Celebrated annually on December 2nd, National Special Education Day recognizes changes in federal legislation which began the process of opening the nation’s public schools to children with disabilities.  This issue is particularly close to me, having a sister born in 1959 with Down Syndrome, a genetic condition causing developmental and intellectual delays.

At that time, most children with disabilities had few, if any, options to receive a public education.  While there were limited “special schools” offered in some states, these effectively served to segregate children with disabilities from public schools, which at the time were not required to ensure accommodations for these children.

At first, the push for access to public schools was started by groups of like-situated parents, usually meeting informally to come up with plans to lobby local school boards and city halls for access to a free public education for their “special needs” children.  I remember well my parents attending these meetings during the 1960s and early 1970s, with determination but no significant progress.  We were, however, somewhat fortunate that our state, Rhode Island, offered “special education” opportunities through segregated schools for children with Down Syndrome (at the time referred to as “mentally retarded”).  My sister attended the Sanders School in Rhode Island, which provided limited resources and unequal education opportunity.

Things really began to change in the early 1970s, first through a landmark case in the District of Columbia and a short time later, through federal legislation.   In 1972, in Mills v. Board of Education of District of Columbia, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia held that children with disabilities, defined at the time as “mentally retarded, emotionally disturbed, physically handicapped, hyperactive and other children with behavioral problems”, must be given a free public education and training appropriate to their learning capacities. 348 F.Supp. 866, 877-78.  Shortly thereafter, the push for federal legislation was taken up in earnest, and many states and local school districts began the process of making the necessary accommodations, both to physical premises and curriculum, for students with disabilities.

These efforts culminated in the currently named Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, “IDEA”, being signed into law by President Gerald Ford on November 29, 1975.  This law stipulated that on a national basis, through the principles of equal protection and due process, children with disabilities had the right to the same free public education to which every other child had access.  As things have progressed, IDEA has created many changes in educational opportunities simply beyond providing an equal education.  It now ensures that those students with disabilities have the technology needed to achieve their full learning capacity, while through integration and inclusion into the nation’s public school system, has made great progress in removing the past stigma associated with those with disabilities.

Our diverse abilities, backgrounds, cultures and histories help provide us with perspective, often fresh and unique perspective.  Our inclusiveness of others allows us to turn those perspectives into unity and strength.  At least, from my perspective, the opportunities for personal growth created by the inclusion of children with disabilities into our public education system has greatly benefited not only them, but all of their fellow classmates.

John A. Rego is a partner in the firm’s Metropolitan D.C. Office and chairs its general liability practice group.