Dated January 12, 2001

Dear Colleagues:

This letter is being jointly issued by the U. S. Department of
Education\'s Office of Special Education Programs and the Compensatory
Education Programs office. The purpose of the letter is to encourage
local education agencies (LEAs) implementing schoolwide programs under
Section 1114 of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (ESEA), as amended, to appropriately include students with
disabilities in those schoolwide reform efforts.

In 1994, through the reauthorization of ESEA, Congress gave states,
school districts and schools more flexibility in using Federal education
dollars and other resources. Title I of the ESEA is entitled "Helping
Disadvantaged Children Meet High Standards." Section 1114 of Subpart I
allows LEAs to use Title I funds, in combination with other Federal,
state and local funds, to upgrade the entire educational program in
eligible schools. To help facilitate the inclusion of students with
disabilities in schoolwide reform efforts, the 1997 Amendments to the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) under Section
613(a)(2)(D) and the regulations at §300.234(a) authorize LEAs to use a
portion of the funds received under Part B of IDEA for any fiscal year
to carry out a schoolwide program under the ESEA, as long as students
with disabilities, included in such schoolwide programs, receive
services in accordance with a properly developed Individualized
Education Program (IEP) and are afforded all of the rights and services
guaranteed to children with disabilities under IDEA. In other words, in
a schoolwide program, a portion of the Part B funds can be combined with
funds from Title I and other Federal, state, and local funds, allowing
schools to plan for the entire school population, and more effectively
integrate programs, strategies and resources.

It has come to the attention of Department of Education officials,
however, that eligible schools participating in schoolwide programs are
not taking advantage of the flexibility provisions of Title I and IDEA
to combine funds from many sources into a single accounting fund. In
particular, it appears that LEAs have been reluctant to blend IDEA Part
B funds with other funds into a schoolwide account for fear of violating
audit and program reporting requirements. Therefore, the intent of this
letter is to reiterate the Department\'s position that blending a
portion of IDEA Part B funds, as authorized under IDEA, with other
Federal, state and local funds is perfectly acceptable under Federal law
as long as students with disabilities, included in such schoolwide
programs, receive services in accordance with a properly developed IEP
and are afforded all of the rights and services guaranteed to children
with disabilities under IDEA. Guidance issued by the Office of
Elementary and Secondary Education with regard to implementing this
flexibility, which includes record keeping requirements, can be found on
the Department of Education\'s World Wide Web site at:
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/ESEA/Title_I/swpguide.html.

The U.S. Department of Education is committed to assisting states and
LEAs in utilizing the flexibility provided through both the ESEA and
IDEA to insure that students with disabilities are included in
schoolwide reform efforts. If you have further questions regarding the
schoolwide provisions under IDEA, contact JoLeta Reynolds at 202/
205-5507. For more information about the schoolwide provisions under
ESEA, contact Charles Laster at 202/205- 5531.

Sincerely

/signed Kenneth R. Warlick/ /signed Mary Jean LeTendre/

Kenneth R. Warlick Mary Jean LeTendre

Director Director

Office of Special Education Compensatory Education

Programs Programs