K-12 Dive

The U.S. Department of Education is working with school districts and states to expand school choice models for students with disabilities that will spur innovative and effective learning opportunities, a top federal special education official said during opening remarks Tuesday at the Office of Special Education Programs’ annual conference. “Our goal is to expand choices for students with special needs so that every family has options to find the best-fit school for their child and not have it be the other way around, where they have to force their child to be a fit in a school that may not be for them,” Diana Diaz-Harrison, deputy assistant secretary of the department’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, told the 1,200 conference attendees.

At the same time, the Education Department is striving to expand choice options beyond the traditional public school, Diaz-Harrison said, and it will be honoring the nearly 50-year-old Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that guarantees educational rights to students with disabilities. She asked education leaders across the nation “to implement IDEA with innovation in mind” and to “uphold civil rights while embracing 21st century tools.” IDEA practices must evolve, she said. “Families are seeking choices, flexibility, innovation, high quality, and specialization. The promise of IDEA must adapt to the current landscape of education options and to new options.” This includes giving states and districts more decision-making power and flexibility, Diaz-Harrison said.