Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Department of Justice is suing the State of Georgia after an investigation into the Georgia Network for Educational and Therapeutic Support, a state-run special education services program.
- The Huffington Post reports the lawsuit alleges GNETS segregates students with special needs by unnecessarily putting them in separate classrooms or schools, some of which served as schools for black students in the Jim Crow era.
- The complaint says students placed in GNETS programs do not get equal access to educational opportunities, including access to grade-level instruction, certified teachers, elective and extracurricular activities and a diverse classroom that includes interaction with non-disabled peers, but Georgia School Superintendent Richard Woods says the program is a critical resource for the children it serves.
Dive Insight:
The Americans with Disabilities Act frames inclusion as a social justice issue. Just as black students had a right to learn alongside their white peers in the Civil Rights era, students with disabilities have a right to learn alongside their typically abled peers, when possible. The ADA requires schools to put students in the least restrictive environment, meaning a general education environment should always be considered first before settling on an alternative. Even if students do all their learning in special education classrooms, they often get to eat lunch or walk through the hallways with their peers. This is important for them, and it also exposes students in general education programs to more diversity, helping them develop a comfort and familiarity with all types of people, which will serve them later in life.
Research has identified significant benefits of inclusion for students with disabilities over the last couple decades. There are, of course, liabilities that come with the practice and additional costs for schools. The challenges, of course, do not change the requirements laid out in the law.