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1st Pub. School for People w/ Disabilities
1st Public School for People with Disabilities in France by Charles Michel L’Epee was opened. He was a pioneer in the 18th Century for education of the disabled. He also founded the first public school for the hearing-impaired in France. He devoted his life to developing the world’s first sign alphabet for the deaf and created a manual alphabet, which he called French Sign Language, was adapted into American Sign Language a few decades after his death. -
American School for the Deaf
American School for the Deaf originally Connecticut Asylum at Hartford for the Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons opened by Thomas Galludet, also a first in it’s kind in America. The head teacher was Louis Laurent Marie Clerc. Many of their students went on to become productive deaf citizens and educated deaf leaders, spreading Clerc's teachings and making him the greatest influence in the establishment of new deaf schools in the States at that time. -
MA School for Idiotic & Feeble-minded
Massachusetts School for Idiotic and Feeble-minded Youth by Samuel Gridley Howe (who had previously opened Perkins School for the blind) this started several schools opening in several states in America. The name of the school is dreadful but it was the first to target and help students with disabilities. This was an experimental boarding school in South Boston for youth with intellectual deficiencies. -
Am. Inst. for Idiotic & Feeble-Minded
American Institutions for Idiotic and Feeble-Minded Persons (now known as the American Association for Mental Retardation, or AAMR) was founded by six men. Institutions became medically oriented; and persons with disabilities were viewed as patients who were sick, and needed to be cured. The individual was redefined to meet the needs of the institution. Formation of this organization made clear that institutions would now have a medical focus. -
The Department of Special Education
The Department of Special Education was created by the National Education Association to focus on growing and increasing schools and light on special education. It is now called the Office of Special Education Programs is part of the U.S. Department of Education. Their mission is “to advocate for education professionals and to unite our members and the nation to fulfill the promise of public education to prepare every student to succeed in a diverse and interdependent world.” -
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education paved the way for future legislation to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in education. In this ruling, the Supreme court stated that segregation by race was unconstitutional. This was a first for federal government admitting that students faced inequality and prejudice at school. -
Department of Public Welfare v. Haas
Department of Public Welfare v. Haas was about a father (Haas) was brought to enforce maintenance charges regarding his son’s schooling that he could not afford. The Supreme Court of Illinois stated the laws did not require giving the "feeble-minded" or mentally deficient a free education because of their lack of intelligence. It also stated is they were "mentally deficient" they were unable to benefit from education. -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
ESEA initiated the role of the federal government to protect disadvantaged students and providing to them equal access to public schools and education. One of the provisions in the ESEA act allowed for free and reduced lunch to students who could not afford it. This way they would not be hungry and could attend to class. Very importantly, the ESEA had a component for individuals with disabilities that offered a grant to encourage states to run programs for students with disabilities. -
Education of the Handicapped Act
The ESEA was revised as the Education of the Handicapped Act to support programs run by the state for students with disabilities. As mandated in the act, funds are authorized for professional development, instructional materials, resources to support educational programs, and the promotion of parental involvement. However, there were no guidelines to develop the programs and receive the grant. -
PARC v. Cmlth of PA
Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children (PARC) v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania was the first significant challenge to education laws in the United States that excluded students with disabilities. At the time, many other states had similar laws in place that prevented children with disabilities from receiving free public education. The state was not allowed to “deny to any mentally retarded child access to a free public program of education and training.” -
Mills v. Board of Edu. of the DOC
Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia. Children were excluded from schools, and the suit required the state to provide “adequate alternative education services” as well as “prior gearing and periodic review of the child’s status, progress, and the adequacy of any educational alternative”. This case was very important & influential in the drafting of 94-142 (IDEA) where it required schools to describe curricula, objectives, teacher qualifications, & supplemental services. -
Vocational Rehabilitation Act
Vocational Rehabilitation Act (VRA) defined handicapped, defined appropriate education, and prohibited discrimination against students with disabilities in federally funded programs. This federal law approved grants to states for vocational rehabilitation services, supported employment, independent living, and client assistance. -
Education for all Handicapped Children Act
Education for all Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) was known as the Mainstreaming Law which required states to provide a free and appropriate education for children with disabilities ages 5-18, It also required IEPs and defined for the first time least restrictive environment. This act also required free, appropriate public education (FAPE) for children with disabilities. -
EAHCA Amendment
- 1986 Education for all Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) Amendment that required states to give free and appropriate education to children with disabilities (ages 3 to 5). It also mandated that states provide programs and services from birth. The central principle of the act mandated that all states receiving federal education funding must create a “policy that assures all handicapped children the right to a free appropriate public education”.
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Honig v. Doe
Honig v. Doe benefited individuals with emotional, behavioral disorders who have academic and social problems. The Supreme Court further held that the "stay-put" provision of the Education of the Handicapped Act prohibited state or local school authorities from excluding disabled children from the classroom even for dangerous or disruptive conduct resulting from their disabilities. This meant schools could not expel children for behaviors related to their disability. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Americans with Disabilities ACT (ADA) although not educational, prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in the private sector. The 5 areas covered in ADA are employment, public services, public accommodations, telecommunications, and Title V is about Miscellaneous. -
Individuals w/ Disabilities Edu. Act (IDEA)
IDEA renamed and replaced the EAHCA, putting “people-first” instead of the disability. It also extended education services to include social work, assistive technology, an rehabilitation services. It had provisions for due process and confidentiality for parents and students and added Autism and Traumatic Brain Injury as categories. Required bilingual education and transition services for employment. Changes in 1997: a gen. ed. teacher had to be a member of IEP & included a SE-BIP. -
Cedar Rapids v. Garret F. Garret
Cedar Rapids v. Garret F. Garret ruled that the 1990 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school boards to provide continuous nursing services to disabled students who need them during the school day. This means that students must be provided with the supplemental service needed to attend school at no extra cost to parents. This case increased accountability for the school board to provide needed services for students with disabilities. -
Indiv. w/ Disa. Edu. Improvement Act (IDEIA)
IDEIA's guidelines include Zero Reject (child find program); FAPE, that students be taught in the LRE; the right to non-discriminatory evaluation, Parent and Family Rights to Confidentiality & Procedural safeguards for due process. This new law allows districts to use RTI to determine learning disability, increased federal funds, and more standards for special education licensure. Link text -
Winkelman v. Parma City School District
Winkelman v. Parma City School District. This case was bout Jacob Winkelman, a six-year old autistic student. The debate was about special needs education in the United State and whether parents could represent the interests of their special needs child in court without being represented by an attorney. The Supreme Court decided that parents may pursue IDEA claims on their behalf independent of their child’s rights. -
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
ESSA signed by President Obama replaced the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) from 2002. It was a commitment to equal opportunity for all students, had many components of the NCLB but provided extra opportunities for schools when students don’t make adequate progress. ESSA shifts the accountability to state where there can be more local control. It gave greater flexibility to states, allowed for school choice and increased accountability. Link text
