Policy Statement
Least Restrictive Environment
Illinois State Board of Education
February, 2000
Through the adoption of this policy, the Illinois State Board of Education affirms
that Illinois is in full compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
of 1997 (IDEA 97) and its associated regulations, 34 C.F.R. §300.550-300.556
published in the Federal Register Friday, March 12, 1999.
State Board of Education Commitment
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) will ensure, as required by federal
laws, rules and regulations, that the State of Illinois has in effect an appropriate
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) policy and relevant rules and regulations.
The State Board will provide active and visible leadership to ensure that all public
or private institutions and care facilities under State Board control and jurisdiction
are aware of and practice the tenets of LRE.
Placement in the Least Restrictive Environment
LRE requires that, to the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities
in public or private institutions or other care facilities are educated with children
who are not disabled (IDEA 34 C.F.R §300.550 (1)). The State Board of
Education will monitor programs and institutions that serve students with
disabilities to ensure that the first placement option considered is a regular
education environment, with the use of supplemental aides and services as
needed. Special classes, separate schooling, or other ways in which students
with disabilities are removed from the regular education environment should
occur only if

the nature or severity of the disability substantiates that regular
education classes, even with the use of supplemental aides and
services, cannot be achieved satisfactorily; and

regular education classes, even with the use of supplemental aides
and services, are determined by the student’s Individual Education
Program (IEP) team as not constituting an appropriate placement
under the LRE provisions (CFR 34 §300.550 (2)).
Continuum of Alternative Placements
Each responsible public or private agency must provide assurances to the State
Board of Education that a full continuum of alternative placements is available to
address the needs of students with disabilities and ensure that those students
receive special education and related services appropriate to their needs.
The continuum of alternative placements must provide the IEP team with a wide
spectrum of options and locations for serving students with disabilities. The
continuum must include instruction in regular classes, with or without
supplementary aides and services; pull-out programs for part of the day, with the
remainder of the student’s day spent in the regular education classroom or in
activities with students who do not have disabilities; self-contained special
education classes within the student’s neighborhood school; self-contained
classes in another regular education school, or in a non-public or special purpose
school; home instruction; and instruction in hospitals and institutions, including
residential placement opportunities (IDEA 34 C.F.R §300.26).
The IEP team must base its placement decision solely on the identified needs of
each student with a disability. However, the team must always give first
consideration to placement in the regular education classroom and it must be
able to justify each subsequent, increasingly restrictive option in terms of the
least restrictive environment provisions and the needs of the student.
Placements
Each public or appropriate private agency that determines educational placement
for students with disabilities, including preschool-age children, must assure the
State Board of Education that
 Decisions about the placement of students with disabilities are made by a
group of persons, including the parents and other knowledgeable persons,
who will review and evaluate relevant data and consider placement options
appropriate to each student’s specific identified needs.
 All placement decisions conform to the LRE provisions referenced in state
and federal laws, rules and associated regulations.
 All placements of students with disabilities are determined at least annually.
 All placements are based on the identified needs of individual students with
disabilities, as documented in their respective IEP.
 All placements are located as close to the student’s home as possible. First
consideration is given to the school the student would attend if not disabled
and other placements are considered only if the IEP team determines that the
student’s needs require a different location to ensure free appropriate public
education in the least restrictive environment.
 In determining the least restrictive environment, the IEP team considers any
potential harmful effects on the student with a disability or on the quality of
services required.
 In determining the least restrictive environment, the IEP team also considers
any potential harmful effects on other students. Decisions reflect the
following interpretation related to Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation
Act: “Where a handicapped child is so disruptive in a regular classroom that
education of other students is significantly impaired, the needs of the
handicapped child cannot be met in that environment. Therefore, regular
placement would not be appropriate to his or her needs.” (34 C.F.R. §300.552
and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act Section 34 C.F.R part 104Appendix, Paragraph 24). The IEP team uses extreme caution when
determining the least restrictive environment in such circumstances and
provides full documentation and justification of its decision.
 No students with disabilities are removed from placement in an ageappropriate regular classroom solely because modifications are required in
the general education curriculum or for administrative convenience.
 To the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities are involved in
the regular education curriculum and their progress is determined and
recorded by the IEP team.
 Each student’s IEP states whether the student will participate in state and/or
local district assessments and whether any modifications or accommodations
are appropriate and necessary if the student participates fully or in part. If the
student with a disability is excluded from these assessments, the IEP team
describes what alternate assessment techniques will be used and how scores
will be integrated and reported (34 CFR 300.138-300.139).
Nonacademic Settings
IDEA 97 does not require school districts to provide nonacademic services and
extracurricular activities solely for children with disabilities. However, school
districts and other agencies serving students with disabilities must ensure that
those students have an equal opportunity to participate in such activities when
determined appropriate by the IEP team (Section 504 34 C.F.R. §104.37 (a)(1)).
When the district or appropriate private agency does provide for or arrange
nonacademic and extracurricular services/activities appropriate for a student with
disabilities, the IEP team must determine the required supplementary aides and
services necessary for participation.
Nonacademic and extracurricular services/activities may include athletics,
transportation, health services, recreational activities, special interest groups,
meals, recess periods, counseling services, referrals to agencies that provide
assistance to individuals with disabilities, and employment of students, including
both employment by the public or appropriate private agency and assistance in
making outside employment available.
Children in Public or Private Institutions
To ensure that students with disabilities are educated in the least restrictive
environment and receive a free, appropriate public education at no expense to
their parents, the State Board of Education will forge agreements with
appropriate public and private institutions and associated state agencies (IDEA
regulation 34 C.F.R §300.550), except as provided for in IDEA regulation 34
C.F.R §300.600 (d)
Technical Assistance and Training
The State Board of Education will ensure that teachers and administrators in all
public and appropriate private agencies that deal with students with disabilities
are fully informed about their responsibilities for implementing IDEA 97 and
meeting the least restrictive environment requirements. This will include providing
clear and sufficient guidelines and other information needed by educators and
parents.
The State Board will also provide technical support and assistance to public and
private agencies, including necessary training and retraining to ensure that LRE
is systematically provided.
Monitoring Activities
The State Board of Education will monitor each public and appropriate private
agency identified as serving students with disabilities to ensure that the Least
Restrictive Environment requirements are being implemented. If the Board
discovers evidence that placements inconsistent with the LRE are being made,
staff will review the public or private agency’s justification and then help the
agency plan and implement the corrective action necessary to comply with LRE.
Conclusion
Schools have been required to provide students with disabilities a free
appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment since 1975,
when the federal Education for all Handicapped Children Act was first adopted.
Despite this 25-year history, gaining a full understanding of LRE can be
perplexing and at times elusive, because LRE differs for each student with a
disability and the special education and related services he or she receives. In
addition, the least restrictive environment is not always simple to determine and
at times may appear to be in conflict with FAPE. Fortunately, case law standards
have been set that “assist schools in determining if they have met the FAPE and
LRE mandates” (Yell, 1995).
In the most simple terms, LRE is the environment where the student can receive
an appropriate public education designed to meet his or her special education
needs, while still being educated with non-disabled peers to the maximum extent
appropriate. The least restrictive environment focus of IDEA 97 does not look at
“why” students with disabilities should be educated with students who do not
have disabilities, but “why not.”
ISBE is committed to this LRE focus and will encourage and assist school
districts and other public and private agencies to maintain this vision in their
placement decisions.