One Consequence of the Government Shutdown Could Be Felt for Decades

"When reduction-in-force notices went out to hundreds of Department of Education employees as part of the shutdown, more than 100 of these DOE workers were part of the team that oversaw special ed around the country. They ensured resources got distributed equitably, and had been doing that since the '70s. Now, they are simply not there. A court has put these firings on hold, but that hasn't made parents feel much better. Pepper Stetler knows this well."

"Special education became something that the government was funding officially in 1975 with the passing of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, which eventually became the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. Before that, it was pretty grim. Only one in five children with disabilities were educated in public schools. What happened to everyone else? Either they were in institutions or they stayed home. There were some private schools, but schools could legally refuse to enroll children with disabilities. And many states actually had laws"

Hundreds of Department of Education employees received reduction-in-force notices during the shutdown, including over 100 staff who oversaw special education and ensured equitable resource distribution nationwide. A court temporarily halted those firings, but parents remain worried. Federal oversight of special education has existed since 1975 under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (now IDEA), and before that most children with disabilities were excluded from public schools, institutionalized, or kept at home. Even with the government reopening, many cuts to special education positions and enforcement capacity could persist, weakening enforcement of disability education rights and equity.

Read at Slate Magazine