Chichester School District v. S. M., by and through his Parents, Michael C. and Danielle C.

As a question of exceptional importance and matter of first impression, whether the IDEA’s exhaustion requirements under 20 U.S.C. §1415(f)(3)(B), (i) permits a party to pursue claims of a denial of a free and appropriate education (“FAPE”) and/or compensatory education through a district court during an appeal of a state administrative hearing officer’s opinion, where those claims were not presented at that same administrative proceeding? As a question of exceptional importance and matter of first impression, whether awards for compensatory education under the IDEA require considerations beyond the exact hours of a deprivation of a free and appropriate education such as a school district’s reasonable efforts to rectify the denial of FAPE; the equities of the parties; the needs to of student to recover from the deprivation in; or reliance on court order including decisions of the administrative process? As a matter of exceptional importance and matter of first impression, whether an award for compensatory relief requiring a student’s permanent prospective placement in a residential educational facility, without consideration of the comprehensive IEP process, violates the statutory language of the IDEA and the due process rights of all parties, as established by the IDEA.