Extended School Year Service (ESY)
Important Concepts to Keep in Mind
The purpose of ESY is maintenance of the child’s learning skills or behaviors – not the teaching of new skills or behaviors.
ESY services are provided in order to mitigate severe regression and lack of recoupment over the summer break. It is expected that most students, disabled and non-disabled, regress when there is a long break in schooling and that they take some time to recoup the lost skills or behaviors when school is resumed. ESY addresses the issue of severe regression and/or significant difficulty in recoupment.
“Regression” means significant loss of skills or behaviors in any area specified on the IEP as a result of an interruption in education services.
“Recoupment” means the recovery of skills or behaviors specified on the IEP to a level demonstrated before the interruption of education services.
Criteria for ESY eligibility MUST include regression and recoupment data, preferably as it relates to the summer break. If those data are not available, then regression and recoupment data related to the winter break may be used. (Please note: Spring break does not provide a significant enough disruption in school services to be meaningful in determination of ESY eligibility. Please use it only as a last resort.)