DOJ, Pasco schools settle disabled students discrimination claims

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — The Department of Justice announced a settlement agreement with the Pasco County School District, resolving an investigation into discrimination against students with disabilities.

The investigation period was from Jan. 2021 to Jan. 2023.

According to the DOJ, the district routinely suspended students or called the police for disability-related behavior, which the department says could have been handled with proper support and de-escalation.

The Justice Department said the district systematically failed to consider the relationship between a student’s disability and their behavior.

Instead, the district would refer students to law enforcement to be arrested or start the process to Baker Act the student.

Under the agreement, the district has agreed to change the way its schools treat students with disabilities and hire a consultant to update its policies for assessing disability-related behaviors.

The DOJ said it will monitor the district’s implementation of the agreement.

In a released statement following the ruling, district officials said:

“The DOJ focused on the District’s practices with respect to students with disabilities and student discipline, threat assessments, and referrals to law enforcement during the 2018-2019 through 2021-2022 school years. It is important to note that under the federal Individuals with Education Act (IDEA), the District has been identified as meeting requirements, with no significant discipline disproportionality for students with disabilities during the same period.

“Though we do not agree that we engaged in any discriminatory behavior or practices, we believe in continuous improvement, and we fully cooperated during the investigation. In the spirit of cooperation, the District signed a settlement agreement with the DOJ and committed to changes in support of our continuous improvement efforts.”