Board of Education v. Rowley

Amy Rowley (plaintiff), a deaf student who read lips well, thrived in kindergarten with an FM hearing aid and other accommodations. Her first-grade individualized education plan (IEP) continued the hearing aid plus tutoring and speech therapy in a regular classroom, but her parents wanted a sign-language interpreter instead. After the school's Committee on the Handicapped rejected that request, an independent hearing officer and the state Commissioner of Education both agreed with the school. Rowley's parents sued, and the district court and Second Circuit held the Act required giving Rowley an opportunity to reach her full potential, meaning an interpreter was required. The school sought Supreme Court review.