Rheinstrom by Rheinstrom v. Lincolnwood Bd. of Educ. Dist. 74

Citation56 F.3d 67
Decision Date26 April 1995
Docket NumberNo. 94-1357,94-1357
Parties100 Ed. Law Rep. 910 NOTICE: Seventh Circuit Rule 53(b)(2) states unpublished orders shall not be cited or used as precedent except to support a claim of res judicata, collateral estoppel or law of the case in any federal court within the circuit. Michael RHEINSTROM, by his next friend and father Richard RHEINSTROM, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. LINCOLNWOOD BOARD OF EDUCATION, DISTRICT 74, Defendant-Appellee.
CourtUnited States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (7th Circuit)

Before CUMMINGS, EASTERBROOK and RIPPLE, Circuit Judges.

ORDER

This case comes before us as an appeal from a grant of summary judgment and involves parents contesting the proposed placement of their son in a special education program.

In 1991, an individual educational program ("IEP") was developed for Michael Rheinstrom recommending his removal from a self-contained classroom for students with special needs related to behavioral and emotional disorders and his placement in a therapeutic day school. Because Michael's parents disagreed with the recommendation, he remained in the self-contained classroom. In 1992, Michael's program was evaluated and school personnel, believing his program was not successful and did not provide sufficiently intensive services to deal with Michael's special needs, developed an IEP recommending Michael's placement in a therapeutic day school. Michael's parents disagreed with this recommendation and in July 1992, a Level I administrative hearing was held. The Level I hearing officer found that Michael's behavior was regressing, that public school placement did not meet Michael's needs and that placement in a therapeutic day school was appropriate. In December 1992, a Level II administrative hearing was held at the request of Michael's parents. The Level II hearing officer found that Michael's behavior had continued to deteriorate in his current placement and that he was becoming increasingly disruptive to staff and other students. The Level II hearing officer concluded that placement in the therapeutic day care center was appropriate.

Richard Rheinstrom, as Michael's father and on behalf of his son, sought review of the Level I and Level II administrative decisions pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ("IDEA"), 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1415(e), and a monetary damage award pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 and the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. Sec. 552a(g). The district court held that the findings of the Level I and Level II hearing officers were supported by the record. The district court granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment and affirmed the determination of the Level II hearing officer. Rheinstrom filed a motion to reconsider based upon newly submitted evidence which the district court denied. Rheinstrom appeals.

Rheinstrom argues that the district court abused its discretion by denying his motion for reconsideration and failing to consider the additional evidence. The IDEA requires that the district court "shall receive the records of the administrative proceedings, shall hear additional evidence at the request of a party, and, basing its decision on the preponderance of the evidence, shall grant such relief as the court determines is appropriate." 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1415(e)(2). Under the IDEA, "a party that wants to avail itself of the opportunity to present evidence in the district court [must] make clear its desire to do so." Hunger v. Leininger, 15 F.3d 664, 669 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 115 S. Ct. 123 (1994). Here, Rheinstrom did not request that the court consider the additional evidence - a Certificate of Achievement and Honor Roll Certificate both dated November 24, 1993 and Michael's grades for the first quarter of the 1993-1994 school year - until the motion to reconsider and did not attempt to present this evidence to the district court prior to the court's decision granting summary judgment on January 11, 1994. We find no abuse of discretion in the denial of a plaintiff's motion to reconsider based upon newly submitted evidence, where the newly submitted evidence was available prior to entry of judgment. See LB Credit Corp. v. Resolution Trust Corp., No. 94-1610, slip op. at 7 (7th Cir. March 10, 1995) (motion to alter or amend judgement is not appropriately used to present evidence that was available prior to the entry of judgment); Lostumbo v. Bethlehem Steel, Inc., 8 F. 3d 569, 570 (7th Cir. 1993) (same).

In regard to Rheinstrom's attack of the district court's grant of summary judgment, we have reviewed the record de novo and AFFIRM for the reasons stated in the district court's Memorandum Opinion and Order dated January 11, 1994.

ATTACHMENT

In the United States District Court

for the Northern District of Illinois

Eastern Division

MR, by his next friend and father, RR, Plaintiff,

v.

Lincolnwood Board of Education, District 74, Defendant.

No. 93 C 0418

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

HART, District Judge.

This case involves review, pursuant to 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1415(e)(2), of a student's proposed placement at a therapeutic day program. 1 Review is pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ("IDEA"), 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1401, et seq.

A two-part test is used to evaluate a state's compliance with the mandates of the [IDEA]:

First, has the State complied with the procedures set forth in the Act? And second, is the individualized educational program developed through the Act's procedures reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive educational benefits.

[Board of Education v.] Rowley, 458 U.S. [176,] 207 [(1982)]. If the state has satisfied the procedural requirements of the [IDEA] and the program developed by the state is designed to enable the handicapped child to receive educational benefits, the courts can require no more. The purpose of the [IDEA] is to "open the door of public education" to handicapped children, not to educate a handicapped child to his or her highest potential. Id. at 192.

* * *

* * *

Because judges are not trained educators, judicial review under the [IDEA] is limited. When reviewing outcomes reached through the administrative appeals procedures established by 20 U.S.C. Secs. 1415(b) and (c), a district court can hear additional evidence and "make an independent decision as to whether the requirements of the act have been satisfied *** based on a preponderance of the evidence." Lachman v. Illinois State Board of Education, 852 F.2d 290, 293 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 488 U.S. 925 (1988). However, it must give "due weight" to the results of those proceedings, id., bearing in mind not "to substitute [its] own notions of sound educational policy for those of the school authorities which they review." Rowley, 458 U.S. at 206.

Board of Education of Community Consolidated School District No. 21 v. Illinois State Board of Education, 938 F.2d 712, 715 (7th Cir. 1991), cert. denied, 112 S. Ct. 957 (1992). The burden of proof is on the party challenging the outcome of the administrative hearings. Id. at 716. The case is before the court on the administrative record.

MR is now 13 years old and is in the eighth grade. 2 He is in a self-contained behavior disorder classroom at Golf Junior High School. At age six, MR was diagnosed as having an emotional disorder. MR was placed in the program at Golf under an individualized educational program ("IEP") dated April 17, 1991. From August to November 1991, MR was placed in regular classes or, in educational jargon, "mainstreamed" for some courses. A therapeutic day school was first recommended in 1991. Instead, MR remained in the self-contained classroom at Golf with mainstreaming being limited to gym class. In the views of school personnel, this program was not successful. An IEP dated April 21, 1992 again called for placement in a therapeutic day school. MR's parents opposed that placement and MR has remained at Golf pending resolution of the administrative and court proceedings. The IEP developed by the school officials was upheld at Level I and Level II hearings.

The Level II hearing officer found that MR's behavior was deteriorating in his current placement and that he was becoming more disruptive to staff and other students. It was found that MR

exhibits bizarre conduct such as barking and acting like a dog including licking his hands like paws; getting up and moving about the classroom at inappropriate times; biting his thumbs and pulling his hair; physically threatening conduct, acting argumentative and being unwilling to follow verbal instructions from teachers; accusing other children of hitting him and trying to hurt him when a student brushed against him in the hallway; laying on the floor in the hall on his side and going around in circles kicking at all of the students that are in the immediate area and then remaining still and unresponsive; deliberately falling on the floor; getting in fights with other students at recess and interrupting other students' recess activities; refusing to use the bathroom for long periods of time and then only unless the bathroom was empty and watched from the outside by staff; being disruptive in an assembly to the extent of having to be removed and then telling his teacher that he was going to kill her; free association; walking around the room imitating a computer; making fun of other students' names; excessive crying; increasing use of verbal threats against teachers and students coupled with getting close to others and raising his fist; tantrums; hitting a teacher and an aide; screaming and swearing over the office intercom system stating that "I'm going to kill all you fuckers;" making faces at other students; leaving his desk and flicking the lights on and off; ...."

These findings are supported by the record.

The Level II hearing officer found that placement in the therapeutic day school was appropriate in...

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