National policy affects local practice in a variety of ways and through a variety of mechanisms. In this article, the authors examine what has been learned from Individuals With Disabilities Education Act's (IDEA) two early childhood (EC) programs about the power and limitations of policy as a lever to improve the lives of young children.…

This article discusses the recent changes to the Higher Education Opportunities Act (HEOA), P.L. 110-315, which have resulted in providing greater access to college programs to students with intellectual disabilities (ID). Prior to the amendments to HEOA, only students who were enrolled full time in a degree bearing program were eligible to…

Response to intervention (RTI) arose, in part, from the limited success of the pre-referral process, an approach advocated in the 1980s and 1990s, and accurately measuring the discrepancy between aptitude and achievement in young children. Reflecting these concerns, when the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was reauthorized in…

This report is the result of a year-long effort by the National Council on Disability (NCD) to identify valid federal data and to describe the status of the U.S. population of Americans with disabilities. During the past 30 years, advocates, policymakers, and a variety of public and private organizations have undertaken significant efforts to…

This paper aims to inform federal education policy by examining Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and two federal efforts to improve teacher quality, the Eisenhower Professional Development Program and the highly qualified teacher provisions of the No Child Left…

Obtaining sufficient funding to cover ever-increasing costs of services for students with disabilities is a critical responsibility for state and district special education directors. Medicaid is a possible source of support for certain school-based services in conjunction with other federal funds. This policy analysis provides a brief background…

State and federal mandates for education reform call for increased accountability and the inclusion of students with disabilities in all accountability efforts. In the rush to implement high-stakes education reforms, particularly those involving tests or assessments, the particular needs of students with severe cognitive disabilities are only now…

The ways in which the needs of special populations--students in poverty, English learners, and particularly special education students--have been addressed in studies measuring educational adequacy vary widely. This paper analyzes how these populations have been treated across various adequacy studies, with its major focus on special education…