May a Student Participate in Graduation Exercises With His or Her Classmates, if She or He is Not Actually Graduating?

According to South Carolina's Office of Exceptional Children Policies and Procedures released April 6, 2009, the answer is "yes". The student may participate in graduation exercises unless a local policy would not allow it. However, if there is such a policy, it must apply to all students and not just students receiving special education services. This would apply even if a student has met all of the requirements for graduation, but the IEP team determines that additional services are needed. Some students may require services until age 21 to meet IEP goals, which should be addressed within the student's transition plan. In either ase, the student could participate in graduation exerceses with his or her class, but not actually receive a diploma at that time.