Houston Public Media

Dozens of parents, teachers, and students spoke out against Houston ISD’s move to centralize special education services at the district’s school board meeting Thursday night. The plan, announced last week after several news outlets, including Houston Public Media, reported on the proposed changes, taps some schools as special education hubs and would move thousands of students in special education to 150 campuses in order to access their classes and programs. The move prompted the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights to open an investigation into HISD for potentially violating the rights of students with disabilities. The district defended its forthcoming changes and, for now, is still moving forward with the plans despite the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights opening a federal investigation into the district over the changes. The investigation, opened just two days after the district announced its changes, seeks to learn if the updates to special education violate the rights of students with disabilities.