Jenny Gathright / DCist/WAMU
High school students at the D.C. Jail have reached a settlement in a lawsuit over the city’s failure to provide incarcerated students with adequate education during the pandemic.
Three students at the D.C. Jail first filed the lawsuit in 2021; they were enrolled in the Inspiring Youth Program which is run by D.C. Public Schools inside the jail to meet the special education needs of incarcerated students. The students alleged DCPS never resumed classes after pausing in March 2020 for the COVID-19 pandemic. For more than a year, students did not meet with teachers or receive the specialized instruction mandated by law; instead, they received worksheets dropped off sporadically, which were often inaccessible for students with disabilities but expected to be completed without any guidance or instruction.
The settlement agreement, filed Monday, provides compensatory education packages to students at the jail who were denied an adequate education during the pandemic, and appoints Maya Angelou Public Charter School Academy as the jail’s special education provider. It also requires the city to fund a third-party auditor who will ensure the city complies with the agreement and follows the mandates of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
IDEA, a federal law, requires D.C. to provide incarcerated residents with special education services in accordance with their individualized education programs, or IEPs. Beyond just classes or...
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