Advocates in Hawaii are heading to court hoping to force the state to allow students with disabilities to stay in school until they turn 22, as is already the case in many parts of the country.

Currently Hawaii and Maine stop providing special education services when a student reaches age 20. In most other states students with disabilities can remain in school until they turn 21 or 22.

Now the Hawaii Disability Rights Center is suing the state suggesting that students with disabilities in Hawaii are being “deprived” since they are not offered as many years of schooling as their peers in other parts of the country.

Under federal law, students with disabilities are entitled to educational services until they turn 22, unless a state establishes a lower age limit for all students, whether they have a disability or not.

Four students are participating in the class action lawsuit, but advocates say hundreds are affected by the issue, reports the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. To read more click here.

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