-
Brown v. Board of Education
A significant milestone in the civil rights movement, Brown v. Board of Education declared that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional and violated the 14th amendment. This civil rights case laid the groundwork for desegregation efforts and equal access to education for all students. -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA)
The federal law was aimed to address inequalities and provide increased funding to schools serving disadvantaged students. Established by President Lyndon B. Johnson, ESEA was part of his "War on Poverty" initiative and created programs such as Title I -
PARC v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children (PARC) sued the state of Pennsylvania for a law that allowed public schools the right to deny education to children who did not exhibit signs of having a mental age of 5. The court rules that children with intellectual disabilities had the right to a free and appropriate public education and that schools should not exclude them based on their disabilities. -
Mills v. Board of Education
Some exceptional children in the state of British Columbia were being denied their right to education due to behavioral issues in school. The court rules that students with disabilities have a right to a free appropriate public education and schools can not deny a child because of mental, behavioral, physical, or emotional handicaps or deficiencies. This decision emphasized the importance of due process and ensuring equal educational opportunities for students with disabilities. -
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. Section 504 ensures that individuals with disabilities have equal access to programs, services, and activities, including education, employment, transportation, and public accommodations. -
Education of all Handicapped Children Act (PL 94-142)
This law mandated that all children with disabilities have access to free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment. It provided federal funding to schools and established procedural safeguards to ensure the rights of students with disabilities and parents. Education of all Handicapped Children Act is later renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). -
Public Law 99-457
PL 99-457 expanded upon the original Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA). The law extended to include children aged three to five and ensured that early intervention services and supports were available to children with disabilities during these years. It also introduced the concept of Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) and encouraged the inclusion of children with disabilities to be with their non disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. -
Hendrick Hudson School v. Rowley (1982)
Amy Rowley was a deaf student whose school refused to provide her with the services of a sign-language interpreter. Amy's parents sued the school, but the court system ruled against them due to Amy succeeding in school without the use of a sign language interpreter. This decision set the standards that schools must provide an education that is tailored to a student's unique needs, but does not necessarily require the provision of every possible accommodation or service to enhance education. -
Timothy W v. Rochester School District (1989)
Timothy W. was born severely disabled due to prematurity and birthing complications. When he became school-age, the Rochester School District denied him access to education as they believed he was too severely disabled to benefit from any of their resources. After many court cases, it was decided that Timothy would get an education and school boards were required to provide special education services to any disabled student regardless of the severity of his or her disabilities. -
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA was signed into law to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities and ensure equal opportunities in various aspects of life. This prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in employment, State and local government, public accommodations, commercial facilities, transportation, and telecommunication. -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
IDEA was designed to ensure children with disabilities receive equal access to quality education and the necessary support to thrive academically, socially, and personally. It provides a free and appropriate public education tailored to their individual needs by implementing individualized education plans (IEPs), special education services, parental involvement/procedural safeguards, and transition planning. -
No Child Left Behind
The 2002 update of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act required schools to ensure their teachers are "highly qualified" and test students in reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school. All students were expected to meet the state standards in reading and math by the year 2014. The primary goal of this act was to close achievement gaps and ensure that schools were boosting performance of subgroups (SPED, ESL, low-income). -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA)
Major reauthorization and revision to IDEA, the new law focused on incorporating early intervention for students, greater accountability, and improved educational outcomes. Congress also provided grants to states to grow their research and special education programs to allow more highly qualified teachers. The standards for instructors who teach special education classes were also raised. -
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
ESSA holds schools accountable for how students learn and achieve. Aiming to provide an equal education for disadvantaged students, it requires every state to provide parents with important information on test performance in reading, math, and science. This allows parents of students with disabilities to have access to clear information assisting them in knowing how their children are doing in school compared to the state standards. -
Endrew F v. Douglas County School District (2017)
The parents of Endrew F., a student with autism, disagreed with the individualized education program (IEP) provided by the school as they argued that it did not meet the requirement of FAPE. The supreme court ruled in favor of Endrew and stated that an IEP must be reasonably calculated to enable a child to make progress appropriate in light of the child's circumstances and not just to "some educational benefit".