Steven Aleman, Attorney and Policy Specialist
Today Disability Rights Texas marks the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) report on the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) violations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The federal report on TEA contained unprecedented findings against a state for major violations of special education law.
TEA created a five-year action plan in April 2018 as required by the federal government. In October 2018, TEA issued an update on progress on the plan. It’s main accomplishment in 2018 was expansion of its special education monitoring branch.
The state must continue to be held accountable for reforming TEA and improving the identification of and services to students with disabilities in Texas public schools. In 2019, the U.S. Department of Education is expected to return to Texas to review TEA’s progress on the plan. And Disability Rights Texas will continue to track TEA’s efforts and share our findings during the federal on-site monitoring visit.