Special Education
Laws & News
Across the States
CA: New pizza shop ‘Pizzabilities’ in Alpine employs disabled young adults
NBC 7 San Diego
‘Pizzabilities’ had its grand opening on Saturday in Alpine, right along Alpine Boulevard. The pizza shop has a pretty clever name, considering they provide possibilities for each and every employee who works there. Grace Baker was one of the store’s first employees. She has Down Syndrome. Josh Baker is her dad, and he’s also one of the owners. Baker told NBC 7 that his daughter just graduated from high school at 19 years old, and was having a tough time locking down a job. That’s when inspiration struck. “She loves pizza, and I’m a business owner, and let’s see what we can do,” said Baker. “We started this in hopes of being able to create jobs for people with special needs who are otherwise having a difficult time finding employment,” he added.
CA: California shows how states can step up for young students with disabilities
The 74
California is emerging as a national model for how states can better support young children with disabilities by bridging long-standing gaps between early childhood education and special education systems. The state has launched a series of initiatives aimed at improving access to services, streamlining referrals, and training educators to identify and respond to developmental delays earlier. These efforts include pilot programs to coordinate care across agencies, updated data systems, and professional development focused on inclusion. By proactively addressing the fragmented support systems that often delay or limit services for young learners with disabilities, California is demonstrating how state-level action can lead to more equitable and effective early intervention.
FL: In the name of parental rights, new law requires sign-off for corporal punishment in Florida schools
Florida Phoenix
HB 1255, passed this spring, requires parents to consent to corporal punishment either for the school year or before each instance the punishment is used in traditional public and charter schools. Kim Winker, the Moms for Liberty Florida legislative chair for the 2025 session, told the Phoenix the law is “the right way to go” and benefits schools, teachers, administrators, parents, and students — and that she, too, was surprised to learn that corporal punishment was still occurring in Florida. “We were concerned that parents were not given the right to opt in to student corporal punishment, and the fact that it was being disproportionately used on disabled students was concerning to us, as well. We wanted to advocate for allowing parents to decide the discipline decisions being made on their children at school,” Winker said, adding that she is “definitely for” an outright ban on corporal punishment. According to data compiled by the Policy Forum, while students with disabilities comprise around 20% of school enrollment, in 2023-2024, they accounted for around 40% of corporal punishment inflictions.
TN: Tennessee schools may soon require less red tape to remove students with disabilities from classrooms
WPLN News
It may soon be easier for Tennessee schools to remove students with disabilities from classrooms. But advocates worry the removals may be overused and make behavioral assessments of these students less effective. The Tennessee Board of Education is considering a rule that will allow schools to remove students with disabilities who are a “disruptive force” from classrooms to a more restrictive environment. Typically, teachers needed to complete a functional behavioral assessment or revise a behavior assessment plan before removal, per a 2022 state law. The Tennessee Department of Education noted that teachers expressed having great difficulty educating students with disabilities who are presenting significantly dangerous or disruptive behavior. The proposed rule would allow teachers to conduct behavioral assessments after the student has been removed from the classroom to a more restrictive environment.
VA: Report outlines challenges of Va.’s special education compliance system, recommends improvements
Virginia Mercury
After years of inconsistencies and complaints, Virginia has moved closer to revising its process for reporting issues with special education services, aiming to improve the structure and ensure that families receive the necessary services for their students with disabilities. The issues with the state’s dispute resolution system — an impartial procedure for parents and schools to resolve disagreements over issues with special education services — have created a divide among parents and public school leaders for at least the past five years.
Wendy Little, a parent advocating for her son who is autistic, spoke on Monday to the state’s dispute resolution system advisory group as it reviewed a study with findings about the existing system and recommendations for bettering it. Her son’s story was a key inspiration for the formation of the advisory committee through successful legislation to address the system. She called for an overhaul of the current system to resolve problems special needs families face concerning their children’s education.
CT: Connecticut’s special education infrastructure to undergo independent review
fox61.com
Connecticut’s special education infrastructure, processes, support, and accountability systems are set to be reviewed by WestEd, a national organization with significant expertise in special education. Connecticut Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker announced this week that WestEd’s comprehensive evaluation of the Connecticut State Department of Education, or CSDE, will analyze all facets of special education in the state’s public schools. This includes how complaints are received, tracked, investigated, and resolved.
MI: Montcalm County Intermediate School District to end student seclusion
Detroit Free Press
A small school district in central Michigan has agreed to end its practice of isolating children with disabilities in rooms in a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, according to a July 3 news release. Montcalm County Intermediate School District was one of the subjects of a 2022 Detroit Free Press investigation over restraint and seclusion tactics used on students with disabilities across the state.
The DOJ investigation found that district staff used seclusion and restraint tactics improperly, using the tactics on students — which under state law should only be used as a last resort where a student poses a threat to themselves or others — “as punishment for normal classroom discipline issues.” In the agreement dated June 27, Montcalm officials deny that the district discriminated against students in their restraint and seclusion practices, “but wishes to avoid the costs, time-burdens, and risks of further legal proceedings.”
TX: Parents demand accountability after alleged abuse at El Paso school
KFOX TV
The El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) police arrested special education teacher Rachael Lucas and paraprofessional David Gonzales last week. According to court documents, Lucas is accused of hitting multiple non-verbal special needs students with objects, including her cellphone, a dustpan, and several toys. In one instance, she allegedly struck a child on the rear of his head with a broom. Gonzales is accused of striking a student with an open hand. The incidents were reportedly captured on camera. Parents of the alleged victims have requested access to the video footage from the district, but their requests have not been fulfilled.
WI: Special education funding increased in new state budget
WSAW News
Among the allocations in the state budget that Gov. Tony Evers signed Thursday morning were increases to special education funding. Schools, families, and advocates were requesting that the state reimbursement for general special education expenses increase from about 30% to 60% sum sufficient. The final budget landed in a compromise. The governor and legislators touted that what ended up getting signed into the budget is the highest reimbursement rate in 30 years. Reimbursement of general special education expenses to schools will increase to 42% in the first year and 45% in the second year.
Learn In My Shoes, the grassroots parent campaign advocating for more special education funding, provided a statement about the budget, saying in part: “While these investments fall far short of the 60% or more sum sufficient reimbursement our communities desperately need, we are grateful for the long overdue, bipartisan compromise that invests in kids, families, and communities.”
FL: Broward schools to bring back cameras in special-needs classes
Sun Sentinal
Cameras are expected to return to Broward County’s special-needs classrooms to help parents determine whether their child may have been abused or mistreated at school. The program, which was last used in Broward schools during the 2023-24 school year, allowed parents to request cameras be placed in their children’s Exceptional Student Education classrooms and allowed the parents to review the footage if they suspected there was an incident. The idea is that many special-needs students are non-verbal or may have difficulty communicating what happened at school, which can be particularly troubling if a child comes home from school agitated or bearing a bruise, advocates for special-needs children say. So at the urging of some Broward parents, the state Legislature agreed in 2021 to designate Broward as the site of a three-year pilot county for a program. From 2021 to 2024, the district received 320 camera-installation requests and 32 parent requests to view footage.