In Board of Education of the Township of Sparta v. M.N. (A-16-23/088378) (Decided August 7, 2024), the Supreme Court of New Jersey held that under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a student with disabilities who received a State-issued diploma based on passing the General Education Development test (GED) is entitled to re-enroll in his local public high school to receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE).
Facts of Board of Education of the Township of Sparta v. M.N
When he was fifteen years old, A.D. began attending Sparta High School. He had been designated as having a disability under the IDEA, and Sparta accepted his individualized education program from his previous school. In January 2019, Sparta informed A.D. that he was in danger of failing several classes. After a period of home instruction in March 2019, A.D.’s parents withdrew him from Sparta High School. A.D. then took the GED and passed, and he received a State-issued high school diploma in April 2019. That same month, A.D. re-enrolled at Sparta High School and again began receiving home instruction.
After periods of home instruction, in-person attendance, and further withdrawals from the high school, A.D.’s mother, M.N., tried to re-enroll A.D. in May 2021. A.D. was eighteen years old at the time. Sparta denied the request, citing A.D.’s receipt of a State-issued high school diploma in April 2019.
Under federal regulations implementing the IDEA, 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(i), a school district’s obligation to provide a free appropriate public education does not apply to “[c]hildren with disabilities who have graduated from high school with a regular high school diploma.” Students with disabilities “who have graduated from high school but have not been awarded a regular high school diploma,” however, remain eligible to receive a free appropriate public education. The regulations, 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(iv), define “regular high school diploma” as “the standard high school diploma awarded to the preponderance of students in the State that is fully aligned with State standards, or a higher diploma.” They then further specify that “[a] regular high school diploma does not include a recognized equivalent of a diploma, such as a general equivalency diploma.”
M.N. requested a due process hearing with the New Jersey Department of Education (DOE). The Commissioner of the DOE (Commissioner) transferred the matter to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL). The Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) determined that the State-issued diploma A.D. received was a “regular high school diploma” that was “fully aligned with State standards” under 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(iv). The ALJ concluded A.D. was no longer entitled to a FAPE.
M.N. appealed the ALJ’s decision to the Commissioner. The Commissioner concurred with the ALJ that “A.D.’s diploma is a ‘regular high school diploma’ that is fully aligned with State standards” and that “A.D. is no longer entitled to a free education in Sparta or any other New Jersey school district.”
The Appellate Division affirmed, finding that there was “no basis to undo DOE’s policy determination.” According to the Appellate Division, “[a]t the direction of the Legislature, the DOE promulgated regulations . . . to establish graduation standards for public high school students.” In doing so, “[t]he DOE . . . concluded as a matter of education policy that students who are not enrolled in school and achieve a passing score on the GED shall be awarded a high school diploma. That specific policy determination by the DOE represents the alignment with state standards required by 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(iv).”
NJ Supreme Court’s Decision in Board of Education of the Township of Sparta v. M.N
The New Jersey Supreme Court reversed. It held that a New Jersey State-issued diploma awarded based on passing the GED is not a “regular high school diploma” under 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(iv). Therefore, a student who receives such a State-issued diploma remains entitled to receive a free appropriate public education under the IDEA.
“In obtaining a State-issued diploma based on passing the GED, A.D. obtained a degree documenting “the attainment of academic skills and knowledge equivalent to a high school education,” the Court explained. “He did not, however, obtain a ‘regular high school diploma’ under 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3). A.D. therefore remains entitled to receive a free appropriate public education, and Sparta remains required, under the IDEA, to provide him with one.”
In reaching its decision, the Court emphasized that the IDEA regulations are clear — a regular high school diploma is “the standard high school diploma awarded to the preponderance of students in the State that is fully aligned with State standards, or a higher diploma.” It went on to discuss the two types of high school diplomas available under New Jersey law.
State-endorsed diplomas are defined as “a locally-issued document awarded to an exiting student indicating successful completion of high school graduation requirements.” Meanwhile, state-issued diplomas are issued not by local school districts, but by the Commissioner, upon “[d]emonstration of the appropriate level of academic competency,” including by “passage of the Tests of General Educational Development (GED) of the American Council on Education.” DOE regulations define a “State-issued high school diploma” as “a high school diploma provided by the [DOE] to persons 16 years of age or older and no longer enrolled in school to document the attainment of academic skills and knowledge equivalent to a high school education.”
The New Jersey Supreme Court went on to conclude that a State-issued diploma is not a “regular high school diploma” for purposes of the IDEA implementing regulations. In support, the Court noted that State-endorsed diplomas are awarded to the preponderance of students in the State and are fully aligned with State standards.
The Court also rejected the argument that both a State-endorsed and a State-issued diploma are “the standard high school diploma awarded to the preponderance of students in the State,” emphasizing that both the New Jersey Legislature and the DOE distinguish between State-issued and State-endorsed diplomas. The Court further cited that in other contexts, the Commissioner has expressly conceded that a State-issued diploma awarded upon passing the GED is a “general equivalency diploma” and not a “regular high school diploma” under 34 C.F.R. § 300.102(a)(3)(iv). Finally, because a State-issued diploma is not a “regular high school diploma” for purposes of the IDEA implementing regulations, the New Jersey Supreme Court found that the receipt of a State-issued diploma does not terminate this State’s obligation to provide a free appropriate public education to a student eligible to receive one.