Most Private Schools Forgo Federal Services

A majority of the nation’s private schools do not use federally funded services they are entitled to receive under the No Child Left Behind Act or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a study released last week shows.

Just 44 percent of private schools have a student, teacher, or parent participating in programs financed under the No Child Left Behind law, even though 12 major federal programs covered by that law require public school districts to offer services to private schools, according to the report .

Similarly, only 43 percent of private schools had any students receiving services under the IDEA, according to the study issued Sept. 11 by the U.S. Department of Education and conducted by the Urban Institute, in Washington, which does research on various...