Amy Rule: Georgia children’s futures at risk with closure of Department of Education

I’m a pediatrician because of the special education programs funded and regulated by the Department of Education. As I write, there is an active dismantling of the department by executive order. These actions put the future of 7.6 million American children, including 215,000 Georgians, at risk.

I was born in Washington, D.C., in 1984 with a rare bone condition. I’m the proud daughter and granddaughter of distinguished U.S. Navy veterans. I lived in four states before the age of 18.

Federal special education laws like Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1975 — regulated and partly funded through the Department of Education — made it so wherever my dad was stationed, I had the same access to a “fair, appropriate, public education” across states through an individualized education plan.

Special education laws and funding enabled physical therapy services in public prekindergarten. This early intervention helped me become a “community walker” (able to walk without a mobility device at school or home). I was, however, the only neurotypical kid in my class. It was segregated by disability.

Special education laws and funding ensured my teacher and mom won the fight to put me in a mainstream kindergarten class.

Special education laws and funding helped discover my hearing loss in first grade when I was failing to learn to read.

Special education laws and funding helped me catch up with hearing aids and reading support. I went from reading below grade level to the highest reading group in one year with special education instruction.

Special education laws and funding allowed me to use a computer for writing assignments, which took me from failing to winning a creative writing award in third grade. In the `90s, student access to a computer was not universal.

Special education laws and funding enabled homebound education in fourth grade and again in middle school when I was out of school for three months having surgery. I kept up with my classes and had connection to school during those challenging recoveries.

Special education laws and funding allowed me extra time to navigate the hallways in middle and high school.

Special education laws and funding allowed access to two sets of textbooks for school and at home to decrease my need to carry them, which was especially helpful when I was taking college-level science in high school.

Special education laws and funding ensured my college built a ramp to my freshman dorm and updated the elevator in the science buildings.

Special education laws and funding ensured that I could have a stool in the anatomy lab and in the operating room during my surgical clerkships in medical school.

Special education laws and funding through Section 504 allowed my physically demanding rotations to be spread out during my pediatric residency and hospital medicine fellowship. These policies made it possible for me to become a double-boarded pediatrician, educator, researcher and medical school faculty member in Georgia.

Was I a good investment or a waste of your tax dollars?

Not everyone, regardless of disability, grows up to become a physician. However, research shows that investing in special education increases the likelihood that people with disabilities will be hired for good jobs, live independently and have increased qualify of life. It decreases the chance of reliance on social welfare programs.

A recent World Bank study showed that the return on investment for the education of children with disabilities is two 2-3 times higher than those without. Furthermore, studies show that inclusion of children with disabilities improves social skills and sometimes even academic skills in typical classmates.

Proponents of dismantling the Department of Education argue that reducing federal oversight will free states to better run their own programs. The history of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Section 504 litigations over the past 50 years would suggest states will not honor “fair, appropriate, public education” without federal oversight and funding.

States with the least state investments have the most appalling frequent violations of the law, leaving children behind. Georgia is a repeat offender.

Section 504 itself was already under siege in Georgia before the Department of Education executive order. In Texas vs. Becerra, attorneys general in 17 states, including Georgia, have sued the government over 504. While the case is centered on the Biden administration’s inclusion of “gender dysphoria,” the brief declares “504 is unconstitutional” and argues that asking states to provide accommodations in the “most integrated setting” is overreach. Many advocates are concerned the case could destroy “fair, appropriate, public education” and 504.

My third grader is one of the 215,000 Georgia students who stands to lose. He excels in science and wants to be an engineer.

He recently wrote an essay describing the events of the longest sit-in in American history, the 504-sit in. For 28 days a group of over 100 people with disabilities and allies occupied the Federal Building in San Francisco, ultimately pressuring the Carter administration to fully implement 504. Their efforts made our lives possible.

We need those efforts again. While the disability community is ready for the fight of our lives, it will take all of us to save education civil rights. The 7.6 million children need your voices. Here are five action steps to take:

Congress, not the executive branch, has the power to shut down departments. Call your representatives and tell them why you are opposed to closing the Department of Education.
Call Attorney General Chris Carr’s office and demand his office drop the egregious attack on 504.
Donate to national disability rights groups doing the work: Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, The Arc and the American Association of People with Disabilities.
Support local disability organizations in your community.
Use your social media or networks to amplify actions.

Using our voices together, we can speak truth about the return on investment for special education, the endless possibilities of 7.6 million dreams and a brighter future for Georgia and beyond.