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Originally named American Asylum for the Education and Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb, the American School for the Deaf was established in Hartford, Connecticut, on April 15, 1817. Its three founders were Thomas Gallaudet, Masin Cogswell, and Laurent Clerc. It was also the first school in America to receive state aid for education. -
Brown V. Board of Education
In the case of Brown V. Board of Education the Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional. The segregation of children in schools was a violation of the 14th amendment therefore making it unconstitutional. This ended the "separate but equal" decision made in the case of Plessy V. Ferguson. -
In 1965 the Elementary and Secondary Education ACT (ESEA) granted federal funding to support schools. In 1966 the act was amended to support disabled children. The ESEA provided funding for special education centers, and raised the educational standards so students with disabilities are taught to the same state academic content standards as all other children in the state. -
In the 1971 court case of Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children V. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania it was determined disabled children were being denied access to education in the state of Pennsylvania. This court case found that denying children education by postponing admission and removing students from their schools violated the 14th amendment. As a result of this case the court ordered the state of Pennsylvania to place all students aged 6-21 in public educational settings. -
In the 1972 court case of Mills V. Board of Education, the court ordered that disabled children could not be excluded, suspended, expelled, reassigned, or transferred based on handicaps. The case ended on August 1, 1972, and helped pave the way for special education across America. -
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ensures that disabled children receive education that is accommodated to their needs. The IDEA has six major principles: free appropriate public education, appropriate evaluation, individualized education plans, least restrictive environment, parent participation, and procedural safeguards. -
The No Child Left Behind Act was a federal law put in place to improve education for all children. The law was signed by President George W. Bush in 2001 and was based on four principles. Among those four principles are accountability for results, local control and flexibility, expanded parental choice, and the use of research-based instruction that works. -
IDEA Improvement Act The re-authorized IDEA was signed by President George W. Bush in 2004. The reformation of this act would help solve the issue of inappropriately placed children in special education. It would require states to keep track of my minority placement in special education classes and provide early intervention programs for children and minority groups who were viewed as overrepresented. -
Project CASE is a program for disabled students attending Texas Tech University, or South Plains College. Students in project CASE are provided support with developmental disabilities and their pursuit of both academic and employment success. -
The Every Student Succeeds Act was signed on December 10, 2015, and replaced the No Child Left Behind Act. The act requires all disabled students to be held to high academic standards, provides disabled students with alternative assessment options, provides information to parents of disabled children, and provides students with access to Universal Design for Learning.