Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children Joins National Coalition Condemning Federal Reductions in Support for Students with Disabilities
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 15, 2025
Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children Joins National Coalition Condemning Federal Reductions in Support for Students with Disabilities
Washington, D.C. — The Teacher Education Division (TED) of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) has joined a broad coalition of disability, education, and civil rights organizations in condemning sweeping layoffs at the U.S. Department of Education that have gutted critical offices serving students with disabilities.
The coalition letter—signed by more than 150 national, state, and local organizations—calls for an immediate reversal of the reductions that have dismantled essential divisions including the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE). These cuts threaten decades of progress in upholding the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and other cornerstone education and civil rights laws.
These actions have effectively removed the personnel and infrastructure necessary to provide federal oversight, technical assistance, and enforcement of the laws that guarantee children with disabilities access to a free, appropriate public education. Without these supports, states, districts, and schools are left to navigate compliance and service delivery without guidance or accountability—placing millions of students at risk.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of IDEA, a law grounded in the belief that every child deserves an equitable education. Instead of celebrating this progress, the field now faces the dismantling of the very system Congress designed to uphold it.
As an organization representing higher education faculty, researchers, and leaders who prepare the next generation of special educators, TED underscores that these layoffs jeopardize not only student rights but also the nation’s educator pipeline. Disruptions to federal oversight and grant management directly impact teacher preparation programs, personnel-preparation grants, and the recruitment of future special educators at a time when schools are already facing critical shortages.
TED stands firmly with its coalition partners in calling on the Administration and Congress to restore staffing, oversight, and transparency at the U.S. Department of Education to ensure the nation meets its moral and legal obligations to students with disabilities and their families.
Contact:
Dr. Kaitlyn Brennan
Senior Policy Advisor, Teacher Education Division
Council for Exceptional Children
Email: kbrennan@kbstrategies.org
Cell: 412-853-8409