Whether a child lives in Oakdale or Nashville and dreams of being a country music star or an accountant, that child has the right to an education. For students with disabilities, that education includes the special education services they require to put them on track to reach their goals.
In the 2019-2020 school year, approximately 13 percent, or about 130,000 students, qualified for special education support and services in Tennessee. These students may have mental or physical disabilities. They may be intellectually or athletically gifted. That a student qualifies for special education services means nothing but that they require support and services to receive the most out of their education.
Despite making up a significant portion of Tennessee's public school enrollment, students with disabilities face challenges. They are more likely to face discipline and less likely to finish high school.
When schools fail to properly support students with disabilities, the risk of both disciplinary issues and dropping out increases, if and when a school doesn't provide students with required and needed special education services, families should contact the Lento Law Firm.
The Education Law Team assists families nationwide to ensure their students with disabilities get the support they need to thrive in school, graduate, and be in the best position for their future. We encourage families and students to contact us by phone at 888-535-3686 or online to learn how we can help protect their education.
What is Special Education?
The Rules of the Tennessee State Board of Education define special education as “specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability.” In other words, special education is an umbrella term for a range of services and support that depend on a child's disability.
Special education should not be one-size-fits-all. Even students with the same disability may require different accommodations to succeed in school. For most students, special education does not affect their participation in their school community. Approximately 80 percent of students who qualify for special education spend all or most of their school day in general education classrooms.
Federal Laws About Special Education
Three federal laws are the foundation for disability rights in the United States. They are the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
For K-12 education, IDEA and Section 504 are the most relevant. They establish the right to special education services. IDEA established the right to an IEP, while Section 504 is the basis for 504 Plans.
IDEA
IDEA not only establishes Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), but it also requires schools to identify and evaluate any child who resides within the district and who may have a disability. This includes babies and toddlers via the Child Find program.
Williamson County Schools' Child Find page is a good example of what parents and guardians should be able to find about their local school district's Child Find program. Where Williamson differs is offering a service above and beyond the federal requirements with its Early Childhood Peer Program.
School districts, such as Williamson, can offer programs above and beyond what federal and Tennessee law require. They cannot, however, offer less than federal and state requirements. In a similar vein, other school districts do not have to offer a service or accommodation because another district offers that service or accommodation.
IDEA also extends to students who do not attend the local public school but reside within a school's boundaries. A student may attend a private or charter school but still receive some services through the school district.
Protection for students with disabilities is strongest in public schools, which fall under IDEA, Section 504, and other federal and state laws. While private and charter schools may be required to provide some services or may have policies similar to federal requirements, they may not have federal backing.
This lack of federal requirements can become an issue when disagreements arise. For families with students enrolled in public schools, they have dispute resolution options via IDEA, Section 504, and other federal laws. Charter or private school students may not have those same options to contest a school's decision.
Section 504
Predating IDEA, Section 504 continues to have a place in special education. Section 504 forbids any program that receives federal assistance from disability-based discrimination. Tennessee provides a guide on Section 504. While intended for school districts, parents and guardians may find it useful, especially the explanation for how IDEA and Section 504 differ.
Another document from the Department of Education sums up the difference even more succinctly:
- “IDEA requires a student to have a qualifying disability listed in IDEA and thereby need special education and related services. IDEA is an entitlement law designed to serve a specific population.”
- “Section 504 protects a qualified student with a disability regardless of whether the student needs special education. Section 504 is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability.”
- Section 504 includes 504 Plans. These are written documents that list what specific accommodations and support services a student has a right to under the law.
- Students qualify for 504 Plans when they have a disability that affects at least one major life activity. Unlike IEPs, 504 Plans do not require that the disability impact a student's education.
Common Terms and Acronyms
Special education has no shortage of terms and acronyms unique to the field. TransitionTN provides a list of commonly-used acronyms within special education. Some are specific to certain disabilities. Three are worth mentioning in more depth because of the frequency of their use.
In the United States, all students have the right to a free appropriate public education (FAPE). For students with disabilities, FAPE includes the services and accommodations they require to access that education.
Least restrictive environment (LRE) is the goal of placing students in general education classrooms and participating in the school community as much as possible and when in a student's best interests. Tennessee emphasizes LRE by:
- Emphasizing that all students are general education students first
- Stating special education is not a place, meaning that special education can occur throughout the school day, in general education classrooms, and as part of other school activities.
Finally, reasonable accommodations refer to the level of services and support a school district must provide to comply with federal law. Reasonable accommodations must be effective and not place an undue burden on the school or any member of the school community.
Who Qualifies for Special Education?
Students must qualify for special education services. Families cannot simply request that a student receive special education support, and students must have a qualifying disability. In Tennessee, the following disabilities will qualify a child for special education services and support under IDEA:
- Autism
- Deaf-Blindness
- Deafness
- Hearing Impairment
- Developmental Delay
- Intellectual Disability
- Functional Delay
- Specific Learning Disabilities
- Speech and Language Impairments
- General
- Language
- Articulation
- Fluency
- Voice
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
- Visual Impairment
Under IDEA, a student must not only have a disability, but this disability must also impact their education.
In comparison, Section 504 does not provide a closed list of disabilities and only states that the disability must impact at least one major life activity. Students who have a qualifying disability under IDEA will receive an IEP, while students who have a disability under Section 504 will receive a 504 Plan.
Alcoa City Schools provides a brief overview of each disability on its special education page, including the disability's general characteristics. While these general earmarks can be useful, disabilities can present differently in individuals.
A 2022 study from Stanford University, for example, found differences between the brains of boys and girls who have autism. The study suggests that different assessments may be needed to properly diagnose boys and girls.
How to Qualify for Special Education
Tennessee provides families with an overview of how students can become eligible for special education services. The general steps for determining special education eligibility are:
- Referral
- Assessment and evaluation
- Determination for services
- Reevaluation
School districts may decide, at any point in the process, that a child does not qualify for special education. Families may appeal this decision. While schools must provide testing and evaluation free of charge to families, families may have to pay for assessments if a district does not believe a student has a disability or if the district has already evaluated the student once in the previous year.
Some students may have to undergo minimal or no assessment. Reevaluation is similar: While required every three years, school districts and parents or guardians may waive the requirement if they do not believe assessments are necessary. A reevaluation may be useful if the results are likely to indicate needed changes in what support, accommodations, and services a student needs.
Assessments depend on a child's potential disability. The Tennessee State Schools for the Blind and Deaf, for example, work with school districts throughout the state to help evaluate students with potential hearing and/or vision disabilities, especially those that may qualify as severe or complex. Parents and guardians can review a table of the state's disability standards on the Department of Education website.
Tennessee and District Programs
Tennessee and its school districts offer a variety of programs and resources to assist students with disabilities and their families. These range from online guides to specialized schools.
Resources
Regarding resources, the state updated its Special Education Framework in 2018. Two years later, they followed with revised IAIEP Self Assessments. The latter focuses on improving the quality of IEPs and, by extension, student outcomes.
Beyond the school day, parent and guardian support is key for helping students with disabilities succeed. Tennessee has a guide for parents and guardians on how to support students with disabilities.
The IRIS Center at Vanderbilt's Peabody College, although focused on educators, provides resources on how to improve educational outcomes. Located in Nashville, the Center is partially funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
TransitionTN, a partnership between the Tennessee Department of Education, Tennessee Department of Human Services, and Vanderbilt University, provides resources and support to help students make the move. This includes training and other resources for families.
State-Funded Schools
Tennessee funds four schools for students who have hearing and/or vision disabilities. They are:
- Tennessee School for the Blind
- Tennessee School for the Deaf (Knoxville)
- Tennessee School for the Deaf (Nashville)
- West Tennessee School for the Deaf
The West Tennessee School for the Deaf, located in Jackson, serves students from preschool to sixth grade. The Tennessee School for the Deaf in Nashville serves students beginning in preschool to sixth grade as of the 2024-2025 school year. The School for the Blind and the Knoxville Campus serve students through high school in addition to offering early education, transition services, and other programs.
These schools are free to attend. The admission process begins through a student's home school district. The schools have a residential school program but also have outreach services and programs for students throughout the state.
The Schools for the Deaf, for example, offer statewide family sign language courses. Families can contact either their local school district or the schools directly to learn more about these services.
District Programs
As mentioned with Williamson County Schools and their early childhood program, districts may have programs above and beyond what federal law requires. These programs can vary depending on numerous reasons, including enrollment and the district's budget.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools has the Raineswood Training Center. The Center assists students with severe behavioral and communication disorders who require support above and beyond what a general education school could provide.
As part of its transition program for students, Metro Nashville Public Schools offers a one-year internship. Known as Project SEARCH, these internships provide students who have disabilities with job training and employment via total immersion in an operating workplace.
Protect Your Student's Education
For students who have a disability, their right to an education includes special education. That a student has access to the accommodations, services, and support they require, can impact their education and their future.
The Lento Law Firm works with families from communities urban and rural to ensure their students have access to the special education services and support they require. Let us know more about your case by phone at 888-535-3686 or online and learn more about how we can help your student.
