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Brown Vs. Board of Education
Brown Vs. Board of Education rules that “separate but equal” has no place in education. This U.S. Supreme Court case paved the way to an understanding that all people, regardless of gender, race, or disability, have the right to public education. This law emphasized that to protect a students’ constitutional rights to a free and equal public education is to make sure that students regardless of race, disability, or gender learn together. -
National Plan to Combat Mental Retardation
John F. Kennedy's major push to reform how people with disabilities are treated leads to The Maternal and Child Health and Mental Retardation Planning Act becomes law. This provided $265 million to support programs for the mentally retarded. This law also provided $330 million for construction of new mental health facilities.
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Mills Vs. D.C. Board of Education
Mills sued the D.C. Board of Education because students with disabilities were being denied a free and appropriate public education, and were being denied without any chance for due process. This case stated that a student’s level of educational services must be provided based on the child’s needs not on the school district’s financial constraints. It turned out that between 1971-72, because of budget shortfalls the D.C. school district could not serve 12,340 students with disabilities. -
PARC Vs. Pennsylvania
PARC Vs. Pennsylvania. PARC (Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children) wins, and a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for every child with an intellectual disability who are ages 6-21 is established. -
The Rehabilitation Act
The Rehabilitation Act is established which prohibits the exclusion of people with disabilities in any programs that are financed, conducted, and employed by the United States Federal Government -
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
Link text Under this act parents can get access to all personally identifiable information collected, maintained, or utilized by the school district regarding their child. -
The Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA)
1975
President Ford signed into law in 1975 which adds “specific learning disabilities” as a new category. This law is the basis of all special education rights and services and is known today as the Individuals with disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Prior to this act, children could be denied an education based on his/her disability. EAHCA mandated that all school districts provide a free and appropriate public education to all students regardless of their disabilities. -
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
ADA adopts the section 504 regulations as part of the statute. This paved the way for individual students to have “504 Plans” in school districts. This allowed students with special needs to have accommodations/modifications to succeed in the general education classroom. Schools would receive federal funding for students with a 504 plan. -
The EAHCA is amended and now called the Individuals with Education Act (IDEA)
This amendment called for significant changes to the old law. Significant changes like the addition of transition services for students with disabilities. This required school’s districts to analyze the outcome s and assisting students with disabilities transitioning into post secondary life. This was an important step in making sure that the students could have the best chance for success once they left high school. -
No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)
Signed into law by George W. Bush, this law called for all students, including those with disabilities, would be proficient in reading and math by the year 2014. Special education was directly affected by NCLB’s provisions for accountability by mandating yearly progress, inclusion in statewide assessments, and new standards for curricula and providers. The act makes sure to include special education in all aspects of accountability.
