Every child should have access to quality education—including additional supports for children with disabilities, who often face unique learning barriers. Education can empower children to reach their goals and create positive impacts in their communities. While most aspects of our education system are regulated at state and local levels, the federal government plays a key role in promoting fair, quality education, especially for the most vulnerable children.
Protecting Education Access for Children with Disabilities
Education rights/protections for children with disabilities exist in America thanks to the creation of particular federal laws and federal systems. In the 1970s, Congress passed the first version of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), mandating equal access to free and appropriate public education (FAPE) for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21. Before IDEA, many schools prohibited children with disabilities from receiving mainstream education or placed them in institutional facilities that stunted, if not erased, children’s potential for learning and development. By granting the right of education to all children, IDEA aimed to end widespread exclusion of children with disabilities from public education.
IDEA has since evolved as part of a robust legal framework that protects the educational rights of children with disabilities. This framework helps parents, teachers, administrators, and students collaboratively ensure that children stay in school and participate in school-based activities like their non-disabled peers.
The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) is responsible for implementing, supporting, overseeing, and enforcing the requirements of IDEA and other federal laws that promote equal access to education (like Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act). Several examples of the DOE’s vital protections and services are listed below:
Distributing Congressionally-allocated funding to help public schools comply with IDEA requirements, including funds that are necessary to fulfill students’ Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). Many schools, especially in rural or under-resourced communities, cannot meet students’ needs and IDEA requirements without the backing of IDEA-related funds.
Investigating and resolving possible school violations of disability protection laws. When parents believe a school is not appropriately identifying or serving their child with a disability, they can use the DOE’s collaboration and dispute resolution processes to advocate for equal education for their children. DOE’s Office of Civil Rights can act as a neutral fact-finder and facilitate voluntary negotiations to resolve concerns, saving families and school systems the costs/time of federal lawsuits.
Ensuring that special education teachers are “highly qualified” in accordance with IDEA and other federal/state laws. DOE ensures that special education teachers have appropriate skills, training, and certifications to meet the unique instructional needs of students with disabilities.
Collecting data, supporting research, and promoting/conducting training about the unique opportunities and challenges that children with disabilities have in school. This data contributes to the development of innovative techniques that help schools and educators serve children from preschool to college.
Overseeing grant programs, distributing federal funds, and otherwise supporting services that help students with disabilities earn high school diplomas, attend transition internship programs, and get accepted to colleges and universities to further their education.
We must proudly build on the strides our nation has made since the 1970s, and we must never backtrack education access for children with disabilities. The essential rights created by our Congress, which drastically improved opportunities for students with disabilities, must always be supported.
Advancing Education Quality through Research, Information Sharing, and Coordination
The federal government plays an important role in advancing PK-12 and collegiate education quality—through research, data collection, information sharing, training, and coordination of nationwide programs. All of the following federal policies and activities flow through the DOE for the benefit of families nationwide:
Collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data—identifying trends, best practices, proven teaching techniques, and innovations (such as artificial intelligence for education) that help schools and learners adapt to changing societal, educational, and technological landscapes. DOE disseminates this information to Congress, school districts, and the public.
Providing collaborative platforms for states, local school boards, public and private educational institutions, research institutions, community organizations, and families to improve education.
Coordinating research, information sharing, and programs across the country, to allow states and schools to keep their commitment to continuous improvement.
Providing educational resources for parents, students, and families to improve education, from birth through high school and beyond.
Protecting Education Access in Low-Income Communities
Title I funding, which is appropriated by Congress and, then, allocated and distributed through the DOE, ensures that economically-disadvantaged children receive a quality education. Title I provides financial assistance to schools based on their numbers of low-income students—giving schools the resources required to provide quality education in low-income communities, and to meet the requirements for students with disabilities IDEA. Over 60% of American U.S. schools qualify for and rely on these funds.
Additionally, to ensure accountability of federally-funded education programs, DOE has a collaborative process (working with federal, state, and local education officials) to resolve audit issues, that were previously often subject to lengthy—and costly—legal battles.~ ~ ~
Why does this matter?
Education is shaped by federal, state, and local policies, but some protections—such as IDEA and Title I—exist only at the federal level. Currently, the DOE is central to enforcing educational rights and ensuring every child’s access to quality education. Schools nationwide rely on the funding, data, and resources provided through the DOE. To ensure America’s kids get the best education possible, these protections and services should not be undermined.
The Children’s Law Center (CLC) helps families advocate for their children’s right to an education—and achieving this goal would be impossible without the federal systems that enforce and promote these rights. Based on CLC’s 36-years of experience serving youth, we know the value of robust education access, enforcement of educational rights, and provision of high-quality information and resources to schools and communities. We also know that the federal system consistently helps states and school districts nationwide to determine and implement the best educational methods, standards, and interventions that support each child’s success. CLC will continue to zealously fight for all children’s legal rights to high-quality education.
For more information about DOE’s role, go to An Overview of the U.S. Department of Education: How Does ED Serve Students? | U.S. Department of Education. For more on CLC’s service to children, visit our website: Children's Law Center, KY.
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This post was written by Nick Caprino, CLC Deputy Director; Sara Bitter, CLC Attorney; and Sasha Naiman, CLC Executive Director.
Nick Caprino joined the Children’s Law Center as a staff attorney in 2022 and was promoted to Deputy Director in 2024. Nick is working on the Crime Victim Project as well as education-access cases.
Nick graduated from the University Of Notre Dame in 2009 and served with AmeriCorps for one year. Nick graduated from the University Of Cincinnati College Of Law in 2013. From 2013 to 2022, Nick practiced law as a public defender in the Covington, Kentucky, Trial office of the Department of Public Advocacy. Nick is married with two children and loves movies and running long distances.
Sara Bitter joined Children’s Law Center as a staff attorney in September 2024. Sara has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Cincinnati and a Juris Doctor from Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She is also a Law Trainee Graduate of the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) Program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
Sara has worked at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the University of Cincinnati University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCCEDD) where she worked on statewide policies and programs in Ohio in the areas of employment, community integration, and peer support for families of children and adults living with developmental disabilities, special health care and mental health needs. Previously, Sara was the Co-Chair for the 2015 Cincinnati ReelAbilities Film Festival and Chair of the Education Outreach Committee.
Sara has been an active volunteer and served on numerous boards, including Disability Rights Ohio, Ohio's Protection and Advocacy (P&A) system, and Client Assistance Program (CAP) for people with disabilities. Sara currently serves as the President of the Board of Education in the Sycamore Community School District. Sara is married with two children and loves traveling and hiking.
Sasha Naiman joined the Children’s Law Center in October 2021. As a public-interest attorney and policy advocate, Sasha has deep experience serving vulnerable people in our region. She is especially passionate about providing legal representation, community education, and policy reform for youth in Ohio and Kentucky. Before joining the Children’s Law Center, Sasha was the Deputy Director of the Ohio Justice & Policy Center, where she worked for a decade, represented people in the criminal-legal system, and led organizational operations and strategies.
Sasha has been a member of multiple community and nonprofit Boards in Greater Cincinnati. She received her J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis and her B.A., magna cum laude, in English and Political Science from Boston University. During law school, Sasha worked for the St. Louis Equal Housing Opportunities Council, the Juvenile Rights and Reentry Clinic, and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Access to Justice Initiative (in Washington, D.C).