The U.S. Department of Education’s (DoE) Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) issued a dear colleague letter on August 24 reiterating its commitment that children with disabilities and their families have successful early intervention and educational experiences for the 2021-22 school year. As it did last year in a Q&A document released on […]
Special Education
School Mask Mandate Updates
U.S. DOE’s Office for Civil Rights Enters the Fray by Initiating Discrimination Investigations Against States with Mask Prohibitions On Monday, August 30, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened investigations into five states that prohibit schools from setting universal mask mandates. Letters were sent to the chief state school officers of […]
New Federal Guidance from OSEP: a COVID-19 Q&A
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) published a new COVID-19 Q&A on September 28, 2020 (OSEP QA 20-01). While OSEP explicitly cautions that the Q&A “is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements,” it nonetheless provides insights on how long-standing rules and laws will be applied […]
COVID-19 Update: Services for Special Education Students
UPDATE (3/12/20 at 6:20 PM): At 6 PM on March 12 the US Department of Education released new guidance on special education and COVID-19 that is available here. In the past 48 hours it seems as if the already rapidly developing story of COVID-19, or novel coronavirus, has accelerated even more. With major spectator events […]