CEC Policy Insider

U.S. Department of Education Issues Guidance to Combat Bullying; CEC Addresses Positive School Climate in Policy Statement

Today, the U.S. Department of Education issued guidance to education stakeholders – including schools, higher education institutions, and states – to clarify when student bullying may violate federal anti-discrimination laws.  This guidance comes on the heels of many recent media accounts of bullying that has led to numerous student deaths. 

Specifically, the guidance – which comes in the form of a “Dear Colleague” letter from U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan – seeks to provide more information on the relationship between bullying and discriminatory harassment.  The letter provides examples of harassment and illustrates how a school should respond in each case, including responding to bullying against students with disabilities. 

National Council on Disability names Capitol Hill Veteran as Executive Director

Last week, the National Council on Disability (NCD) announced  that Senate Health, Education, Labor, Pensions Committee (HELP Committee) staffer, Aaron Bishop, will become NCD’s new Executive Director in November. Mr. Bishop currently works for Senator Enzi (R-WY) as a Professional Staff Member on the HELP Committee, and has almost 20 years of experience working on disability issues in both the public and private sectors. CEC has worked closely with him during his tenure on Capitol Hill on various special education policies.

Classroom Overcrowding Prompts Quebec to Reconsider Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in General Education

The Quebec Department of Education, along with the Quebec Provincial Association of Teachers and francophone teachers’ unions, hosted a forum on October 25, 2010 to discuss overcrowding in schools and potential implications for the Province’s integration policy for children with disabilities.

Speak Out on Behalf of Special and Gifted Education! Share Your Story with CEC!

Every year, CEC publishes the Federal Outlook for Exceptional Children, providing an overview of federally-funded programs – IDEA and Javits grants – that impact the lives of children and youth with disabilities and/or gifts and talents.  The Outlook is distributed to members of Congress, federal agencies, and other leaders in the education community with the hope that a better understanding of such programs will lead to increased federal funding for special/gifted education programs.  

Honor IDEA’s 35th Anniversary by Sharing Your Story, Artwork with the U.S. Department of Education

Next month marks the 35^th anniversary of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142) now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.  To commemorate this anniversary the U.S. Department of Education is collecting stories, artwork, photography, and poetry about how IDEA has positively impacted children and youth with disabilities and the professionals who work on their behalf.

On November 29, 1975 President Ford signed this landmark legislation into law which provides children and youth with disabilities access to a free appropriate public education provided in the least restrictive environment.  IDEA has impacted the lives of millions of individuals with and without disabilities.