Understanding “Stay-Put” Rights During Disputes: What Parents Need to Know
When a disagreement arises between a parent and a school district about a child’s placement or services, parents often ask:
“What actually happens to my child’s placement or services while we’re waiting for the dispute to be resolved?”
This is one of the most important—and confusing—parts of special education law. Parents hear terms like “stay-put,” “pendency,” “ongoing implementation,” “status quo,” and “current placement,” but rarely does anyone sit down and explain how these rules protect your child day-to-day.
This post breaks down the difference between:
Services that continue automatically during a dispute
Services that do not continue unless certain legal conditions are met.
Understanding these rules ensures you know what your child is entitled to right now, not months from now.
What Is “Stay-Put” (Pendency)?
“Stay-put,” also known as pendency, is a powerful legal protection under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It guarantees that during a dispute:
✔ Your child’s last agreed-upon IEP remains in effect
✔ Services cannot be reduced
✔ Placement cannot be changed
✔ Supports must continue as they were written and implemented
Pendency freezes the child’s program exactly as it existed before the dispute began, ensuring educational continuity and stability.
Pendency protects children from losing their opportunities to make progress or from experiencing disruption during long legal processes.
What Services Automatically Continue During a Dispute?
Under pendency, the school must continue:
SETSS
SEIT
Speech therapy
OT
PT
AT
Counseling
Paraprofessional services
Related services
ICT or special class placements
Transportation
Private placements previously funded by the district
If it was part of the last agreed-upon program, it must continue.
What Services Do Not Automatically Continue?
This is where parents are often surprised.
During a dispute, the district does not have to implement:
❌ Changes recommended in a new IEP (if you disagree with them)
❌ Increased services you are requesting during the dispute
❌ Decreases in services the school proposes
❌ A new school placement you have not agreed to
❌ Services that have not yet begun or been implemented
Stay-put protects the current placement and services – not future ones.
Common Situations Parents Ask About
Here are the real-world examples I see most often in my practice:
1. “The new IEP reduces services. Can they do that?”
NO. If you file for due process or mediation, pendency preserves the old, higher level of services.
2. “The school wants to change my child’s school—can I stop it?”
Yes. If the current placement is part of the last agreed-upon program, the district cannot change it during the dispute.
3. “What if my child’s needs increased? Will they get more services automatically?”
Not automatically. Stay-put keeps things as they were. Any additional services require an amendment, agreement, or hearing decision.
4. “What if the school hasn’t implemented the IEP properly before the dispute?”
The child may be entitled to compensatory services. Pendency preserves what should have been happening—not what the school was actually doing.
How to Invoke Stay-Put (Pendency)
To ensure full protection, parents should:
1. Put the dispute in writing
File a due process complaint or mediation request.
2. State that you are invoking pendency
Include the phrase “I am invoking stay-put rights.”
3. Identify the last agreed-upon program
Use the most recent implemented IEP or order.
4. Request written confirmation
Ask the district to list all pendency services in writing.
5. Track services
Missed pendency services may entitle your child to compensatory education.
A Note to Parents
Stay-put is designed to protect your child – not the district. If you disagree with a reduction of services, a change in placement, or an inappropriate IEP, invoking pendency ensures that your child remains stable, supported, and on track during the dispute.
You are never “bothering the school” by asking for what your child is entitled to under the law.
Determining your child’s “stay-put” rights can be difficult. We are here to help. Contact us to schedule a consultation to discuss your child's rights and how we can help protect your child's placement, services, and funding.
The Law Office of Laura D. Barbieri, PLLC
Email: Laura@LDBarbLaw.com
Phone: 1-914-819-3387
Vocabulary for Parents (Acronym Guide)
FAPE – Free Appropriate Public Education
IEP – Individualized Education Program
SETSS – Special Education Teacher Support Services
SEIT – Special Education Itinerant Teacher
OT – Occupational Therapy
PT – Physical Therapy
AT – Assisted Technology
ICT – Integrated Co-Teaching
IHO – Impartial Hearing Officer
SRO – State Review Officer
Pendency – “Stay-put” protection preserving the last agreed-upon program
