I'm completing a Special Education degree in AZ, and have a good understanding of the legalities surrounding appropriate placement and LRE.

First, are you enacting due process because you don't want your child to be forced to change classrooms, schools, teachers, friends, etc.? Do you have professional medical/behavioral documentation (or a private physician/therapist who can provide you with such items) that indicates a perceived negative response from your child should he be subject to such a change and also indicates the anticipated negative response would have a negative effect on your child's current and future academic progress? Would/could this documentation indicate that your child could have a potentially major negative impact on the new learning environment and the children in it, should he be forced to move?

I am not asking these questions to sound mean or condescending in any way. The IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) is very vague in many aspects, but all aspects of it follow a policy referred to as LRE (Least Restrictive Environment). Based on LRE, your son (so long as he is placed in a K-12th grade public school in the US) should be in a placement that is the least restrictive possible while still being able to adequately meet his educational needs. LRE was being observed when your son was placed in an out-of-area school due to the lack of appropriate facilities to meet his unique educational needs within your area. Now that a new facility has been opened up, LRE dictates that he should be first placed within an environment equipped to meet his unique educational needs, within his own area, if possible and such a facility is available. Basically, the addition of this new classroom/facility within or closer to your own area means that for your son and any other children under his circumstances, effectively changes LRE for these children since part of LRE indicates the child should be placed within or as close as possible to his or her home area. As such, if you are concerned about the potential effects of such a move on your son, obtain documentation and/or diagnoses that will support your argument. If the hearing officer receives enough evidence to indicate that the best placement for your son is to remain where he is as opposed to moving him "closer to home", that is what the decision will be.

Be prepared with all the documentation you can get, and maybe even if possible bring in medical/mental health professionals to bear witness personally, if you want to win this fight.

I would only add one thing to @A MyAutismTeam Member's excellent advice. You obviously feel strongly that your son would be better off remaining where he is. I'd suggest that if at all possible, you talk to any medical or mental health professionals that have been involved in his care without telling them about your feelings at first. Instead, give them the basic facts of the situation and ask, based on their knowledge of your son, what you should expect in terms of changes in his general behavior, classroom behavior, attitude about school, the overall impact on his education and well-being, and so forth, both during initial adjustment to the change and in terms of potential long-term effects. Ask straight out if, in their professional opinion, this is something you should resist or whether it would be in his best interest to make the change.

If you are careful to ask in as unbiased a way as possible, you should get a pretty clear picture of what sort of advocate they would make, because they won't be so likely to be trying to soften how they present their opinion if they do disagree with you. And once they have given you their professional opinion, it becomes very easy to ask them if they'd be willing to provide you with documentation or possibly even come and advocate in person. In that case, they may even point out during such advocacy that your attitude on approaching them conveyed not a knee-jerk avoidance of change, but a genuine motivation to weigh the risks and benefits to your child and act in his best interest. I hope things work out well for him, and for you!!

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A MyAutis...

have diag documents and try to get some advocates to help and support you

appeal decision - get a much paperwork /documentation to support were you want him to go as possible , also bring in copy of the letter they sent you

HollyPriceWooldridge , RebekahL