“The foundation of a strong economy and job creation begins with providing every child in America with the best possible education, including students with disabilities.”              Jared Polis

In an effort to address the needs of all of our young people, my purpose for this post is to provide  our readers with information related to the education of students with disabilities and learning challenges.  I am hoping that through this information,  parents and others will become more aware of the laws and provisions currently in place to protect the rights of disabled students to gain an adequate education.

Years ago, students who had challenges due to physical and mental disabilities were faced with limited opportunities when it came to receiving a formal education.  Many students (depending on the severity of the disability) was forced to obtain that education through state run institutions set up specifically to service the disabled.  Other students were faced with not receiving an education at all.  While state run institutions still exist, parents now have alternatives when it comes to obtaining formal educational services for their disabled  children.

In 1975, the United States Congress passed a law entitled Education for all Handicapped Children Act (EHA).  The purpose of this law was to provide a free and appropriate public education to all children with disabilities.    In 1990, congress then reauthorized EHA under Public Law No. 94-142 and renamed it the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  This law is currently what governs the formal education process for most all disabled children in the U.S.  The provisions under IDEA guarantee that disabled students will have access to the same educational opportunities as those students who do not have a disability.  Under this law, all states, within our country, that accept federal funding must provide special education services to any qualifying disabled child.  It protects children, with disabilities, from birth through high school graduation or age 21.

In order to qualify for special educational services under IDEA, a child must fall under one of the following 13 disability categories:

• autism
• deaf-blindness
• deafness
• emotional disturbance
• hearing impairment
• intellectual disability
• multiple disabilities
• orthopedic impairment
• other health impairment (including ADHD)
• specific learning disability (including dyslexia, dyscalculia)
• speech or language impairment
• traumatic brain injury
• visual impairment (including blindness

Even though a child might fall in one of the above 13 categories, it does not automatically qualify them for special education services under IDEA.  The deciding factor to receiving those services would be if a child’s academic performance is adversely affected by their disability and their progress is dependent upon receiving the extra help.  That determination is made through an evaluation process, which is one of the mandates outlined in IDEA.

Parents, please note that a child cannot be placed in special education, under the IDEA law, unless an evaluation has been conducted which results in the child been identified as a qualified disabled child.  That evaluation is conducted at no expense to the parents.

An evaluation of a child can be done due to a referral made by  parents, school officials, social service agencies  or others who are familiar with the child’s development progress.  Once a referral is made,  parents or a legal guardian still have to provide their written consent  before an evaluation on the child can be conducted.

There are a number of provisions within the IDEA law to safeguard the rights of parents and students and insure parental input on matters related to what services a child will receive.  Those safeguards pave the way for parents and school personnel to work cooperatively with one another to assure that a disabled student is benefiting from all possible educational resources available to them.

I think we can all agree that educating our children is for the purpose of preparing them for future employment or further academic pursuits.  That goal should be no different whether a student is disabled or non-disabled.  Each has the right to be prepared for a future of independence and prosperity (as much as feasible).

With that being said, let’s take a look at the provisions of the IDEA law.

What are the components of IDEA?

There are 3 major components that make up the IDEA law and they are referred to as Part A, Part B and Part C.

Part A basically outlines the terminology within the law and provides the foundation for the creation of the Office of Special Education.

• Providing a Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE) to every disable child in their district.
• Conducting an evaluation of any student before special education services are rendered.
• Developing an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), with parental involvement, for any student receiving special education services.  The IEP should outline a student’s present level of performance, the annual goal of what the student is expected to achieve, the special education and related services the student will receive to help them reach their goal, and how their progress will be measured.  The IEP has to be reviewed at least once a year.
• Providing disabled students the opportunity to be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE).  Therefore, integrating a disabled student in a regular classroom setting with non-disabled students whenever possible
• Guaranteeing the rights of parents to participate along with school personnel in every phase of the disabled student’s educational process.
• Providing procedural safeguards to protect the rights of the disabled student and their parents.  These safeguards give the parent the right to accept or deny the evaluation of their child for special education services, to agree with or challenge the outcome of the evaluation or the content of the IEP, access to their child’s educational reports, etc.

• physical (reaching, rolling over, crawling, walking)
• cognitive (thinking, learning, solving problems)
• communication (talking, listening, understanding)
• social/emotional (playing)
• self-help (eating, dressing)

Again, in order for an evaluation to be done parents or legal guardian will have to give their written consent.  Once the consent is obtained, Early Intervention only has 45 days to complete the following:

• Intial Evaluation of the child
• Initial assessment of the child and family
• Developing the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) for any child who will receive early intervention services.

When an infant or toddler is evaluated and deemed to be eligible for early intervention services, an Individualized Family Service Plan  (IFSP) has to be developed for them.  Unlike the IEP which focus on the individual student,  the IFSP is a whole family plan that focuses not only on the child but the family, recognizing that the child’s needs are closely tied to the needs of their family.   Therefore, the IFSP is a written document that outlines the early intervention services a child and their family will receive.  The child’s parents will serves a major role in regards to what goes into that IFSP.  The services outline in the document for the child have to be signed off by the parents.  If the parents do not sign for a child to receive a particular service, outlined in the IFSP, then the child will not receive those services.

The IFSP is reviewed every 6 months and is updated at least once per year.

**Please Note:  Whether a child is receiving services via an IEP or IFSP, those services are provided to the child at no cost to the parents.

A Final Note To Leave You With

As parents let’s not be quick to put limitations on our children due to a disability or learning challenge.  Let’s keep in mind what was so eloquently said by Chris Burke when he stated:  “It’s not our disabilities, it’s our abilities that count”.  Let’s look at our children’s assets as oppose to any limitations and take a lesson from all of the following individuals who have triumphed and reached great heights in spite of their disabilities.

(Image from US Weekly)

Chris Burke is an actor who played Corky on the TV series “Life Goes on”.  He is also Down syndrome.

(Image from Business Insider)

Daymond Johns is the creator of the clothing line FUBU and also one of the investors on the TV show Shark Tank.  He also is  dyslexic.

(Image from Wheel Life)

Ralph Braun is the founder and CEO of Braun Corporation.  He has spinal muscular atrophy but has allowed his disability to inspire him as a business man who produce motorized wheelchairs and scooters.

(Image from Ebony magazine)

Stevie Wonder is a renown singer who has been visually impaired since birth.

(Image from Fortune Magazine)

David Neeleman is the founder of Jet Blue airlines  and also suffered from ADHD.

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