Several states have invested in 1915(c) Home and Community Based Service (HCBS) Medicaid policies to improve outcomes and reduce costs for children and youth with significant behavioral health needs, or Severe Emotional Disturbance (SED). However, little is known about these programs and the children they serve. Through a retrospective…

Inclusive physical education and physical activity programs in schools provide equal opportunities for all students, including those with disabilities. All students, regardless of ability, should get the recommended 60 minutes or more of daily physical activity. Schools can help them meet this recommendation. This brief is for state education and…

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is one of America's most important laws, both in general and with respect to individuals with disabilities. Originally passed in 1990, the ADA recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. While ADA offers protection against discrimination for individuals with disabilities in a broad sense, it also offers…

This case study is designed for use in graduate courses in student affairs and higher education administration. This case presents some of the challenges that higher education professionals face concerning policies and laws as they relate to student mental illness and emotional support animals. Requests for emotional support animals are becoming…

This article describes disability laws and special education provisions in China, Kuwait, South Korea, Turkey, and the United States making note of the important role they have in the lives of people with disabilities. Anti-discrimination, rehabilitation, and special education laws enhance the quality of the lives of individuals with disabilities…

Today's challenges for special education funding are rooted in a complex regulatory and policy environment that reflects little forethought about who can and will pay special education costs. Despite the fact that states and school districts are legally required to ensure a free and appropriate public education to students with disabilities, the…

This article describes a 12-step model that can be used for policy analysis. The model encompasses policy development, implementation, and evaluation; takes into account structural foundations of policy; addresses both legal formalism and legal realism; demonstrates contextual sensitivity; and addresses application issues and different…

As the federal entity in charge of enforcing civil rights law, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) plays a critical role in addressing the vast inequities that exist in U.S. education. Through an analysis of the policy guidance OCR issued for a number of areas during the Obama administration, we illustrate the agency's…

The National Council on Disability (NCD) undertook this report to increase the understanding of guardianship and its impact on the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) and their families. Guardianship is the process through which an adult can be found legally incapable of making decisions for him or herself and…

The National Council on Disability (NCD) recognizes that technology is essential to the full realization of citizenship for people with disabilities. Yet society has not evolved to the point where this population uses technology to the extent needed to enjoy the rights of full citizenship, as recognized by the Constitution. As technology continues…

As the charter sector grows and evolves, information regarding these autonomous public schools of choice evolves as well. Prior to 2015, only a handful of reports included information about the status of students with disabilities in charter schools. In fall 2015, the National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools (NCSECS) published a…

The impact of employment laws pertaining to individuals with learning disabilities in Canada and dyslexia in the UK were investigated via the extant research literature. Currently, there is very little research in this area despite Canada and the UK having laws in effect for decades. Surprisingly, their laws have been revamped despite an absence…

The problem addressed by this study is the observed low levels of compliance with federal policy on website accessibility. The study examines the two key federal policies that promote website accessibility, using a side-by-side policy analysis technique. The analysis examines the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 508 of the…

While conversations around the inclusion of individuals with disabilities often focus on the educational rights and needs of children with disabilities during their school years, there is a growing recognition that the period of transition from secondary school to adult roles is a critical time in the lives of individuals with disabilities. For…

Scant information exists regarding the status of students with disabilities in the charter sector. With the release of the most recent U.S. Department of Education's Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), the National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools (NCSECS) embraced the opportunity to examine these issues across the universe of…