-
American Asylym for the Education and Instruction of the the Deaf and Dumb
Known now as the American School for Deaf, this school was the first special education school in the US. Based in Hartford Connecticut, this school was the first permanent school for deaf Americans. In 1817 "dumb" meant "unable to speak" but because most deaf students in this time did not learn to communicate many were also cognitively impaired. -
Rhode Island Compulsory Attendance
Special Education students were not yet accepted into public schools, however, in 1840, Rhode Island passed a law requiring that the government provide education to all children. -
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf And Blind
In 1870 West Virginia established the schools for the deaf and blind to provide those students with hearing and vision impairments a suitable education. https://www.wvsdb2.state.k12.wv.us/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=805634&type=d&pREC_ID=1 -
American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
In 1876, the American Association of Mental Retardation (AAMR), now AAIDD, was founded to "promote progressive policies, sound research, effective practices, and universal human rights for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities" https://www.aaidd.org/about-aaidd -
The Seperate Car Act
In 1890, Louisiana authorized Section 3 of the Act 111, The Separate Car Act, that required Louisiana railroad cars have “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races" which impacted the way schools were further segregated. -
Watson v. the City of Cambridge
The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled children who were "weak of mind" would be unable to benefit from instruction and because they were troublesome to other children, made "unusual noises" and were unable to take,"ordinary, decent, physical care of [themselves]" they could be expelled from public school. -
Compulsory Attendance in all States
By 1918 every state had a compulsory attendance law which required children to attend a public or state-accredited private school for a specific period of time. There are exceptions, however, all states have an official order for when children must begin school and how old they must be before dropping out. -
Beattie v. Board of Education
The Wisconsin Supreme Court rules that a student could be excluded from a school based on a disability. This was based off of a student whom although mentally able had condition that caused drooling which teachers found nauseating and so the courts agreed with school officials that these students "required too much of the teachers time and caused disruptions to the learning environment" -
Dr. Leo Kanner and the discovery of Autism
In 1943 Dr. Leo Kanner, a John's Hopkins professor, published a paper on Autistic Disturbances of Affective Contact describing "infantile autism." This was a different view from others whom stated children who were happy on their own, oblivious to everything around them, had temper tantrums when routines were interrupted and repeated words and phrases were "feeble-minded, retarded, moronic, idiotic or schizoid" https://www.spectrumnews.org/opinion/viewpoint/leo-kanners-1943-paper-on-autism/ -
Brown v. Board of Education
In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional and established separate but equal education and other services were not equal nor beneficial for students and had no place in education. https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/separate-but-not-equal-video -
PARC v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Between 1971 and 1972 the Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Citizens (PARC) v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania case helped the formation of FAPE, Free Appropriate Public Education. This ruled that no child, regardless of their disability, could be turned down for free public trainings and educational programs and that the quality of the education and training given to the children with disabilities had to match that of the education and training given to general students. -
Mills v. Board of Education
In 1972 the Mills v. Board of Education of District of Columbia case, just like the PARC case, ruled that students with disabilities must be given a public education even if the students are unable to pay for the cost of the education and that all children are entitled to free public education and training appropriate to their learning capacities. This gave way to the beginning of IDEA or Education for All Handicapped Children Act -
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act
In 1973, Section 504 as a part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a federal law that protects the rights of individuals with disabilities in federal programs and activities. It states that “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States… shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance….” -
EAHCA
In 1975, President Gerald Ford signed into law the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, Public Law 94-142, now The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). With EAHCA, the US' commitment to ensuring children with disabilities the opportunities to develop their talents, share their gifts, and contribute to their communities began. The law guaranteed access to a free appropriate public education, FAPE, in the least restrictive environment, LRE, to every child with a disability. -
Education is a responsibility of State
The House of Representatives passed a law stating that states were responsible for providing education, training, and research services. -
IDEA 1990
In 1990, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act , IDEA, replaced the EAHCA in order to place more focus on the individual, as opposed to a condition that individual may have and promoted research and technology development, details on transition programs for students post-high school and programs that educate children in their neighborhood schools, as opposed to separate schools. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
In 1990, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, ADA, protects against discrimination to the full range of state and local government services, programs, and activities including public schools regardless of whether they receive any Federal financial assistance. -
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind Act, NCLB, is a federal law passed by George W. Bush, that provides money for extra educational assistance for poor children in return for improvements in their academic progress. -
IDEA 2004
Congress reauthorized IDEA in 2004 in which it is stated that "disability is a natural part of the human experience and in no way diminishes the right of individuals to participate in or contribute to society. Improving educational results for children with disabilities is an essential element of our national policy of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities." -
IDEA 2015
In 2015, IDEA passed as Public Law 114-95, the Every Student Succeeds Act
