ESEA, Disability and the Lessons of the Past
As Congress and President Obama once again consider a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), it is critical that we reflect on the lessons of the past in order to better plan for our future.
On April 11, 1965 at the signing of the ESEA, President Lyndon B. Johnson stated, "we rekindle the revolution - - the revolution of the spirit against the tyranny of ignorance." President Johnson included the ESEA as part of his war on poverty, believing that by ensuring a quality education for all children, children would be more likely to attain financial stability in adulthood.
However, forty years later, it is clear that the original intent of the ESEA has still not been met for too many children, especially children with disabilities. Indeed, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2014 the poverty rate for adults with disabilities was 28.7% as opposed to 13.6% for non-disabled adults. It is imperative that we demand that all children, including those with disabilities be given access to a high quality education in order to fulfill the original intent of ESEA. To do otherwise would subject people with disabilities to a life of poverty and dependency.
When the ESEA was last reauthorized in 2001, then called the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), it made sweeping changes to education and redefined the role of the federal government in education. It was a controversial, flawed and hotly debated law.
But despite the many limitations of NCLB, it wasn't all bad. The requirement that State and Local Education Agencies report to the public when groups of students fail to make academic progress has been a critical tool for those of us fighting to ensure students with disabilities get the services and supports they need to be successful in ESEA, Disability and the Lessons of the Past | Curtis L. Decker, JD:
