Open Enrollment Blues?

Recently, I’ve received several calls from parents of elementary and secondary-age children who said they filed open enrollment applications before the March 1 deadline for the 2025-2026 school year. They thought their children would be automatically eligible to begin attending the requested school district next month, and were shocked when their applications were rejected. They wanted to know whether a school district could legally refuse to open-enroll a student whose application had been filed on time. In each instance, the answer was “yes.”  An Iowa public school district may reject a timely-filed open enrollment application for a variety of reasons, including the following:  

Insufficient Classroom Space: A receiving district may deny an open enrollment application if it determines there isn't enough classroom space to add another student. Each Iowa school district is required to adopt a policy defining "insufficient classroom space," and may include factors related to grade levels, pupil-teacher ratios, available facilities, and financial resources. See Iowa Admin. Code rule 281-17.6.

Disciplinary Status: A student who has been suspended or expelled in the resident district can't transfer to another district until the student has been reinstated in the resident district. If the student applies for reinstatement but is not reinstated, the district may deny the transfer request. See Iowa Code § 279.82.

Sex Offender Status: If a student has been required to register as a sex offender, the school board must determine the student’s educational placement, may deny open enrollment. See Iowa Code § 282.9.

Special Education Program Availability: If a student requires special education, the receiving district may deny the application if it cannot provide an appropriate special education program. This determination is made in consultation with the resident district and area education agency, and the decision is subject to procedural safeguards. See Iowa Admin. Code rules 281-17.2 and 281-17.10.

Court-Ordered Desegregation: Although none of the resident or requested school districts of the parents who called me were subject to a court-ordered desegregation plan, because this is mentioned in the law, I want to mention that if a resident district is subject to a desegregation order, the superintendent may deny an open enrollment request if it would negatively affect the implementation of that order. I would add that some exceptions exist, and denials may be appealed to the school board, and a board denial may be appealed to the Iowa District Court. See Iowa Code § 282.18; Iowa Admin. Code rules 281-17.2 and 281-17.6.

Homelessness: Although none of the children of the parents who called me were homeless, I want to mention that homelessness isn’t a basis for denial. However, if a homeless student isn't placed in the district requested by the parent or guardian in the open enrollment application, the resident school district must provide a written explanation and notice of appeal rights. See Iowa Admin. Code rule 281–33.7.

Please bear in mind that the information above applies to applications submitted by or before the annual March 1 open enrollment deadline. School districts may reject a late application (one filed after the March 1 deadline) unless there is “good cause,” such as repeated harassment or a serious health condition the resident district can’t adequately address. Denials in such cases may be appealed. See Iowa Code § 282.18.

For more information, you may read the new guidance published less than two weeks ago by the Iowa Department of Education, at https://educate.iowa.gov/media/10193/download?inline

Differences between Residential Facility Placements for Educational and Medical Reasons

         School districts are generally more familiar with legal requirements and procedures that apply when a doctor or court places a child in a residential facility for medical purposes than when an IEP team places a child in a residential facility for educational purposes. While both placement types focus on addressing the needs of children, their legal requirements vary significantly regarding the overseeing authorities, procedural structures, and the responsibilities of public entities.

Medical Placement by a Doctor/Juvenile Court

        Medical placements emphasize licensing, medical care plans, and judicial oversight for mental health cases. The child's placement must be based on a medical care plan that addresses the child’s medical, psychological, social, behavioral, and developmental needs, reflecting the necessity for inpatient care. See Iowa Code 135H.1 and 135H.14. 

        When a child is placed in a residential facility for medical purposes, the responsibility for finding the residential facility lies primarily with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) or the juvenile court, depending on the circumstances of the case.

       Educational Placement by an IEP Team

        Educational placements emphasize compliance with state education standards and collaboration between school districts and AEAs. When an IEP team places a child in a residential facility for education reasons, the placement must comply with specific statutory requirements under Iowa Code 282.34. 

        The provision of special education for a child placed at a residential facility is subject to the standards adopted by the Iowa State Board of Education that govern the educational programs and contracts between residential facilities and school districts. See Iowa Code 282.34 and 237C.4. The facility must provide an education program and services by either contracting with the school district where the facility is located, contracting with an accredited nonpublic school, or becoming accredited as a nonpublic school. See Iowa Code 282.34. Area education agencies (“AEAs”) are responsible for cooperating with the child’s school district of residence to share educational information, textbooks, and materials to ensure the child receives an appropriate education. Id. 282.30. 

  

Continuum of Placements: Residential Facility

        The IDEA (20 U.S.C. § 1400-1487) and Iowa special education law require public school districts to provide eligible children with a free appropriate public education (“FAPE”). 20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(1)(B)(I); Iowa Code § 256B.2(1)(a), (2)(a) (2025); see also Kass v. W. Dubuque Community School District, 101 F.4th 562, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 11399 (8th Cir. Iowa 2024). Moreover, it requires public school districts to provide a FAPE tailored to a child’s unique needs, which includes ensuring that the IEP is implemented in a manner that enables the child to make appropriate progress in light of their circumstances. See D.L. v. St. Louis City Sch. Dist., 950 F.3d 1057 (8th Cir. 2020); see also 20 U.S.C. § 1400, § 1412; 34 C.F.R. § 300.1, § 300.39; Iowa Admin. Code r. 281—41.17 (2025). 

        Occasionally, an IEP team finds that a child's needs exceed the ability of the school district to provide the child with a FAPE in a school district setting. For this reason, state and federal law clarify that "special education" includes instruction in the classroom, home, hospital, or institution designed to meet the needs of children requiring special education; transportation and corrective and supporting services required to assist children requiring special education in taking advantage of, or responding to, educational programs and opportunities, as defined by rules of the state board of education. See 34 C.F.R, §300.39; Iowa Code 256B.29(b)(2025).

When the nature or severity of a child’s disability makes education in a regular classroom setting unsatisfactory, even with supplementary aids and services, IEP teams must consider more restrictive placements, including residential facilities. See 20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(5); Mitchell v. Cedar Rapids Community Sch. Dis, 832 N.W.2d 689 (2013). The IDEA recognizes that some students with disabilities require full-time support in a residential facility to receive a FAPE. educational benefit. 

        IEP team placement of a child in a residential facility for educational purposes is part of the continuum of placements required under the IDEA and Iowa special education law. See Iowa Code 256B.2; Iowa Admin. Code r. 281-41.115(2)(a); see also D.L. v. St. Louis City School District, 950 F.3d 1057 (8th Cir. 2020).  

A child’s IEP team is authorized to determine that a child requires placement in a residential facility to provide a FAPE. See Independent School District No. 284 v. A.C., 258 F.3d 769, 771 (8th Cir. 2001); 20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(10)(B); Iowa Admin. Code r. 281—41.116.  A public school district cannot unilaterally override an IEP team's determination that a child requires placement in a residential facility. See Iowa Code 256B.2 (explicitly stating that special education placements, including residential facilities, are to be provided when the nature or severity of the disability necessitates such arrangements, as determined by the IEP team); see also Iowa Code 282.31 (underscoring the binding nature of IEP team decisions by requiring the school district of residence to pay special education costs, including residential placements, determined necessary by the IEP team). 

    While public school districts retain some authority over educational decisions, they are constrained by the requirement to comply with the IEP team's determinations. See Southeast Warren Community School District v. Department of Public Instruction, 285 N.W.2d 173 (Iowa 1979) (in which the Iowa Supreme Court recognized that the legislature anticipated the need for specialized placements for certain students and established a framework for evaluation and placement that prioritizes the IEP team's recommendations.).

Compulsory Education in Iowa - Quick FAQs 2

Before reading this, please read the blog on compulsory education published earlier today.

1.  How many days or hours of instruction must students attend during a school calendar year? 

Chapter 279.10(1) requires school calendars to include at least 180 days or 1,080 hours of instruction while schools are in session during the calendar year. Most school calendars show more than 180 days or 1,080 hours to accommodate school cancelations due to emergencies and inclement weather. 

Iowa Code 299.1(2)(a) and (b) require the school district board of directors or the governing body of an accredited nonpublic school to set the number of days or hours they require students to attend school while schools are in session during any school calendar.  A board may require attendance for the entire number of days or hours district its schools are in session or set a different attendance requirement. In a review of the school board policies and student/parent handbooks published on the websites of fifteen public school districts, the number of required hours of school attendance has ranged from 881.88 hours to 1,080 hours. 

2.  How many days or hours are in 10%, 15%, and 20% of a grading period?

A parent, guardian, or custodian should contact the public or private accredited school where their child is enrolled to obtain this information. 

Making a general determination of the number of days or hours in a percentage of a grading period requires the following information:

• the number of hours or days counted as instructional time during the district's school calendar year,

• the number of hours or days the school district requires students to attend school during the school  calendar year, 

• the length of the grading period set by the school district that applies to the child’s grade. 

The following tables demonstrate the attendance expectation differences between a fictional school that requires students to attend 1,080 hours during the school calendar year and another fictional school that requires students to attend 880 hours during the school calendar year.

Iowa Code Chapter 299. Compulsory Education - Quick FAQs 1

 During its 2024 session, the Iowa Legislature enacted revisions in Iowa's Compulsory Education law. Here is a brief overview of some of those changes.

1. What is Compulsory Education?

Compulsory education in Iowa refers to the legal requirement under Iowa Code Chapter 299 that minor-age children within a specified age range must attend school and the requirement that while school is in session, a parent/guardians/custodian of compulsory-attendance age children must cause the child to attend a public school, an accredited nonpublic school, or provide them with competent private instruction or independent private instruction in compliance with Iowa’s private instruction law. (299.1) 

2. What is compulsory attendance age?

Under section 299.1A, a student is compulsory school attendance age when the student is:

• age 6 through 15 years by Sept. 15 (if a student turns 16 after September 15, the student remains compulsory attendance age for the remainder of the school year).

• age 5 by Sept. 15 and is enrolled in the school district (unless the parent/guardian/ custodian informs the school in writing that the child is being removed from the school).

• age 4 by Sept. 15 and enrolled in the school district’s preschool (unless the parent/guardian/ custodian informs the school in writing that the child is being removed from the preschool).

3. Are there any exceptions for students of compulsory attendance age?

Section 299.2 lists the following exceptions and exemptions:

• have completed public high school graduation requirements

• received a high school equivalency diploma 

• have been excused for sufficient reason by a court or judge

• who are attending religious services or receiving religious instruction

• who are attending a private college preparatory school

• who have been determined to be too ill or disabled to benefit from attending school

• who are not required to attend due to a religious exemption

4.  What happens when a child is absent from school? 

Under 299.12, when a student has missed <10% of the days or hours in a grading period for any reason, excused or unexcused under school policy, the student is “chronically absent,” and the school must send a written notice to the parents and county attorney. Once a child has become “chronically absent,” this status continues for the remainder of the school year.

5. What happens if a child misses 15%?

Under 299.12, when a student has missed 15% or more of the days or hours in a grading period for any reason, excused or unexcused, the parent and child must attend a School Engagement Meeting and agree to the terms of an Absenteeism Prevention Plan, and a school official must monitor their compliance with the plan and contact each of them at least once per week for the remainder of the school year.

The county attorney may file criminal charges against a parent/guardian/custodian and/or a child for failing to attend the school engagement meeting, failing to agree to the terms of the absenteeism prevention plan, or violating a term of the absenteeism prevention plan.

• A first offense is a simple misdemeanor. Conviction is punishable by imprisonment not more than 10 days or a fine not exceeding $100.00. Alternatively, the court may order not more than 40 hours of unpaid community service.

• A second offense is a serious misdemeanor. Conviction is punishable by imprisonment for not more than 20 days or a fine not exceeding $500.00, or both. Alternatively, the court may order unpaid community service.

• A third or subsequent offense is a serious misdemeanor. Conviction is punishable by imprisonment for not more than 30 days or a fine not exceeding $1,000.00, or both. The court may order the person to perform unpaid community service.

6. When is a child truant from school?

Chapter 299 provides that a student is truant when the student is absent from school for any reason, for 20% or more of the required days or hours in a grading period. 

7. What can happen when a child is truant?

Under 299.8, a student who becomes truant is subject to the consequences determined by the local school board and to the filing of the above-described criminal charges. 

The parent/guardian/custodian also remains subject to the filing of the above-described criminal charges. However, once the child becomes truant, instead of criminal charges, under § 299.6, the county attorney has the option of bringing a civil action against a parent/guardian/custodian who has been unable to cause the student to attend a public school, an accredited nonpublic school, or attend competent private instruction or independent private instruction in the manner required under Chapter 299A. If the court finds that the parent/guardian/custodian failed to cause the child to attend as required, the court shall assess a civil penalty of not less than $100.00 but not more than $1,000.00 for each violation established.

Under 299.6(3), if a parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian of a child who is truant, has made reasonable efforts to comply with the parent's/guardian's/custodian's duties under 299.1 -  299.5, but has been unable to cause the child to attend school, the parent/guardian/custodian may file an affidavit listing the reasonable efforts made by the parent/guardian/custodian to cause the child's attendance and shall not be criminally liable for the child's non-attendance.

Mary's List: Special Education Resources Iowa Parents and Educators Need to Read

Last week I visited with a parent of a child with a disability who said that she had recently learned that Iowa is the only state in the nation that uses a noncategorical system for identifying children who have disabilities and need special education and related services.  

She asked me if I could give her a list of Iowa-specific resources about special education law and procedures that she could read over the summer. 

I told her I'd be glad to provide her with links to Iowa-specific special education resources and would also share them on my blog.

Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents' Rights for Children Ages Birth-3  and/or         

Procedural Safeguards Manual for Parents' Rights for Children Ages 3-21 at

The Iowa Rules of Special Education  

What You Need to Know as a Parent of a Student with a Disability 

What to Expect at an IEP Meeting  

i3 Iowa IDEA Information

ASK (Access for Special Kids) Resource Center  

and the link to this blog, Special Education in Iowa  

Nonsense, Responding to Nonsense, and Unexpected Support

Most Iowans are glad to hear when a state agency makes a local government unit reimburse a citizen who has had to pay for services that the local government unit should have provided to the citizen at no charge. 

That's what happened when the Iowa Department of Education (DE) determined that the Sioux City Community School District failed to provide services to a student during school hours required by his IEP.  In its ruling on State Complaint 23-45, the DE ordered the District to reimburse the parents for the $31,000 they spent to provide those services for their son that the school district was obligated to provide - but didn't provide for over a year. See State Complaint 23-45. 

So what does this have to do with “nonsense?” Unfortunately, the “nonsense” consists of falsified facts about this case that are being circulated as “reasons” for Iowa's governor to do away with the DE. 

A few weeks ago I heard this nonsense when searching for a radio station while on the road to the Iowa State Bar Association Annual Meeting. The scanner paused and I heard someone say, "I hope the  governor will get rid of the education department because it made the Sioux City Schools give a $30,000 handout to some parents who complained about how the school treated their handicapped kid.” 

“Nonsense!” I thought, and restarted the scanner.

I heard it again last week when my law clerk and I were finishing lunch at a restaurant, a man sitting with some local residents in the next booth began giving his opinions about state government. His voice grew progressively louder as he complained about the agencies he thinks are “boondoggles.” Among his targets was the DE, which he described as “another boondoggle” and said, “[w]hen it’s not paying schools to feed breakfast and lunch to people’s kids, it’s making schools pay the parents of handicapped kids.”

“Nonsense! I thought. However, my face began to flush as he continued to speak, saying, “[s]ome parents complained that the Sioux City Schools didn’t perfectly teach their handicapped kid,” so the DE “ordered it [the school district] to pay them $30,000. To scrape up the money to pay them this summer, it had to close down all the city’s public swimming pools.” 

The man was still ranting as my law clerk and I left the restaurant. Once we were outside, she said, “Mary - why didn’t you call him out?”

I responded that calling him out might have felt “righteous” - but it's ineffective when your purpose is to correct misinformation - especially when no one has asked for your input. Calling out someone in front of others usually makes the person angry, embarrassed, and defensive - and a person in a heightened state of emotion isn’t likely to listen to you or think about what you’re saying. As a result, by calling out someone, you've just made them feel bad without solving the problem.

The next day I sent a pleasant email to the local residents who sat with the “misspeaker,” in which I recalled the good time we had volunteering together during RAGBRAI’s stop in Coralville a few years ago. Noting that I practice education law, I wrote that I thought they’d want to know the $31,000 that the Iowa Department of Education (DE ) ordered the Sioux City Community School District (SCCSD) to pay the parents of a student with a disability was to reimburse the parents for the money the parents spent to provide services that the school district was required to provide for their son - but didn’t provide for over a year. 

I also said that I  checked out their lunch companion’s statement that the school district had closed Sioux City’s public swimming pools and was glad to learn that all the city pools are open at regular hours. I indicated that perhaps he’d heard that the school board recently closed two of its three high school swimming pools - but that wasn’t due to the reimbursement order. It was related to the end of the Covid emergency funding (“ESSER”) on September 30, 2024. 

The school board’s minutes show that the board wanted to continue some of the programs and staff paid with those funds, the board needed to find over $7 million in the rest of its budget. The minutes of the May 13, 2024 school board work session show that those pools were built over 50 years ago and have received minimal maintenance. One pool was no longer operational. Each pool needed over $200,000 in repairs and had annual operating costs of over $50,000/year. 

The School Board’s June 24 minutes, showed that the Board approved making necessary repairs to the West High School pool and permanently closing the pools at East High School and North High School unless outside third-party contributions are received to fund the necessary equipment replacement,  repairs, and the annual pool operating costs.  

 ⬌

I didn’t expect any responses to my message. However, today, one of the recipients called and thanked me for letting him know the Iowa Department of Education had helped the parents. He explained that in the 1950s, his baby brother had polio, and later he didn’t get to go to school. The school board in his rural community said he couldn’t be educated with normal children because he couldn’t climb stairs due to his wheelchair, he had difficulty holding a pencil and speaking, and the school board thought the sight of his deformed limbs would upset other children. The man said that he always thought his brother was “really smart,” and he wished there'd been laws that would have kept the school board from refusing to educate him. I said I agreed and thanked him for sharing that with me.*

You never know where you’ll find support, so be careful when you’re tempted to call someone out. 

Note: I asked him for permission to repeat his story in an article on my special education website, explaining that most younger people aren’t aware that until Congress and state legislatures passed laws requiring public schools to educate children with disabilities, school boards often excluded children who couldn't climb stairs, wouldn’t "fit" into a regular classroom,  or whose appearance they thought would upset the other students. He kindly agreed as long as I kept his name private.