BILLINGS, Mont. — Montana students with disabilities will be able to continue their education up to age 22 under individualized education programs after the state settled a federal lawsuit from two students and a disability rights organization last week.
The settlement agreement, ordered by a judge on Aug. 13, means that Montana is no longer the only state in the country that cuts off education services for most students with disabilities at age 18, according to the organization that sued the state, Disability Rights Montana.
Under the agreement, Montana will no longer use the exception that allowed the state to stop providing those services and will let students with disabilities continue going to school either until they earn a “regular” high school diploma or turn 22 years old.
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Disability Rights Montana and two Montana students with disabilities who were forced out of school when they turned 18 and 19 last year sued Superintendent of Public Instruction Susie Hedalen and Gov. Greg Gianforte in February contending the state was violating federal law by not providing the students education for longer.
David Carlson, executive director of Disability Rights Montana, called the settlement agreement a “huge win for Montana students.”
“Students with disabilities were being exited from school before earning a high school diploma and before they were ready to transition to post-secondary employment, education, and independent living,” Carlson said in a statement. “Now students who need it will have the additional time that federal law allows to prepare for successes as adults.”
McKenna Gregg, a spokesperson for the Office of Public Instruction, said in an email: “The OPI will continue working with local school districts to ensure that every student exits high school prepared to succeed.” The governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Amid litigation this summer, attorneys for Hedalen and Gianforte offered the plaintiffs a settlement in late July, which the two students and Disability Rights Montana accepted on Aug. 8. The final terms are outlined in the judgment signed by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christensen last week.
Under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, governments are required to provide a “free appropriate public education” and other related services until students turn 22. Some states provide those services for longer, and Montana law requires the state provide special education services through age 19 and allows local districts to provide educational programming for students up to age 22.
Students with disabilities have individualized education programs (IEPs), as required by federal law, and the settlement agreement shows the state agreed that diplomas provided for finishing an IEP do not constitute “regular” high school diplomas and doesn’t rid a school district of its obligation to provide a “free appropriate public education.”
The agreement also shows the state stipulated that a Montana administrative rule violates the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act “to the extent that it allows a school district to terminate special education services for students who have not earned a regular high school diploma or reached the age of 22.”
Under the agreement, OPI will have to make sure a free appropriate public education is available for every eligible student either until they receive a “regular” high school diploma, are removed via appropriate procedures from their education program, or reach age 22.
That requirement will also apply retroactively to any student with disabilities who was forced out of the program during the 2024-2025 school year before they turned 22 or those who received a non-regular diploma. That means the two plaintiffs, students from Kalispell and Lewistown, will be allowed to continue their educational programming.
The Office of Public Instruction has already sent guidance to Montana school districts, ordered by the court, notifying them of the settlement and how to comply with the requirements.
Within two weeks of receiving that guidance, districts will have to send notice to any students who were removed from their educational programs before turning 22 that they can get back into their program.
Those students will have just 30 days after being notified by their school to fill out re-enrollment paperwork and send it back to the school. If those students or their families do not respond, their education previously provided will be considered “satisfied.”
The schools will then have to report back to OPI by Dec. 1 with the name of each student who received a notice, the names of those who re-enrolled, and the names of students who did not respond.
“Students eligible for this additional time will also want to ask for an IEP meeting,” said the plaintiffs’ attorney, Michelle Weltman. “Being proactive and going to the school is likely the most effective route to ensure no deadlines are missed and the student’s team is prepared to offer appropriate services without delay.”
People who would like more information about the process can contact OPI or Disability Rights Montana for more assistance.
“This change puts students back in control of their future,” said Tal Goldin, the lead attorney on the case for Disability Rights Montana. “We are honored to represent the students who brought this important case and took a brave stand not just for themselves, but for hundreds of others.”
© 2025 Billings Gazette
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