Disability Scoop

With a pair of new hires and recent comments, advocates say the Trump administration appears to be actively laying the groundwork to transfer special education out of the U.S. Department of Education. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told a group of disability advocates she met with last month that she’s committed to proceeding with plans to move special education oversight to another federal agency.

Now, however, there are signs that a move could be taking shape, advocates say. Earlier this week, the Administration for Community Living at HHS announced that it has hired Diana Díaz-Harrison, who had been serving as deputy assistant secretary of the Education Department’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, or OSERS, as well as Rebecca Hines, who had been an associate professor of special education at the University of Central Florida. Rebecca Hines’ sister, Cheryl Hines, is married to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “Those moves seemed to indicate that programs for students with disabilities will move to HHS,” said Denise Marshall, CEO of the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, or COPAA, a nonprofit that advocates for the rights of students with disabilities and their families.