May 28

May 28, 2003

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions

United States Senate

Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Judd Gregg, Chairman and Senator Ted Kennedy, Ranking Member,

Thank you for the opportunity to provide recommendations regarding the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. We offer our preliminary thoughts in this letter and hope to participate with you in the reauthorization as you move forward.

The Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities is comprised of over 100 national organizations that promote the full participation of people with disabilities in society. The Education Task Force is made up of over 50 of those organizations that are especially dedicated to ensuring that students with disabilities have full access to education at all levels – early childhood, K-12 and higher education.

There are four key areas where we urge the Committee to develop provisions in the Higher Education Act in relation to students with disabilities.

Access to postsecondary education for students with disabilities.

Despite significant strides in public policy, people with disabilities remain the poorest, least employed and least educated minority in America. Students with disabilities are less likely to participate in postsecondary educational opportunities than their non-disabled peers. In its 2002 survey, the National Organization on Disability/Louis Harris Survey of Americans with Disabilities found that “slightly more than one out of ten people with disabilities have graduated from college, compared to slightly more than two out of ten of their non-disabled counterparts (12% versus 23%).” When they do participate, they are less likely to graduate with a degree than their non-disabled peers.

The nature and range of support services available to students with disabilities varies widely from school to school. Some colleges and universities have a wide array of individualized support services. However, poor awareness and commitment to providing for the support needs of students with disabilities (including technology support, career development and instructional support) too often result in a spotty set of services that is hit-or-miss and lacking in comprehensiveness or coordination.

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However, recent research offers some encouraging news. When student with disabilities earn a bachelor’s degree they have similar early labor marked outcomes and graduate school enrollment rates as their counterparts without disabilities (National Center for Education Statistics, June 1999). This evidence is most compelling, as it indicates that higher education may hold a key to reducing the employment gap between people with and without disabilities.

Students with cognitive and/or multiple disabilities face particular challenges in that they are unlikely to qualify for typical college enrollment. Yet they desire to pursue post secondary education in order to develop good job skills. For these students, access to community colleges and trade schools offers a viable route to a job. We urge Congress to develop provisions in the Higher Education Act that would ensure relevant training programs for such students as well as active recruitment efforts.

In order to promote better access to postsecondary education, we urge the Committee to ensure that the Gear Up program, which is targeted to middle and high school students, include students with disabilities. This program is designed to encourage students to prepare early for postsecondary education. Too often students with disabilities are marginalized by low expectations of others and are not encouraged to pursue a post secondary education. Until the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, too many students with disabilities did not have access to the general curriculum. With this new requirement, and the accountability provisions of IDEA, as well as the recently enacted No Child Left Behind Act that requires students with disabilities to be part of the state and local accountability provisions, expectations for students with disabilities have never been higher. This program could significantly increase the number of students with disabilities who attend and succeed at institutions of higher education.

In the last reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, the Congress created a program entitled “Demonstration Projects to Ensure Students with Disabilities Receive a Quality Higher Education.” This small program provides support to faculty and administrators in institutions of higher education to enable them to better educate and support students with disabilities in postsecondary education environments. We recommend expanding this program so that more institutions of higher education can participate and more students with disabilities can be served.

Finally, we recommend that the Committee authorize a comprehensive study on students with disabilities and access to higher education. Such a study has never been undertaken, despite the fact that students with disabilities face significant barriers to higher education. The study would address such questions as: What needs to occur to strengthen the relationship between high schools and post secondary programs for youth with disabilities? What are the barriers for students with disabilities to participating in postsecondary education? To what extent do students with disabilities access student loans and grants? Are there unique barriers to that financial support? Are there policies in higher education that serve as barriers to the enrollment of students with disabilities? Why do students with disabilities drop out of post-secondary education programs? What are the characteristics of institutions of higher education that successfully recruit and graduate students with disabilities?

The shortage of special education teachers is chronic and persistent and now surpasses that for teachers of math and science. In their final report, “A New Era: Revitalizing Special Education,” President Bush’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education noted an alarming shortage of special education teachers with 98% of school districts reporting special education teacher shortages. The No Child Left Behind Act requires that special education students participate in statewide assessment and average yearly progress mandates. Highly qualified special education teachers and related services personnel are critical to the success of students with disabilities.

At the end of the 107^th Congress, the Education and the Workforce Committee endorsed and the House enacted the CLASS Act, HR 5091. This legislation expanded student loan forgiveness for special education teachers and others. We urge the Committee to include a provision in the Higher Education Act similar to the CLASS Act. However, we recommend that the loan forgiveness amount of $17,500 be mandatory for special education teachers, early childhood educators, and related services personnel, rather than discretionary. This loan forgiveness provision could make a significant difference in attracting and retaining special education teachers, early childhood educators, and related services personnel.

3. Ensuring that general educators are skilled in educating students with disabilities

President Bush’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education report “A New Era: Revitalizing Special Education,” reported that most public school educators do not feel well prepared to work with children with disabilities. In 1998, only 21% of public school teachers said they felt very well prepared to address the needs of students with disabilities. One of the key recommendations of this report was to “Consider children with disabilities as general education children first.” Since approximately 80% of students with disabilities are served in general education classrooms 40% of the time, it is critical that general educators are skilled in instructing students with disabilities and in working collegially with special educators.

Currently, Title II requires states to ensure that graduates of teacher education programs are skilled and competent in a number of ways. We urge the Committee to expand its accountability measures to ensure that all teacher preparation programs and early childhood educator programs (including alternative routes) train all general educators and administrators to be proficient in working with students with disabilities.

4. The critical shortage of special education faculty in institutions of higher education

Our nation produces 30% fewer doctorates in special education than we did 20 years ago. Fewer of those with doctorates are becoming faculty at institutions of higher education. One third of special education faculty openings remain unfilled every year with 20% of those positions being eliminated eventually, thus diminishing the nation’s training and research infrastructure. If every special education faculty slot were filled, about 3000 more special education teachers could be trained annually. These newly qualified teachers would serve about 48,000 students annually.

President Bush’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education recommended recruiting and training through the doctoral level a “new national cadre of fully qualified special education teacher educators and researchers…fluent in research-based best practices of instruction and assistive technology…diverse with regard to gender, race and ethnicity.”

We recommend targeting financial aid packages, both loans and grants, to attract more students into special education and related services doctoral programs. We also recommend the development of incentive packages, including loan forgiveness, for those who become special education faculty at institutions of higher education.

We appreciate the opportunity to provide this input and look forward to working with you. If you have questions, or would like additional information, please contact us.

Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivities Disorder
Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders