## Facts

- Rachel and Dan Eschenasy were the parents of Ann Eschenasy, a student with long-running behavioral, emotional, and academic difficulties.
- Ann experienced escalating school-related problems over many years, including stealing, sexualized behavior, rule-breaking, substance use, running away, self-harm/suicidality, and repeated academic failure.
- Ann’s parents placed her in private residential schools, first the John Dewey Academy (Massachusetts) and later the Elan School (Maine), after other placements proved unsuccessful.
- The New York City Department of Education (DOE), through its Committee on Special Education, did not classify Ann as a student with an emotional disturbance and did not offer a special-education placement at public expense.
- The parents pursued IDEA due process seeking a determination of eligibility and tuition reimbursement; a State Review Officer concluded Ann did not meet the IDEA “emotional disturbance” criteria and denied reimbursement.
- The parents filed suit in federal court against the DOE and the City of New York; both sides moved for summary judgment, and defendants also moved to dismiss the City.

## Issues

1. Whether Ann met the IDEA definition of a child with an “emotional disturbance” who, by reason thereof, needed special education and related services.
2. Whether the DOE denied Ann a free appropriate public education (FAPE) by failing to identify her eligibility and provide special-education services.
3. Whether the parents were entitled to tuition reimbursement for unilateral residential placements at (a) John Dewey Academy and (b) the Elan School.
4. Whether the complaint stated an independent basis for liability against the City of New York apart from the DOE.

## Decision

- The court granted in part and denied in part both parties’ summary judgment motions.
- The court held Ann qualified under IDEA as a student with an emotional disturbance and needed special education.
- The court granted tuition reimbursement for the Elan School (subject to proof of payment) and denied reimbursement for the John Dewey Academy.
- The court granted the motion to dismiss the City of New York for failure to state a separate claim.

## Legal Principles

- In IDEA civil actions, the court conducts an independent review of the administrative record and gives “due weight” to administrative findings, but may reject conclusions that conflict with the preponderance of the evidence.
- A student qualifies as having an IDEA “emotional disturbance” when specified characteristics are shown over a long period and to a marked degree, adversely affecting educational performance; eligibility is assessed using both academic data and the student’s behavioral and emotional history and its impact on educational benefit.
- Tuition reimbursement for unilateral private placement depends on the Burlington/Carter framework: (1) denial of FAPE by the district, (2) appropriateness of the private placement to meet the student’s needs, and (3) equitable considerations.
- Reimbursement may be awarded for one private placement and denied for another when the evidentiary record supports the appropriateness of only one program.
- A municipality is not a proper IDEA defendant absent a pleaded, independent basis for liability separate from the school district entity responsible for providing IDEA services.

## Conclusion

The court found that Ann’s long-standing, severe emotional and behavioral difficulties adversely affected her education and required special education under IDEA, reversed the administrative ineligibility determination, awarded reimbursement only for the residential program shown to be appropriate (Elan), denied reimbursement for John Dewey Academy, and dismissed the City of New York as a defendant.


Eschenasy v. N.Y.C. Dep’t of Educ., 604 F. Supp. 2d 639 (S.D.N.Y. 2009)