News Release

NCD #01-335
August 16, 2001
Contact: Mark S. Quigley
202-272-2004
202-272-2074 TTY
mquigley@ncd.gov

National Council on Disability Calls for Consistency for Students with Disabilities as They Go Back to School

WASHINGTON--The National Council on Disability (NCD) today called on educators for consistency for students with disabilities as they go back to school.

Congress crafted a statute in 1975 that, if faithfully implemented, will consistently produce quality outcomes for students with disabilities. The U.S. Code defines special education as "specially designed instruction" to meet the "unique needs" of these students; each student's individualized education program (IEP) is to set forth his or her unique needs and individually designed instruction; and, each student's placement is to be based on the IEP and no more restrictive than necessary (20 U.S.C. 1402(25); 34 C.F.R. 3000.552(a)(2)(b)). If IEPs are based on the unique needs of students, if instruction is individually designed, if IEPs are faithfully implemented, and if the least restrictive environment requirements are followed, students will achieve quality outcomes while enjoying maximum interactions with their nondisabled peers. Compliance with the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a sufficient condition for quality outcomes.

"IDEA is now the most significant aspect of the federal involvement in public education for children and youth with disabilities. Rich or poor, urban, suburban, or rural, all schools and districts are affected by special education. IDEA's basic premise is that all children with disabilities have a federally-protected civil right to have available to them a free appropriate public education that meets their schooling and related service needs in the least restrictive environment, in regular classes, in the school the student would attend if not disabled. It is a law designed to work for every eligible student. Students with disabilities need the guarantee of consistency and high standards in their education," said NCD chairperson Marca Bristo.

President George W. Bush has recognized the importance of the role that a strong and effective IDEA plays in ensuring that no child gets left behind: the President has provided his immediate and firm support of IDEA in his New Freedom Initiative (http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/freedominitiative/) and in his No Child Left Behind (http://www.ed.gov/inits/nclb/titlepage.html) education proposal, which is now before Congress.

In addition, Secretary of Education Rod Paige is now traveling across the country (http://www.ed.gov/inits/backtoschool/schedule.html) to ensure that all children receive a quality education with consistency in their instruction.

NCD's report, Back to School on Civil Rights (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/backtoschool_1.html), which examines the implementation and enforcement of IDEA, confirms what children with disabilities and their families have repeatedly told NCD: that adherence to the law leads to quality education and valuable student outcomes.