Wellman v. Butler Area Sch. Dist.

• Decision Date: 12 December 2017
• Docket Number: No. 15-3394,15-3394
• Citation: 877 F.3d 125
• Parties: Robert WELLMAN, Jr., Appellant v. BUTLER AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT, Dr. John Wyllie, Individually, and in his capacity as principal of the Butler Area High School
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit

877 F.3d 125

Robert WELLMAN, Jr., Appellant

v.BUTLER AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT, Dr. John Wyllie, Individually, and in his capacity as principal of the Butler Area High School

No. 15-3394

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit.

Argued: November 7, 2017

Filed: December 12, 2017

Edward A. Olds, Esq. [ARGUED], Olds Russ & Associates, 1007 Mount Royal Boulevard, Pittsburgh, PA 15223, Counsel for Appellants

Thomas E. Breth, Esq. [ARGUED], Dillon McCandless King Coulter & Graham, 128 West Cunningham Street, Butler, PA 16001, Counsel for Appellees

Before: SMITH, Chief Judge, JORDAN and SHWARTZ, Circuit Judges.

OPINION OF THE COURT

SHWARTZ, Circuit Judge.

Robert Wellman, Jr., appeals the District Court's order dismissing his complaint without prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction because he failed to exhaust his administrative remedies under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ("IDEA"), 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. He contends that the Court erred because none of his claims seek relief under the IDEA and, in any event, exhaustion would be futile.

The outcome of this appeal is largely dictated by the Supreme Court's recent opinion in Fry v. Napoleon Community Schools, ––– U.S. ––––, 137 S.Ct. 743, 197 L.Ed.2d 46 (2017), which requires that we consider the "crux"—the "gravamen"—of the complaint to determine whether a plaintiff seeks relief for "denial of the IDEA's core guarantee [of] ... a free and appropriate education [FAPE,]" id. at 748 (quotation marks omitted); if so, then the plaintiff must exhaust his administrative remedies under the IDEA. Because the gravamen of each count in Wellman's complaint seeks relief for the denial of a FAPE, Wellman would typically be required to exhaust his claims. Wellman concedes, however, that he released all claims seeking relief based on the denial of a FAPE, and thus, he has no claims to exhaust. As a result, we will vacate the District Court's order dismissing the complaint without prejudice and remand with instructions to dismiss the complaint with prejudice.

I¹

Wellman attended high school in the Butler Area School District ("the School District"). He suffered a head injury

while playing flag football in his freshman physical education class. After school that day, Wellman attended football practice, where he suffered additional head injuries. The following day, Wellman saw his doctor and later underwent a CT scan, which revealed that he had sustained a concussion. Wellman suffered "pain" and experienced "staring spells, trouble sleeping, and difficulty concentrating." App. 126.

Wellman returned to school, but his mother asked the school to assist him until his concussion healed. Wellman's mother requested that Wellman be taken out of his German and physical education classes, that he be given extra study halls, and that the football coach not allow him to engage in any unsuitable physical activity. Rather than allow him to rest during his extra study halls, however, the teachers required him to take make-up exams. Wellman alleges that the school's indifference to his need for accommodations increased his stress and aggravated his cognitive problems.

After performing an EEG test, Wellman's doctor wrote a letter asking the school to provide Wellman with academic accommodations, specifically tutors and more time to complete his assignments. The school ignored these requests.

A few weeks later, Wellman attended a high school football game. Before the game, Wellman's mother told the football coach that Wellman had a concussion, was not cleared to participate in the game, and should not be exposed to any possibility of physical contact. Despite this conversation, the football coach asked Wellman to hold one of the markers on the sidelines. Wellman was not wearing any protective gear. During the game, a player in full uniform ran into Wellman and knocked him over, causing another head injury

.

After this incident, Wellman's concussion symptoms worsened, and he experienced severe headaches, problems focusing, and exhaustion. A CT scan

revealed that he had post-concussive syndrome.

Wellman began to miss school because of his symptoms and medical appointments, and when he was able to attend school, his teachers refused to provide accommodations for him. As a result, Wellman suffered significant stress, embarrassment, and anxiety.

Wellman and his mother met with the principal regarding his teachers' failure to accommodate him,² but the principal was dismissive of his problems. Because the School District would not accommodate him, Wellman requested and received homebound instruction but claimed that the teachers who provided the instruction were generally apathetic. Wellman attempted to return to school, but again his teachers denied his requests for accommodations,³ and he quickly returned to homebound instruction for the remainder of the 2009-10 academic year.

Wellman attempted to return to school for the 2010-11 academic year but was overwhelmed by severe anxiety. To reduce his anxiety, Wellman and his mother asked that he be allowed to switch his lunch period so that he could eat lunch with his friends, but the request was denied. Wellman had panic attacks at the thought of returning to school, and he returned to homebound instruction.

In October 2010, Wellman's mother requested that he be evaluated for an Individualized Education Plan ("IEP").⁴ The school determined that Wellman was not eligible for an IEP. However, Wellman underwent an independent evaluation, which concluded that he met the criteria for anxiety disorder and cognitive disorder

due to a medical condition. Thereafter, Wellman's mother, his therapists, and school officials met. The school proposed a "Chapter 15/504 plan"⁵ to help Wellman return to school, but the parties could not reach an agreement on its implementation. App. 134. Four months later, they met again to discuss a Chapter 15/504 plan, but school officials appeared uninterested in giving Wellman "any sort of accommodations." Id. Wellman finished his sophomore year in cyber school. The following year, he enrolled in private school, from which he eventually graduated.

Wellman and his parents filed a due process complaint with the Pennsylvania Department of Education against the School District, requesting a hearing, an IEP, compensatory education for two years, and payment of Wellman's private school tuition. Wellman and the School District eventually entered into a Settlement and Release Agreement ("the Settlement Agreement") with respect to the claims in the due process case. Under the Settlement Agreement, the Wellmans released the School District and its employees

from all rights, claims, causes of action, and damages of any nature including, but not limited to, any claim for legal fees and/or costs, which were pursued in the above-referenced case or which could have been pursued in the above-referenced case, pursuant to the [IDEA], as amended; the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); or any other Federal or State statute, including the regulations promulgated thereunder.

App. 101.

Wellman thereafter filed suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania against the School District and the high school's principal. In the operative complaint, Wellman alleges that the School District and principal: (1) violated the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794, and the ADA, 42 U.S.C. § 12132, by refusing to accommodate Wellman and treating him as if his injuries were fabricated or exaggerated; (2) violated the Rehabilitation Act and ADA by insisting that Wellman hold the marker on the football field, even though the School District was aware that he had a concussion and should not have been exposed to unnecessary physical risk; and (3) sought relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for a violation of Wellman's equal protection rights by failing to accommodate him, retaliating against him because he requested accommodations, and treating him differently from other disabled students.

The School District and principal filed a motion to dismiss the complaint pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6). The District Court initially dismissed the claim against the principal in his official capacity but allowed all other claims to proceed. After this Court decided Batchelor v. Rose Tree Media School District, 759 F.3d 266 (3d Cir. 2014), which held that exhaustion under the IDEA was a jurisdictional requirement, the District Court concluded that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction and dismissed the Complaint without prejudice, because (1) each of Wellman's claims were related to the provision of a FAPE, and he failed to exhaust his claims before a special education hearing officer; (2) the Settlement Agreement did not render the claims exhausted because it did not serve the key purpose of developing an underlying factual record; and (3) no exception to exhaustion was applicable to the case, given that no underlying factual record was developed, there were no allegations of an emergency situation requiring immediate resolution, and Wellman's claims all principally related to his education. Wellman appeals.

II

We first address whether we have appellate jurisdiction over the challenged order. The District Court's order dismissed the complaint without prejudice for failing to exhaust administrative remedies. Wellman contends that exhaustion would be futile, and so he has chosen not to present the claims in his complaint to an administrative hearing officer. "[A]n appellant who does not attempt to avail himself of the administrative process, but who instead files an appeal raising the argument that exhaustion would be futile, ‘effectively stands on his original complaint’ and that in such cases we may exercise jurisdiction over an order dismissing a complaint without prejudice." Ghana v. Holland, 226 F.3d 175, 180–81 (3d Cir. 2000) (quoting Nyhuis v. Reno, 204 F.3d 65, 68 n.2 (3d Cir. 2000) ).

Wellman has filed an appeal and...