Slate

When reduction-in-force notices went out to hundreds of Department of Education employees as part of the shutdown, more than 100 of these DOE workers were part of the team that oversaw special ed around the country. They ensured resources got distributed equitably, and had been doing that since the ’70s. Now, they are simply not there. A court has put these firings on hold, but that hasn’t made parents feel much better. Pepper Stetler knows this well. Stetler is a professor who writes about education and disability, and her 13-year-old daughter, Louisa, has Down syndrome. It’s not like special ed in this country has been perfect. But for 50 years, it has been there. The federal government has acted as a watchdog, stepping in if states fail to deliver the right to education to disabled children. But even with the government set to reopen, many of the cuts to special education may remain.