Last week, a diverse coalition of professional, legal and advocacy organizations, including the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), met with Department of Education Chief of Staff Nate Bailey, Acting General Counsel Reed Rubenstein and OSERS Assistant Secretary Johnny Collett to discuss what the coalition considered to be an imminent threat of a policy reinterpretation of the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) provisions, which is a cornerstone of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The concern was generated by credible information that the Department of Education was planning to alter or reinterpret the law’s presumption -- that all children with disabilities will be educated in the general education classroom; except in the rare circumstance that the student cannot get a satisfactory education in that environment even with supplementary aids and services. Any reinterpretation of LRE would alter or weaken IDEA’s clear requirement that general education must be the first consideration for placement for every student.
At the meeting, the coalition was assured by Mr. Bailey that there would be no such reinterpretation of LRE in the immediate future, and that the Department of Education (Department) would uphold the law. However, he noted that nothing was off the table as part of the Department’s Rethink Framework. The Department provided assurances to the coalition that they would collaborate with stakeholder groups and experts in the field, though the coalition made its opposition clear to any and all reinterpretations of LRE – a basic tenet of IDEA - that could infringe upon the civil rights of children with disabilities.
Read a statement that reflects the position of a broad coalition of stakeholders.
Read a statement of principles on LRE from the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Education Task Force.
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