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Monday, April 6, 2020

NANCY BAILEY: Betsy DeVos and The Quest to End Public School Disability Services

Betsy DeVos and The Quest to End Public School Disability Services

Betsy DeVos and The Quest to End Public School Disability Services


There will be beautiful tulips next spring in 2021, if we correctly and lovingly plant the bulbs this coming fall.

Betsy DeVos

During this unprecedented and perilous time, The New York Times report “DeVos Weighs Waivers for Special Education. Parents Are Worried.” The $2 trillion coronavirus law gives the Queen of School Privatization unparalleled power to waive disability rights of students.
Administrators and educators say without the waivers they would be forced to meet unrealistic expectations and face costly lawsuits. Avoiding those consequences could mean that districts decide not to offer any education at all to students in the next two months.
In the meantime, parents and teachers struggle to help children learn in these difficult times, described well in “Why online learning is hard on students with special needs,” by Megan Reeves.
Parents have watched disability services dwindle for years. Is this the death knell for student disability rights in public schools?
DeVos is not reevaluating the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for CONTINUE READING: Betsy DeVos and The Quest to End Public School Disability Services