CRPE Cover, How Has the Pandemic Affected Students with Disabilities

How Has the Pandemic Affected Students with Disabilities? A Review of the Evidence to Date

CLE’s latest brief, How Has the Pandemic Affected Students with Disabilities? A Review of the Evidence to Date, examines the impacts of COVID-19 on students with disabilities based on a review of hundreds of studies. In particular, the report highlights widespread disruptions to student’s Individual Education Programs (IEPs) and Section 504 plans. It also examines significant disparities in access to specialized services and draws attention to areas of further inquiry.

Several Young Students Running

A Call to Action: With No Updates to OCR Discipline Guidance Since 2014, the Opportunity to Address Inequities for Students with Disabilities is Now

In 2016, the federal government rescinded a 2014 disciplinary guidance package that had served as a much-needed resource to schools and districts across the country, a decision that CLE opposed.

It is now time for the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to issue new comprehensive guidance that advances equity for all students, especially those with disabilities. Guidance should ensure districts and schools stop using harmful exclusionary practices, including suspensions, expulsions, and seclusions, in lieu of individualized supports and services that address and ameliorate the behavioral needs of students with disabilities.

Girl Coloring

Charting a Path to Equitable Education for Students with Disabilities: The Role of Charter School Leadership Pipelines

This brief comes out of our examination of leadership pipeline programs and collaboration with these programs to infuse inclusive mindsets and strong programs for students with disabilities into their training models. In particular, it focuses on our findings regarding how future charter school leaders are trained in pipeline programs, specifically on educating students with disabilities.

Text Reading "Principles of Equitable Schools in the Context of COVID-19"

Video—Principles of Equitable Schools in the Context of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges to the entire education system, but students with disabilities have faced disproportionate impacts. In June, the Center’s Equity Coalition published the Principles of Equitable Schools in the Context of COVID-19, a set of guidelines for educators working to put equity at the forefront of decision-making. This fall, we caught up with three schools that are working hard to embody these principles: Digital Pioneers Academy in Washington, D.C.; Animo Legacy Charter Middle School in Los Angeles, CA; and Audeo Charter School in San Diego, CA.

Student raising hand while sitting at a desk in a school classroom

The Center Releases Report on Enrollment of Students with Disabilities in Colorado Charter Schools

The National Center for Special Education (the Center) has released a new report examining trends related to enrollment of students with disabilities in Colorado charter schools. Through this report, the Center documented enrollment trends across the state and by authorizing entity, surfaced contributing factors, and identified opportunities for key stakeholders to make short- and long-term changes that can improve students with disabilities’ ability to access and thrive in charter schools.