Forbes

Can a charter school pick and choose its students like a private school, or must it, like a public school, accept all students regardless of any special needs? A federal court judge has ruled that, at least in Louisiana, the charter school may “narrow” its applicant pool. The student, identified in court documents as O.E., applied for admission to The Willow School for the 2025-2026 school year, a well-regarded arts-based charter school in New Orleans. The nine-year-old boy has profound physical and intellectual disabilities and had received an Individualized Education Program (IEP) from the district where he previously lived.

NOLA Public Schools is a unique district in the country; only one of its schools is directly run by the board, while the rest are charter schools operated by charter management organizations. The Willow School requires students to meet certain eligibility requirements, including scoring at least the minimum on the Iowa Assessment. O.E. was unable to meet those requirements. His parents asked the school to waive the testing requirement; the school refused.

The ruling hangs in part on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which requires school districts to provide each and every student with a free appropriate public education (FAPE). O.E. argued that each charter school is essentially its own mini-district, responsible for providing FAPE for its students, and entrance requirements are an attempt to avoid that responsibility. But Papillion argues that the charter schools in the NOLA district (unlike charters in other districts) are part of that district, and a charter school has an obligation to provide FAPE only to those students who enroll in that charter.