Special education services are crucial for enhancing outcomes and well-being among autistic students. Unfortunately, many racially and ethnically minoritized and girl autistic youth face challenges in timely and accurate identification. National-level data reveal autism prevalence rates differ across student gender, race, and ethnicity hindering…

Research increasingly seeks to answer the question: does special education work? This is different than asking if specific interventions have positive effects and instead aims to identify system-wide impacts. We systematically review published quantitative research on the impact of receiving special education services on student outcomes using…

Youth with disabilities continue to experience poor post-school outcomes as compared to their peers without disabilities. In this multilevel study, we used an intersectional lens to examine college and career readiness (CCR) among youth with and without disabilities (N = 3523). A CCR assessment yielded four domain scores: Academic Engagement and…

In April 2022, HB22-1255, "Concerning Measures to Improve Postsecondary Education Outcomes for Students with Disabilities" was signed into law by Governor Jared Polis. This is the second statewide report to include data on students with disabilities (SWDs). This year would have been the first year for which additional student outcomes…

Nonstructural student mobility--school changes not tied to grade-level promotion--is common and consequential yet remains underexamined in recent research. This paper analyzes the incidence, disparities, and predictors of nonstructural school mobility using longitudinal data from six demographically diverse California school districts, with…

In this registered report, we examined interrelationships between established constructs of self-determination and economic hardship using data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS2012). We tested the hypothesized factor structure of selected NLTS2012 items assessing constructs associated with self-determination (i.e.,…

Sense of belonging entails students' comfort level in the classroom and experienced faculty and peer support. A diminished sense of belonging can hamper academic performance. Therefore, it is important to know which student groups may experience weaker belonging and whether these disparities extend to students' authenticity, or perception they can…

This scoping review analyzes empirical research studies focused on Early Intervention (EI) services, covered under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in the United States, for children birth-to-3 years old with significant support needs (SSNs). The purposes were to gauge the landscape of literature in this area, understand…

This study investigated the value of ACT Composite scores and high school GPA (HSGPA) in predicting first-year college GPA (FYGPA) and degree completion of students with disabilities who took the ACT with accommodations and enrolled at a two-year or four-year public institution in a single state in the southern US. Descriptive analyses found that…

Although behavioral threat assessment and management (often shortened to "threat assessment") has become widely used in US schools, no studies have systematically examined how frequently schools conduct threat assessments and how threat assessment rates vary as a function of student and school demographics. Of particular concern is that…

The aim of inclusive education is to provide a supportive space for students from every background. The theory of intersectionality suggests that multiple identities intersect within social spaces to construct specific positionalities. To support the heterogeneity of all students, there is a need to understand who is in our Science, Technology,…

Academic acceleration, which enhances challenges for academically gifted students, can be subject-based or whole-grade. Limited research has explored its application in the twice-exceptional population, where students possess notable cognitive strengths and challenges due to psychological diagnoses. Our clinical study investigates the likelihood…

Given the increasing diversity in the nation's classrooms, educator preparation programs (EPPs) are evaluating and restructuring their existing programs to prepare preservice teachers to become inclusive and culturally responsive educators. Traditionally, EPPs have considered diversity as ethnicity, race, and/or culture. This study explored…

This book offers critical discussion of developing inclusive theory, practice, and policy that supports the needs and experiences of adult learners within higher education settings in the UK. The first part of the book shares the research of authors, all who have lived experience of their area of expertise, and the experiences and needs of adult…

Over sixty years following Brown vs. Board of Education, racial and socioeconomic segregation and lack of equal access to educational opportunities persist. Across the country, voluntary desegregation busing programs aim to ameliorate these imbalances and disparities. A longstanding Massachusetts program, METCO, buses K-12 students of color from…