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For students with disabilities, the Office for Civil Rights is often the last line of defense

“The recent threats to consolidate the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) within the U.S. Department of Justice are even more devastating for students at the intersection of race, poverty and disability. This move severs the civil rights lifelines that protect students who are farthest from privilege and opportunity.” – Jennifer Coco, interim executive director of CLE. We cannot maintain the status quo for our students. But losing both OCR’s personnel as well as their insights reverses 50 years of progress.  Read Jennifer’s powerful op-ed in K-12 Dive here.  

From Head Start to Civil Rights, 8 Ways Trump Reshaped Education in Just 1 Year

 “There is a sense of fear and chaos in schools. They’re already operating on razor-thin margins. What they can neither handle nor sustain is more delays. Or the notion that federal reporting is now getting spread across multiple agencies.” – Jennifer Coco, interim executive director of the Center for Learner Equity.  The path to dismantle the Department of Education through executive orders, layoffs, and canceled contracts last year seriously threatened essential services of millions of children with disabilities.  Especially when Secretary Linda McMahon acknowledged that nothing will remain in the department. That means continued uncertainty for our nation’s schools Read the full piece in The 74 here.

Center for Learner Equity: 2025 A Year in Review

Last year, the Center for Learner Equity (CLE) was a leading voice protecting students with disabilities, defending the Department of Education (ED), and advancing our vision around the future of education.  At the federal level, our advocacy work accelerated with an urgent need to push back on harmful actions. We also continued our work alongside local partners as they strengthened their services and supports for students with disabilities, built more inclusive systems, and improved outcomes for the learners who need it most. That is the heart of CLE’s work: pairing urgent national advocacy with meaningful, sustained partnership with school systems on the ground.  Together, our federal advocacy as well as our state and local partnerships reflect CLE’s holistic approach: protecting critical rights while supporting educators and leaders who make those rights a reality.  Let’s take a look at a few highlights of 2025, to ground us in what lies ahead in 2026. Federal advocacy Much of the year was devoted to urging the Administration to protect 8+ million children with disabilities and Congress to advance the IDEA. This included:  Virtual Town Halls: Organizing a November event attended by 1,300 parents and educators regarding recent federal actions around special education. Watch […]

The Department of Education: Why It Matters.

This past year, there has been an increased passion and urgency to protect the rights of 8+ million students with disabilities. There’s also an opportunity to learn about the influential offices in the Department of Education (ED) — and why it’s imperative these offices must remain united under a single department.   As the administration continues down its dangerous path of gutting programs that support the education of students with disabilities, we’re shedding light on how four education offices function. We dive into why their expertise matters and how these offices help turn the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)’s promises into a reality.  The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) OSEP is the backstop to the IDEA. The office issues policy guidance and helps ensure states use IDEA funds properly so all students receive the support they need. This includes: Initiating and funding research and technical assistance centers uniquely designed to support special education teachers, specialists, and parents. Administering the distribution of IDEA funds and monitoring state implementation. Conducting site visits and collecting required data from states so Congress and the public are informed about the status of students with disabilities each year.  The experts at OSEP ensure the IDEA […]

  • December 15, 2025
  • Blog

A new action guide: How to keep special education teachers

If we want better outcomes for students with disabilities, we have to retain the educators who are committed to expanding inclusive learning environments. Yet entering this school year, public schools again reported that special education was among the hardest roles to staff; 74% of elementary and middle schools struggled to fill teacher vacancies, with special education positions among the most challenging to fill, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. That’s not an isolated blip — it’s a pattern we’ve seen for years, with special education consistently ranking as one of the top shortage areas nationwide.  In October, the Center for Learner Equity (CLE), in partnership with the New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association (NJPCSA), released a practical Action Guide for system and school leaders who are ready to move from worry to work. This resource focuses squarely on supporting and retaining special education teachers — because if school leaders can better understand the root causes of why special educators leave their jobs, then we can take action to help these teachers stay. What makes this guide different This guide goes beyond identifying the problem—it helps solve it. The guide is designed for quick adoption with tangible recommendations, ready-to-use […]

  • October 27, 2025
  • Blog

Protecting Federal Dollars and Policy for Students with Disabilities. What’s Next?

Federal funding for special education is critical to ensuring students with disabilities receive the services and supports they need. It is also a foundational investment in schools implementing quality instruction for all students. With the education policy landscape rapidly evolving, here’s what we’re tracking, what to watch, and how we can continue to uplift our vision around the future of education. Who does chronic underfunding impact? Nearly one in five students in the U.S. has a disability. Importantly, 85% of these students can achieve grade-level outcomes on par with their peers when they receive quality instruction tailored to their learning needs — using universal instructional strategies proven to benefit ALL students. That’s why fully funding individualized instruction and supports for 20% of public school students is the key to helping students with disabilities thrive. What’s missing from the conversation?  A key part of the conversation that is often overlooked when talking about current federal funding levels is that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has never been fully funded at the levels promised since its passage in 1975. Fifty years ago, Congress codified a commitment to educating and including children with disabilities, establishing the right to a free, appropriate […]

  • September 26, 2025
  • Blog

Leveraging CRDC Data: Investing in Our Vision for Education

The Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) is the only nationwide comprehensive look at access and opportunities for all students, including students with disabilities. For more than five decades, CRDC has captured data on students’ equal access to educational opportunities. The critical insights provided by the data has helped schools understand and adhere to essential civil rights laws, whose implementation and enforcement is led by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). With recent efforts to dismantle the Department of Education (ED), continuing to uplift this data has taken on a new urgency.  As a leading voice on behalf of students with disabilities in all public schools — and lead author of the only reports available on the experiences of students with disabilities in charter schools — CLE understands the tremendous value of the CRDC data in informing research, policy, and best practice. Leveraging CRDC data can help schools and advocates better understand the experiences of their students with disabilities — and direct their attention towards improving areas of inequity to create the conditions for students to thrive.  With the release of two new reports, CLE analyzed what CRDC data reveals regarding students with disabilities’ experiences in schools, and […]

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Key Trends in Special Education in Public Schools (2021-22)

CLE’s Analysis of the Civil Rights Data Collection The Center for Learner Equity is proud to release our sixth secondary analysis of the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC)’s January 2025 release, this time regarding the 2021-2022 school year. We have prepared two reports that offer an in-depth look at the experiences of students with disabilities in public charter schools and traditional public schools. Our analyses of CRDC data continue to reveal persistent disparities in enrollment, disciplinary practices, and access to college preparatory opportunities for students with disabilities. In our “Fast Facts” brief, we examine national trends in enrollment, placement, discipline, and postsecondary access for students with disabilities in both traditional and charter public schools. We also offer a separate brief on the topic of specialized charter schools, where we explore the growth and characteristics of charter schools that specialize in educating students with disabilities. CLE continues to urge elected officials and the U.S. Department of Education to protect and invest in the Civil Rights Data Collection. This data is critical to national transparency around protecting students' civil rights, informing inclusive policies, and ensuring all students with disabilities receive the opportunities and supports they deserve. Key Findings [...]
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Key Trends in Special Education in Public Schools (2020-21)

CLE’s Analysis of the Civil Rights Data Collection In September 2024, the Center for Learner Equity (CLE) completed its fifth analysis of the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) on access and opportunities for students with disabilities. Our key findings show progress in certain areas, substantial opportunity gaps for students with disabilities in others, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on outcomes during the 2020-21 school year. Our analysis examines data trends around the enrollment, placements, disciplinary removals, and post-secondary outcomes of students with disabilities in both traditional and charter public schools. Our analysis also focuses on charter schools specializing in educating students with disabilities to understand their growth around the United States and some of their key characteristics. Key Findings Traditional public schools educate a greater proportion of students with disabilities than charters Charters educate different types of students with disabilities than traditional public schools In charters, students with disabilities are more likely to spend time in general education settings Students with disabilities continue to experience higher rates of disciplinary practices and lower access to college preparation than their peers Specialized charter schools, concentrated in a handful of states, are increasingly focusing on autism View [...]
diverse group of children sitting in a classroom waving

Key Trends in Special Education in Public Schools (2020-21)

CLE’s Analysis of the Civil Rights Data Collection The Center for Learner Equity is proud to release our sixth secondary analysis of the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC)’s January 2025 release, this time regarding the 2021-2022 school year. We have prepared two reports that offer an in-depth look at the experiences of students with disabilities in public charter schools and traditional public schools. Our analyses of CRDC data continue to reveal persistent disparities in enrollment, disciplinary practices, and access to college preparatory opportunities for students with disabilities. In our “Fast Facts” brief, we examine national trends in enrollment, placement, discipline, and postsecondary access for students with disabilities in both traditional and charter public schools. We also offer a separate brief on the topic of specialized charter schools, where we explore the growth and characteristics of charter schools that specialize in educating students with disabilities. CLE continues to urge elected officials and the U.S. Department of Education to protect and invest in the Civil Rights Data Collection. This data is critical to national transparency around protecting students' civil rights, informing inclusive policies, and ensuring all students with disabilities receive the opportunities and supports they deserve. Key Findings [...]