The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the federal special education law providing funding, technical assistance, and monitoring to ensure students with disabilities receive appropriate education. In the $2.2 trillion CARES Act is a provision that gives United States Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to seek congressional approval in waiving parts of IDEA during the pandemic. The provision gives Secretary DeVos up to thirty days to submit recommendations for waivers believed to be necessary in current times.The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the federal special education law providing funding, technical assistance, and monitoring to ensure students with disabilities receive appropriate education.

From The New York Times:

Schools are scrambling to shift classes online as more than 55 million children stay at home. For now, that has upended special education, which is administered through meticulously devised plans called Individualized Education Programs, or I.E.P.s, which require extensive services that are not easily transferred to the internet.

Students who qualify can have moderate to severe disabilities and require a range of support, such as tutoring and behavioral assistance, hands-on services like physical and occupational therapy, and specialized staff. Such services are critical for school districts to comply with IDEA’s mandate that students with special needs receive an education comparable to that of their peers.

This possibility has caused a clash between many involved in the special education process. While advocacy groups such as The Education Trust, Center for American Progress, and National Center for Learning Disabilities say the waiver is not necessary, others such as The School Superintendents Association disagree.