The National Committee of Parents Organized to Protect IDEA has been created to marshal the support of parents from across the nation to ensure that the basic guarantees in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are
protected. To read the paper, and to sign on you may log on to: http://capwiz.com/ndss/issues/alert/
The National Coalition of Parent Centers and the National Down Syndrome Society are spearheading this effort to organize and communicate strong parent support to protect this most important law. The Committee has produced a position paper on discipline and are seeking sign-ons from individuals and organizations nationwide. The National Committee of Parents
Organized to Protect IDEA paper makes the following points, as outlined by Disability Rights and Education Defense Fund:
- Given the findings of the GAO Report and parent experience, the burden should be on those proposing changes to the law to show that a pervasive national discipline problem exists that the current law does not address.
- Proposals to unilaterally remove students from school for the subjective determination that they are "disruptive" are too broad and punish students for behaviors that are disability-related. Such punishment violates these students' civil rights under Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- IDEA covers all students with disabilities, including those with mental disabilities. The behaviors of these children must be addressed as education issues, and these students should not be excluded from school based on subjective determinations by school administrators.
To read the paper, and to sign on you may log on to: http://capwiz.com/ndss/issues/alert/
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