Federal officials opened a civil rights investigation into the state-controlled Houston ISD over its plans to relocate students with disabilities, separating them from classmates.
Some students with disabilities will be required to move campuses next school year where they will learn in a “contained” setting, Houston ISD Deputy Superintendent Kristen Hole announced earlier this week. It is part of an effort to centralize special education services, so programs spread across several campuses could be consolidated into one site. The majority of special education students will not be affected.
Hole said the changes will mean better instruction for children with disabilities with more small-group settings for individualized attention.
However, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights is examining whether the move runs directly counter to the federal law that says students with disabilities should learn alongside classmates who do not have disabilities as much as possible.
“Schools cannot exclude students with disabilities simply because of their disability status. Placement decisions must be made individually, based on each student’s needs, rather than by blanket policies that segregate students by disability category,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey wrote in a statement. “The allegations described here are alarming.”
Houston ISD did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the investigation. The district’s website notes that student services will still closely follow individualized education plans, or IEPs, which is a written plan of each students’ needs.
Federal officials cited concerns from Houston families that their children will lose out on a chance to improve their social skills in general education classrooms. Parents also worry that longer transportation times to these alternative campuses will be challenging for children with medical and behavioral needs.
Houston ISD previously has struggled to provide supports to the more than 20,000 students who qualify for special education services. In 2020, special investigators with the Texas Education Agency found HISD in “systemic and widespread” noncompliance with special education law.
About a decade ago, federal officials found Texas failed to properly educate many students with disabilities.The state had quietly capped the percentage of students that schools could identify as in need of special education services.
Houston ISD has been under state control since June 2023 due to chronic poor academic performance. For the district to regain local control, Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath has said, in addition to improving academic outcomes, HISD must get its special education programs in compliance with state and federal law.
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