SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today announced that Alameda County Superior Court Judge Robert Freedman has tentatively approved a settlement agreement that was reached last month in a lawsuit challenging the requirement that students with disabilities pass the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE). A hearing to give final approval to the proposed settlement has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. May 30, 2008, in Alameda County Superior Court.  

"Final agreement to this proposed settlement will put to rest this challenge, leaving the exit exam in place for all students," O'Connell said. "Most importantly, it will ensure that all students in the class of 2008 and beyond will have the opportunity to continue to get the assistance they need to learn the critical skills measured on the CAHSEE."

The tentative settlement agreement for Courtney Kidd, et al. v. O'Connell et al. (also known as the Chapman case) stipulates that the California Department of Education shall hire an independent external consultant to conduct a study examining students who have taken, but not passed, the CAHSEE with the modifications and/or accommodations specified in their respective Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) or 504 plans, and who have satisfied or will satisfy all other requirements for graduation from high school. The study will try to identify whether there are students who have mastered the material tested by the CAHSEE but who, due to their disabilities, cannot demonstrate that knowledge even with accommodations and/or modifications.

The major requirement that the tentative settlement agreement imposes on the state is to conduct the aforementioned study. A copy of the court-approved Notice of Proposed Settlement may be found at Notice of Proposed Settlement - Kidd v. CDE. The agreement does not extend an exemption process that was in place for the 2005-06 and 2006-07 school years allowing students with disabilities who were unable to pass the CAHSEE but met other certain requirements to receive a diploma.

The tentative settlement agreement also does not change current law that allows students with disabilities to take the exit exam with accommodations or modifications that are specified in the student's IEP or 504 plan, or to apply for a waiver of the CAHSEE requirement if the student takes one or both parts of the CAHSEE with a modification and receives the equivalent of a passing score. If the student's local school district grants the waiver, and all other graduation requirements have been met, then the student is eligible to receive a high school diploma. O'Connell is currently sponsoring Assembly Bill 1503, authored by Assembly member Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar), which will streamline this waiver process in order to make it easier for parents and their children to utilize.

O'Connell also noted that state and federal law allows students with disabilities to continue to receive special education and related services until age 22 if they had an IEP prior to age 18 and have not graduated with a diploma.