National Council on Disabilities (NCD) Seeks Public Input by Sept. 15

[Guest guest]

The National Council on Disability is seeking public comments on special

education related issues and concerns from the community. Such feedback is

requested by Sept. 15. Please see below for more information (the following

was written by a special education parent and active volunteer), and please

feel free to share!

There are two National Council on Disability events that disability

community members may be interested in. Years ago, under the Clinton

administration, NCD produced the groundbreaking " Back to School on Civil Rights

Law "

(2000) an expose of many of the problems with special education, the lack

of rights, and the uphill battle parents face. (

http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2000/backtoschool_1.htm ), The NCD

has largely been

quiet on education for the last 8 years, other than publishing Pete 's

excellent paper on Schaffer (burden of proof). But now, NCD has announced

two events of interest. (1) NCD is making recommendations about trends and

legislation affecting the lives of people with disabilities, including in

Education, and is soliciting ideas and input, with a Sept 15 deadline. (2)

NCD is convening a National Summit on Disability in 2010; applications are

due this October, and there are tracks devoted to Education.

(1) NCD WRITING REPORT ON EMERGING TRENDS IN DISABILITY AND CHANGES THAT

NEED TO BE MADE; INCLUDES EDUCATION; SOLICITING IDEAS TO IMPROVE FOR

IMPROVING LEGISLATION, ETC. (Sept 15 deadline)

NCD is gathering public input for a study of emerging issues and trends

affecting the lives of people with disabilities. NCD will assess the county's

status in achieving equal opportunity for all individuals with

disabilities, and empower individuals with disabilities to achieve economic

self-sufficiency, independent living, and inclusion and integration into all

aspects

of society. Input will be used to develop recommendations for changes in

legislation, regulations, policies, or programs, as appropriate.

AMONG OTHER ISSUES, NCD IS ANALYZING EDUCATION. Folks may wish to write

in with information and ideas that they have. The entire document and

information on how to respond is available at

http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2009/NationalCouncilonDisability.doc.

DEADLINE IS SEPT. 15.

There are questions on the form that might appear difficult such as asking

about programs that work in communities, but I personally do not think

there is anything wrong with writing " unknown " or " none. " For example, if

someone believes that NCD needs to write another Back To School on Civil

Rights, they might submit that as an idea and realize that they'd have to

write " unknown " as answers to 7-9. If they believe that (expert witness

fees) and Schaffer (burden of proof) make the playing field uneven for

parents and they want that fixed, that person might have to do a similar thing

on some of the questions. (New Hampshire has adopted expert witness fees

and NJ, NY, and Conn. have statutes overriding Schaffer.)

WHEN NCD doesn't hear voices, they cannot know there is a problem out

there. In my personal opinion, it is better for them to get letters than for

people to worry about pigeonholing everything into the 9 questions. If

you're a parent, advocate or attorney new to practice, and you're concerned

about something, just say that in your submission; people understand that you

aren't going to approach this like someone who has been running a disability

agency for the last 20 years. But when there are many letters about an

issue, they can be used by other people in policymaking positions or to

support the need to do something (like write another Back to School on Civil

Rights or whatever it may be). When there is silence, there can sometimes be

an assumption that everything is okay. You may remember in the 2006 IDEA

regulations portions where the Dept. of Education said there wasn't a need

for a pro-parent provision because they hadn't gotten any complaints that

there were problems.

(2) National Summit on Disability Policy 2010. Be a delegate and make

your voice heard on education! (October deadline)

The National Summit on Disability Policy 2010 commemorates the 20th

Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) but focuses on much

more. The summit results will help shape disability policy and programs for

the next decade. There are 10 tracks, including Education, Civil Rights, and

Employment. If you wish to be a delegate, you must submit an application

by October 15, 2009. There are limited scholarship funds available. Folks

who wish to raise their voices on education issues and help shape education

policy may wish to apply.

http://www.neweditions.net/ncd2010/index.html

Please feel free to forward or share this email with others.

Sandy, Illinois (alpy2@...)

Volunteer Co-Webmaster, Our Children Left Behind

(http://www.ourchildrenleftbehind.com) (IDEA & NCLB reauthorization)