Jean Murrell Adams

August 2024

Disability is a natural part of the human experience and in no way diminishes the right of individuals to participate in or contribute to society. 20 USC §1400

When many of us think of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs, what comes to mind is ensuring race, sexual orientation or gender-based equity. But according to the National Institutes of Health, people with disabilities make up nearly 1/3 the United States adult population–making them the single largest minority group in the country. Some disabilities are apparent, while others are invisible. Disabling conditions may be congenital, progress over time or arise suddenly. As such, it is the only minority group that any of us might join at any time.

Currently, over 8 million students in our public schools are identified as a “child with a disability” qualifying for an Individualized Education Program (IEP) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  One of the hallmarks of the IDEA is that it rejects outdated social norms and policies that excluded children with disabilities from public education and society.  This bold law replaced pseudo-science and ignorance with the understanding that disability is normal, and children should be educated in the least restrictive environment (LRE) appropriate to meet their unique needs.  We expect and fight for children with disabilities to be educated with their neighbors—to learn and play together as children and eventually to live, work, wed, and worship together as adults—interwoven in the fabric of our society.

Prior to the IDEA and other civil rights laws protecting persons with disabilities in the 1970’s and 80’s, children were randomly branded as “unfit” (and other labels too repulsive to revisit here) and were marginalized, institutionalized and, in some cases, sterilized. The U.S. Department of Education reports that in 1970, our schools educated only 20% of children with disabilities, and many states had laws excluding certain students, including children who were deaf, blind, or had an emotional or intellectual disability. Nearly 2 million children with disabilities were completely excluded from public education.

California, as well as many other states, embraced the Eugenics Movement, which promoted the Nazi notion that the world’s social problems could be cured by selective breeding to remove “undesirable genes” from the gene pool. Eugenicists recommended that people they considered to be “unfit”, including those with mental and developmental disabilities, be sterilized or segregated from the rest of society so that they could not reproduce. History of Lanterman Act. Under this program, California involuntarily sterilized over 20,000 people as young as 11. For example, 15-year old Leonard Bissel was arbitrarily deemed “dull”, institutionalized and then sterilized under these heartless policies based on irrational genetic theories.  “Larry P.” who we now know as Darryl Lester, was one of tens of thousands of Black Californians secretly labeled as “educable mentally retarded” and placed in dead-end classes based on one racist IQ test and a “magical” IQ score. Larry P. v. Riles, 495 F. Supp. 926 (N.D. Cal. 1979).

As of the 2022-23 school year, we’ve progressed from an era of ignorance and exclusion, to providing more than 8 million children with disabilities with special education and related services designed to meet their individual needs. Over 95% of these children are enrolled in regular public schools and only 2% attend segregated schools for students with disabilities. But recent Supreme Court decisions as well as backward-looking policy schemes, threaten to erode the acceptance and inclusivity that many parents of children with disabilities have fought so very hard to achieve. We will detail these in future blogs.  For now, as the new school year begins, here are a few tips that parents can use to protect their child’s right to inclusion and safeguard the “I” in DEI:

• Monitor inclusion: Review all past IEPs for progress in inclusion. All your child’s IEPs will have a section stating the percentage of time in general education and percentage of time in special education. It will look something like this:

  All special education services provided at student’s school of residence? 0 Yes 0 No (rationale) ________
  _______% of time student is outside the regular class & extracurricular & non academic activities
  _______% of time student is in the regular class & extracurricular & non academic activities

  The percentage of time in the regular class & extracurricular & non-academic activities should be increasing each year. This usually means your child is improving and requires less time in a segregated classroom setting. If the amount of time in regular education is decreasing, this is a red flag that your child is not making adequate progress and may not be receiving a legally compliant education. Compare these percentages to the actual hours of special education and services that your child should be receiving under the IEP to ensure they match.

• Inclusion means safety. Your child should never be excluded from public education due to unsafe buildings, bathrooms or buses or unaddressed bullying in the classroom, playground or online.  Listen to your child, watch for warning signs of abuse such as unusual behaviors or sudden changes in mood, volunteer as a “room parent” or make friends with one to get eyes and ears in your child’s classroom.  Don’t take “no” for an answer if your child needs a trained 1:1 assistant at school or on the bus.
• Inclusion and transition. Inclusion involves preparation for students with disabilities to participate and contribute to society. Students with IEPs must have an Individual Transition Plan (ITP) by the time they turn 16. The purpose of an ITP is to map out their route to higher education, vocation or other means to societal inclusion. Demand that school personnel do the work necessary to prepare a meaningful and realistic post-graduation roadmap.
• Beware of suspensions and expulsions. Faced with teacher and aide shortages, we have witnessed many school districts and charters resort to suspending and expelling children with disabilities or putting them on “independent study” instead of providing the services that they need. In a recent case, instead of providing a 1:1 aide, the school expelled a nonverbal young child with autism for wielding a pair of children’s safety scissors.  Learn the special rules that apply to repeated suspension and expulsion of children with disabilities.
• Inclusion is worth fighting for. DEI programs and ideals include children with disabilities. Parents fought and changed the way our society views and safeguards the rights of our children to be inclusively educated and accepted. But the fight is not over and there are growing threats to return to pre-IDEA practices.  If you believe your child is being denied their legal rights to inclusion or any other protection guaranteed by the IDEA, fight back and seek legal assistance immediately.