Opinion THOUGHT LEADER Looking Back & Moving Forward: A Time of Reflection WRITTEN BY LINDA F. BLUTH, ED.D.
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little over 40 years ago, on Nov. 29, 1975, President Gerald
Ford signed into law the Ed- ucation for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94- 142), currently known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Tis landmark civil rights legislation opened public school education for the most severely disabled children and simulta- neously set forth the foundation for our country’s commitment to ensuring that children with disabilities receive access to a “free appropriate public education” (FAPE). In 1975, it was documented that nearly
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1.8 million youths with disabilities were excluded from public schools. Currently, the number of students with disabilities receiving special education and related services has increased to more than 6.9 million students, and exclusion from a public education is not an option. On Nov. 16 of last year, the U.S. De-
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38 School Transportation News • MARCH 2016
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partment of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services issued a letter to colleagues from the Assistant Secretary Michael K. Yudin and Melody Muscgrove, director of the Office of Special Education Programs. Te letter states that, “Te cornerstone of the IDEA is the enti- tlement of each eligible child with a disability to a free appropriate public education (FAPE) that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet the child’s unique needs and that prepare the child for further education, employment, and independent living.” Tis letter goes on to state that, “Under the IDEA, the primary vehicle for providing FAPE is
Linda F. Bluth
through an appropriately devel- oped IEP that is based on the individual needs of the child.” Te use of the word “vehicle”
kicked off an internal dialogue, recognizing that without the inclusion of the related service transportation, a majority of the 1.8 million youths with disabil-
ities excluded from public schools prior to Public Law 94-142 would never gain access to special education and related services. Tis law set in motion a personal journey that has exceeded 40 years of ad- vocacy, celebrating the positive impact of the yellow school bus in providing our na- tions most vulnerable children and youth the opportunity to access an education with the dream of living an independent adult life. Often, when I think back to the late 1970s and the earliest calls I received asking for assistance, one specific instance stands out. A director of transportation in a rural community shared his anger and frustration that it was unreasonable to expect his school district to purchase a school bus with a lift for just five students that utilized a wheelchair.
Full compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Act remains just beyond the horizon.
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