On Friday, the U.S. Department of Education announced extensive staff layoffs. This decision will have direct impact to 466 staff, the majority of which will be from OSERS (Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services). This office is the linchpin in ensuring that programs are overseen. Together, these programs empower millions of children and adults with disabilities across the nation. These layoffs come amidst a continuing government shutdown. With financial limitations forcing the department to make extreme cuts,
Recent, widespread layoffs have taken a particular toll on the education department. In March, state officials announced plans to slash their cushy bureaucracy by 1,300 employees, almost half of their massive state workforce. Communities across the country, under the leadership of Education Secretary Linda McMahon, have seen the department take these layoffs as a “significant step.” Their hope is to bring back the greatness of the United States education system. Advocates are right to be alarmed by the dangerous precedent such deep cuts would imply.
Chad Rummel, the executive director of the Council for Exceptional Children, said he was extremely dismayed by the cuts. He argues that these cuts will set back special education. He subsequently called the rumored near elimination of the Office for Special Education Programs “absolutely devastating.” This loss would be felt far beyond the education of people with disabilities. Rummel emphasized that eliminating federal capacity to support the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is harmful to individuals with disabilities, their families, and the professionals who serve them.
The IDEA was initially conceived to make sure that all eligible children with disabilities have access to a free and appropriate public education. As experts and advocates point out, the very funding cuts and staff reductions going on right now jeopardize this critical support system. According to K-12 Dive, federal funding will be exhausted within the next months. This change would cut children with disabilities off from vital educational supports and services.
“It’s important to understand that the current government shutdown has made matters much worse,” stated CNN. The department has done an admirable job of trying to mitigate the effects on employees and programs. With the continuing lapse in appropriations, this has necessitated immediate and painful workforce reductions.
The ramifications of these layoffs extend beyond immediate job losses. They threaten to undermine decades of progress in supporting students with disabilities. Advocacy organizations like Community Change Action and others are ramping up to meet these oncoming storms and demanding urgent action to backtrack on cuts and stabilize life-saving services.