phyllene W. This matter is remanded to the
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district court for entry of judgment in favor of Appellant. We leave it to the district
court to determine the precise relief to be given to Appellant.
REVERSED and REMANDED.
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