Earlier this month, during the United States government shutdown, the Trump Administration laid off most staff from the U.S. Department of Education’s special education offices. The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) and its branch, the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), oversee policies and programs that support students with disabilities nationwide. These cuts don’t just impact the staff members who lost their jobs, but they affect the nation’s 7.3 million children who rely on special education services everyday.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was passed 50 years ago with strong bipartisan support. The law made education for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21, free, accessible, and tailored to individual needs. It provides early intervention services and annual grants to states so schools can better support and fund special education. Before IDEA was passed, most children with disabilities were often denied entry to public schools. Now the Trump Administration is firing countless staff from the very office that ensures this is followed, which leaves serious questions about how it will be enforced.
The Office of Special Education Programs, or OSEP, is the office in the Department of Education that is responsible for distributing federal grants to states and ensuring that schools follow IDEA’s guidelines. Just this year, OSEP awarded $15 billion in federal grants to schools. When schools misuse these funds, OSEP notices and intervenes to address the issue. Not only does the office work with money and enforce the law, but it also ensures that parents know and understand their child’s rights under IDEA. When parents are concerned about the denial of services to their child or the rules implemented by IDEA, they can call OSEP and get help with whatever issue they may be facing. But, with 121 special education experts gone and only a handful remaining within OSEP, who will enforce IDEA and who will handle these issues?
Parents and all those affected across the country have reacted with a mix of denial, hope, and concern. Some believe the cuts won’t directly affect their children and that schools will still provide the support they need, while others worry that the loss of staff will strip students of their rights to a free and appropriate education. Few remain optimistic that OSEP’s power will be transferred to other departments, such as the Department of Health and Human Services.
As of now, federal worker cuts during the government shutdown have been temporarily halted by a federal judge, but it is unclear how long that will last. For families of children with disabilities, that uncertainty is terrifying, as the result could determine whether millions of students get the education that they are legally entitled to.