Private Schools Special Education Programs

Second 30-Day Comment Period for Master Contractual Agreement for Private Schools Offering Special Education Programs

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a federal law that requires that state educational agencies (SEAs), including the Maine Department of Education (DOE), and local educational agencies (LEAs), including school administrative units (SAUs), ensure that all of the rights and protections are given to students with disabilities who are placed by their SAUs in a private school to receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE). When placing a child in a private school, the SAU must ensure that the student has the same rights and procedural safeguards as a child served by a public agency or school.  

For years, private schools across Maine have been partnering with SAUs to ensure that students with disabilities have their services carried out in these private schools. While this is often the case, the Maine DOE has become aware of instances when SAUs have placed students in private schools to receive their special education services, only to have the private schools discharge them from these educational placements outside of the individual education program (IEP) team process.  

Changing a student’s educational program or placement outside of the IEP team process is a violation of the procedural safeguards, which are a part of the IDEA. Parents who have sought to challenge the change of placement through due process have been unable to obtain legal recourse because private schools cannot be parties to a due process hearing and are not subject to a corrective action plan at the conclusion of a state complaint investigation. At the same time, private schools that have safety concerns about maintaining placements lack an administrative avenue to have their concerns heard. 

Maine law requires that private schools seeking to provide special education programs enter into a master contractual agreement with the commissioner (20-A M.R.S. 7252-A). Since the Maine DOE is responsible for ensuring that all SAUs are compliant with the IDEA, the Maine DOE has drafted a master contractual agreement between the Maine DOE and private schools offering special education services to children with IEPs. This draft agreement articulates responsibilities and outlines the procedures that private schools and SAUs will follow when a SAU places a student who has an IEP in a private school.  

Before finalizing the master contractual agreement, the Maine DOE is inviting feedback and comments from stakeholders. The Maine DOE held its first 30-day comment period from October 15 through November 15, 2025, during which many commenters outlined similar observations, suggestions, and concerns. The Maine DOE used that feedback (posted here) to significantly revise the master contractual agreement.

The Maine DOE is now providing a second 30-day comment period regarding master contractual agreements for private schools offering special education programs. 

Please note some of the resulting changes to the updated master contractual agreement, summarized in the table below:

Original Section Revised Section Comment Resulting Change
General Commenters recommended having two master contractual agreements, distinguishing between school types: special purpose private schools and private schools approved for the receipt of public funds for tuition purposes. The Maine DOE agrees and proposes two master contractual agreements: one for special purpose private schools and one for private schools approved for the receipt of public funds for tuition purposes.
1. Services Provided Omitted Commenters felt the list of services was incomplete, and it was unclear whether a private school was expected to provide all of the services listed. This section was eliminated, and the list of services was removed. The intent of this section was to ensure that students placed in private schools receive all of the services in their IEPs. To that end, a requirement was added in Section 2(d) that the placing SAU and the private school agree in writing which entity will be responsible for providing each of the services on the student's IEP.
2. Education Settings 1. Education Settings Some commenters questioned whether this section is necessary. The purpose of this section is to ensure that the private school offers the setting described in the student's IEP as the least restrictive environment. The Maine DOE has moved the last line regarding transition to less restrictive environments to the new Section 2(c) since it refers to a policy.
3. Admissions 2. Admissions and Placement Commenters noted that the standards for removal of students from a private school or program are very high. The Maine DOE should consider using the Massachusetts model. This section is mostly new and is taken from the Massachusetts regulations, as recommended by several commenters. The Maine DOE believes that the sharing of this information between the private school, the placing SAU, and the parent at the beginning of the relationship sets the stage for successful collaboration.
7. Relationship to the Placing SAUs 4. Single Point of Contact Some commenters were concerned that one person would not have the breadth of knowledge to respond effectively. The Maine DOE has clarified this section to include "designee(s)" but continues to believe that there must be a named individual at the private school and the placing SAU who is ultimately responsible for the placement.
4. Provision of Services 5. Provision of Services Some commenters questioned whether this section is necessary. This language tracks requirements in MUSER and includes a straightforward statement of the obligation of the private school to implement the IEP.
5. Attendance 6. Attendance Some commenters questioned whether this section is necessary. The Maine DOE believes that it is necessary to maintain attendance data—particularly data involving removal from a student's educational program, as federal and state special education law require action by the placing SAU after removals (including cumulative removals) of 10 school days.
6. Removal or Discharge 7. Removal or Discharge This section attracted the most comment. Commenters did not agree with the Maine DOE's initial proposal of tying the private school to the placing SAU because of concerns that the two entities would not agree, and it would be difficult to have a proceeding where a party was asked to present the position of another party with whom it disagreed. Many commenters suggested that the Maine DOE adopt the structure in the Massachusetts regulations that provides for both routine and emergency terminations with specific timeframes and obligations. The Maine DOE agrees and is adopting the Massachusetts provisions for terminations.
8. Monitoring and Enforcement 8. Monitoring and Enforcement Commenters reported that the language was confusing and/or potentially conflicted with MUSER or current practice. The Maine DOE made some minor changes and removed the piece about monitoring, which commenters suggested was either confusing or potentially conflicted with MUSER or current practice.

 
Before finalizing the master contractual agreements, the Maine DOE is providing this additional 30-day comment period from January 10 until February 10, 2026. Interested parties are encouraged to provide feedback, which will be used when finalizing the master contractual agreements—to be issued by March 1, 2026.
 

 

Prior to 1/9/2026

The original draft master contractual agreement can be found here.  

Comments received during the October 2025 comment period are as follows: 

Please direct questions to Laura Cyr at Laura.Cyr@maine.gov.