Introduction
Last week, the government said they are moving some parts of the Department of Education to different agencies. You can learn about that here. The government did not say anything about their plans for special education. But ASAN knows that the government plans to change who is in charge of special education. You can learn about that here.
ASAN thinks the news about changes to special education will become public very soon. This is bad. You can tell Congress to stop these bad changes!
What exactly is happening with special education?
The Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) is in charge of special education for students with disabilities ages 0-22. OSEP gives out money for and advice to schools. OSEP is in charge of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). You can learn more about IDEA here.
The White House is trying to change who runs special education. They do not want the Department of Education to be in charge of IDEA. They want the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to be in charge of IDEA. HHS is in charge of health care in the United States.
This is a bad idea. And it is illegal. Only Congress can change which agency is in charge of IDEA. It is against the law for the White House to decide this on their own.
HHS is not a good agency to be in charge of IDEA.
- HHS does not have any training about special education.
- The leaders of HHS have spread lies about autistic people.
- The leaders of HHS make policies that are bad for everyone’s health.
HHS does not understand or care about people with disabilities. ASAN thinks people should not trust HHS to be in charge of special education.
Only Congress can change which part of the government is in charge of the laws Congress makes. That means only Congress can change the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The White House is breaking the law by trying to change who is in charge of IDEA without Congress.
The government is also planning another change that will hurt special education. The government will soon move the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). OCR helps protect civil rights for students. OCR helps make sure that schools follow civil rights laws. IDEA is a civil rights law.
The government wants to move OCR into the Department of Justice (DOJ). The DOJ is in charge of crime in the U.S. They work to make sure people follow the law. But it is a bad idea for DOJ to be in charge of OCR. DOJ also has a lot of other jobs. They might not be able to focus on IDEA. It will be hard for DOJ and HHS to work together on IDEA. It is better for only the Department of Education to be in charge of IDEA.
How can I contact my members of Congress?
Congress must make sure the Department of Education stays in charge of special education. It is Congress’ job to fight for us. You have three members of Congress. You have two Senators and one Representative. You can contact them by making a phone call, sending a written message, or both. You can use the script below. You can find out how to contact your members of Congress here.
Script for Senators
Hello! I am a constituent of [Senator NAME]. I am calling to ask [Senator NAME] to do everything they can to keep special education out of HHS. There are two things I’m asking [Senator NAME] to do:
- Use your power as a Congressperson. Make sure the Department of Education stays in charge of the Office of Special Education Programs. Make sure the Department of Education stays in charge of IDEA.
- Have Congress meet to talk about special education. Congress should look into what the White House is doing to make special education worse. They should make sure the government follows special education laws.
Changing what government offices are in charge of IDEA will hurt the futures of people with disabilities. That is because IDEA gives students with disabilities the right to services and supports. These services and supports prepare us to be adults.
[If you have a personal story about why special education matters to you, you may add that to the script. Some examples are listed here.]Script for Representatives
Hello! I am a constituent of [Representative NAME]. I am calling to ask [Representative NAME] to do everything they can to keep special education out of HHS. There are two things I’m asking [Representative NAME] to do:
Use your power as a Congressperson. Make sure the Department of Education stays in charge of the Office of Special Education Programs. Make sure the Department of Education stays in charge of IDEA.
Have Congress meet to talk about special education. Congress should look into what the White House is doing to make special education worse. They should make sure the government follows special education laws.
Changing what government offices are in charge of IDEA will hurt the futures of people with disabilities. That is because IDEA gives students with disabilities the right to services and supports. These services and supports prepare us to be adults.
[If you have a personal story about why special education matters to you, you may add that to the script. Some examples are listed here.]Examples of why special education matters to you
You can talk about the services and support you get in special education. Congress needs to hear how these supports help prepare you to be adults in your community.
- You can talk about the accommodations you get in school.
- Some accommodation tools:
- Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
- Textbooks and worksheets in accessible formats, such as braille, large type, audio recording, etc.
- Ramps and elevators
- Noise cancelling headphones to help with distractions
- Adaptive grips for pencils/pens
- Some accommodation services:
- Getting written and spoken instructions
- Getting a visual diagram that explains the order of the lesson
- Getting big project assignments broken into smaller tasks
- Getting lessons about how to identify and communicate emotions
- Getting occupational or speech therapies during the schoolday
- If you are a student with a disability, you can talk about how accommodations help you learn important skills:
- “I have cerebral palsy and I use a wheelchair. My IEP plan allowed for me to have a desk that I can sit in with my wheelchair. My accessible desk helps me learn in class.”
- “I want to work after I graduate high school. My IEP plan gives me skills training on how to find and keep a good job. I learned how to write a resume. I also learned how to make to-do lists that help me finish projects.”
- “I will be starting college after I graduate high school. My special ed class taught me how to use the bus and train routes to get to my college lectures.”
- “I am a student with a disability. Because of IDEA, a paraprofessional helps me at school. Because of this help, I am in mainstream classes alongside my peers without disabilities. I learn social skills by making friends with all different types of students. This prepares me for real life, like going to the grocery store or laundromat.”
- If you are a parent of a child with disabilities, you can talk about how IDEA helps you make choices that are good for your family:
- “I come from a generation where people with disabilities were forced into institutions instead of schools. I am grateful that my child with a disability has more opportunities. That is all thanks to the rights that IDEA gives them.”
- “The school my child goes to tried to segregate them for non-disabled students. Administrators do not know what is best for my child. IDEA gives me the right to advocate for what my child needs in the classroom.”
- “My child with a disability can go to the same school as their older sibling who does not have a disability. This allows both of them to feel more comfortable and succeed at school.”
- You can talk about why special education should stay in the Department of Education instead of HHS
- “Disability is not something that can or should be cured. I am worried that if special education gets moved to HHS, they will try to take away the support that I need.”
- “I have heard very harmful things coming from HHS about autism recently. I am scared that those words will impact the way I can access school.”
- “If special education goes to HHS, I am worried that my school will not follow my IEP plan. The Department of Education is more qualified than HHS to make sure schools follow IEP plans.”
- If you do work that helps students with disabilities, you can talk about how the Department of Education supports your work:
- “I am a teacher of students with disabilities. The Department of Education helps with loan forgiveness for my teaching degree. I also get professional development because of a grant from the Department of Education to my state.”
- “I am part of my state government. I am grateful the Department of Education gives technical assistance. This TA helps my state meet IDEA’s data collection requirements.”
- “I am a school administrator. I am grateful the Department of Education makes sure I get the funding I need to best support my students.”
- “I am a paraeducator. I support students with disabilities in mainstream classes. IDEA grants for training help me support my students better. It is important for those grants to go to my school so I can support my students. Keeping IDEA in the Department of Education will make sure that happens. IDEA should stay in the Department of Education.”
Instructions for contacting your Members of Congress
Here are the instructions for finding and contacting your members of Congress:
- Go to this website: https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member
- There are two search bars. The correct search bar is under the words, “Find Your Members”
- Type your address into the 2nd search bar on the page
- To search, you can either
- Click the ‘enter’ button on your keyboard or
- Click the magnifying glass icon or
- Wait for a drop-down list to pop up, then click your address
- The website will take you to a new page that shows your three members of Congress. You have two Senators and one Representative. The website will show you all their contact information.
- To make a phone call, you can call the phone numbers. There is a different phone number for all three of your members of Congress.
- To send a written message, find the hyperlink that says “contact.” Click that hyperlinked word. Each link will take you to the website of your members of Congress. Most members of Congress use a form on their website to get written messages. They want people to fill out this form instead of sending an email.
If you need some help knowing what to expect on your phone call, read this resource.