Appropriately identifying children with disabilities--in ways that are timely, comprehensive, and accurate--is critical for ensuring that learners receive the supports they need to meet early milestones and succeed in school. In turn, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) charges states and school districts with: (1) finding all…

Though "Lau v. Nichols (Lau)" has garnered substantial educational gains for multilingual learners (MLs), we address two limitations. Namely, there is a need to historicize the interlocking language, ability, and racial differences and to examine MLs through an intersectional lens. We delineate the historical entanglements of language,…

I provide a broad frame for understanding racial disproportionality in special education by showing how the inequity is a byproduct of the educational debt. I used a single case study design that relied upon qualitative semi-structured interviews, document analyses, and school board meeting transcripts gathered from a mid-sized urban school…

Response to intervention (RTI) is a method for providing academic support to students and for identifying specific learning disabilities (SLDs). Using interrupted time series and hazard models, we examined if statewide RTI adoption in the U.S. state of Tennessee was associated with changes in rates of SLD and first-time SLD identification in…

This article proposes using the dimension of human resources planning (Rebore, 2011) as a vehicle to disrupt the racism and ableism in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (the "IDEA") that contributes to children of color being disproportionately overidentified into stigmatized disability categories which…

The Department of Education Charter Schools Program (CSP) provides grants to open or expand charter schools. Enrollment in charter schools that received CSP grants grew from 213,576 to 1,380,530 students from school years 2006-07 to 2020-21. This report examines (1) enrollment growth at new charter schools that received CSP grants compared to…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ([IDEA] 2004; IDEA Amendments 1997) is a civil rights--based law designed to protect the rights of students with disabilities in U.S. schools. However, decades after the initial passage of IDEA, racial inequity in special education classifications, placements, and suspensions are evident. In this…

In the 40-plus years since the "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act," special education has grown in the number of students and amount spent on services. Despite this growth, academic performance of students with disabilities remains troublingly low compared to general education students. To some extent, these differences reflect…

We used a situated approach to examine the aftermath of citations for racial disparities in special education and discipline. The study was conducted in one suburban school district and examined staff's interpretations and responses to multiple disproportionality citations. We found that historical, spatial, and sociocultural contexts mediated…

Particular racial/ethnic and class groups remain underrepresented within gifted and talented education (GATE). However, students who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) or gifted and disabled are also underrepresented but are often excluded from analysis. A cross-sectional design was to evaluate gifted enrollment data gathered by the…

The Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) is a mandatory survey of all public schools and school districts in the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It gathers information about student access to educational programs, activities, staff, and school climate factors from public schools serving students in preschool…

The National Council on Disability (NCD) undertook this report to increase the understanding of guardianship and its impact on the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) and their families. Guardianship is the process through which an adult can be found legally incapable of making decisions for him or herself and…

Students with disabilities (SWDs) are more likely to be suspended or expelled than their general education peers and more likely to be chronically absent. This study uses 5 years of student-level data for all Michigan special education students to examine the relationship between educational setting, absenteeism, and disciplinary outcomes. Using…

In the forty plus years since passage of the "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act" (IDEA), special education has grown in the number of students and amount spent on services. Despite this growth, the academic performance of students with disabilities (SWDs) remains troubling low compared to general education students (GENs). To…

This study presents a longitudinal analysis of racial inequities evidenced in placement patterns in the least restrictive environment (LRE). We compared placement trends in neighborhoods and charter schools for Black and White students receiving special education services (SRSES). Drawing from the concept of "institutional isomorphism"…