Private School Services

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) children with disabilities enrolled in private schools may receive some limited special education services from public schools, through a proportional share of special education funds. What services are offered are determined by the SELPA, each year, as voted on by the Superintendents' Council. In addition, the amount and/or level of service is limited by the proportional share funds available to the district.

For the 2025-2026 school year, the following services are offered:

SELPA workshops available to private schools
Consultations

General Requirements:The SELPA shall hold "timely and meaningful consultation" with private school representatives in calculating the proportionate amount. After such consultation, the districts shall conduct a "thorough and complete" child find to determine the number of parentally-placed private school children. Districts shall keep records on the number of children evaluated, the number found eligible for service, and the number served under this section.

Additionally, under Child Find obligations, school districts are obligated to assess referred private school students and, if the student is found eligible, make an offer of an IEP to be implemented if, and only if, the student enrolls in the public school district.

Click for link to Private School Procedure

Policy and Procedures

Click on the links located on the left side of the table below

Parentally Placed Private School Students with Disabilities	Sonoma County SELPA Policy Approved by Superintendent's Council May 2023
Procedure for Administrators/Case Managers	Step by step procedure for administrators/case managers when the District of Geographic Residence and the District of Location of the Private School are both within Sonoma County
Procedure / Scenarios for Reporting	Step by step procedure for data and reporting in SEIS/CALPADS
SELPA Parentally Placed Private School Student Google Form	Fill out this form for any parentally placed private school student to ensure that the proportional share funding is properly calculated.
Private School Enrollments in CALPADS for Special Education	Description of the steps for setting up private school enrollments in CALPADS