1 in 6 American children are diagnosed with developmental disabilities.
A revised IDEA Act would provide equal special education funding for every student who needs it in the USA. Let’s work together to get it passed.
120 Democrats support an IDEA Amendment to fund all students in special education. Only 11 Republicans support it. Ask them why.
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Learn More.
The current IDEA Act only partially funds special education services which are overwhelming public education in urban areas. As it stands, special education is a federal mandate without the needed federal funding.
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1 in 6 children have special needs
Special education cases are skyrocketing in the United States. As of 2022, about one in six American students have been diagnosed with one or more developmental disabilities or developmental delays that require special services.
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IDEA's status in Congress
120 Democrats in Congress support the revised IDEA Act for full funding of needed special education services. Only 11 Republicans support it. Ask your Republican leaders why they are blocking equal funding for all Americans in special education.
Read about the IDEA amendment and why it needs to pass.
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Rural students receive more.
Rural students in special education receive more federal funding. Urban students who need special education services receive less federal funding per student. Republicans have voted to give more funding to rural students in special ed than to urban students who need the same supports.
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A 1975 federal mandate without federal funding
Congress has never fulfilled its promise to provide most of the funding for special education services in public education, where it is required by federal law. Private schools are not required to provide special education.
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IDEA Amendment 2021 for full federal funding
Republicans in Congress are blocking the passage of this legislation. Ask your Republican representatives in the House and the Senate to support the amendment to provide equal special education funding for students with special needs in urban schools.
Contact your Republican Representatives in Congress and ask them to support all Americans in special education by passing the IDEA Amendment H.R. 5984. We need House support first, then the Senate’s support:
Special Education Calculator:
How many Special Ed teachers should your school have? Based on CDC data, 1 out of every 6 students or 16.66% of the student body may need special services. Plug in your school data here to get an initial estimate then compare the estimate to the actual number of cases now at your school:
Total # of students at your school x .167 = Estimated # of students in special ed ÷ 28 students (the maximum load* per RSP teacher) = Estimated # of special education teachers needed to serve students with mild/moderate disabilities at your school site.
For example: If your elementary school has 500 students x .167 = ~83 students needing special services ÷ 28 students per RSP teacher = about 3 special ed teachers may be needed at your school to serve all students with mild/moderate needs. Many elementary schools have only one RSP teacher, which means each special ed teacher is doing 2-3x the legal load limit.
The California shortage in special education is a funding shortage, not a manpower shortage.
There has been a 66% increase in the number of college students in California earning their preliminary credential in special education but only 10% of these credentialed teachers are clearing. Most burn out from excessive load in 1-2 years. The CSETs are not the problem. Having enough teachers who want to teach students in special ed is not the problem. The excessive loads are the problem. We can fix that with equal federal funding for all students. Until we have equal funding for all students, the cost for each additional special education teacher would have to come directly out of funds for general education which could dramatically increase classroom sizes and undermine public education for all students.
*Calculator note: If some students have severe disabilities, the number of special education teachers needed at a school would be higher due to the much smaller class sizes required to provide intensive supports for students with severe education needs.