[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 154 (Friday, November 18, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13399-S13400]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    SENATE RESOLUTION 328--RECOGNIZING THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
ENACTMENT OF THE EDUCATION FOR ALL HANDICAPPED CHILDREN ACT OF 1975 AND 
    REAFFIRMING THE COMMITMENT OF CONGRESS TO THE INDIVIDUALS WITH 
   DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT SO THAT ALL CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES 
 RECEIVE A FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE LEAST RESTRICTIVE 
                              ENVIRONMENT

  Mr. ENZI (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Reed, Mr. Burr, 
Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Gregg, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Hatch, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. 
DeWine, Mr. Bingaman, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Harkin, and Mr. Dodd) submitted 
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 328

       Whereas the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 
     1975 (Public Law 94-142) was signed into law 30 years ago on 
     November 29, 1975, and amended the State grant program under 
     part B of the Education of the Handicapped Act;
       Whereas the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 
     1975 established the Federal priority of ensuring that all 
     children, regardless of the nature or severity of their 
     disability, have available to them a free appropriate public 
     education in the least restrictive environment;
       Whereas the Education of the Handicapped Act was further 
     amended by the Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 
     1986 (Public Law 99-457) to create a preschool grant program 
     for children with disabilities aged 3 through 5 and an early 
     intervention program for infants and toddlers with 
     disabilities under 3 years of age and their families;
       Whereas the Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 
     1990 (Public Law 101-476) renamed the Education of the 
     Handicapped Act as the Individuals with Disabilities 
     Education Act (referred to in this resolution as ``IDEA'') 
     (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.);
       Whereas IDEA currently serves an estimated 269,000 infants 
     and toddlers, 679,000 preschoolers, and 6,000,000 children 
     aged 6 to 21;
       Whereas IDEA has helped reduce the number of children with 
     developmental disabilities who must live in State 
     institutions away from their families;
       Whereas the number of children with disabilities who 
     complete high school with standard diplomas has grown 
     significantly since the enactment of IDEA;
       Whereas more students with disabilities are participating 
     in national and State testing programs, and graduation rates 
     for students with disabilities are continuously rising, since 
     the enactment of IDEA;
       Whereas the number of children with disabilities who enroll 
     in college as freshmen has more than tripled since the 
     enactment of IDEA;
       Whereas IDEA promotes partnerships between parents of 
     children with disabilities and education professionals in the 
     design and implementation of the special education and 
     related services provided to children with disabilities;
       Whereas the integration of students with disabilities in 
     the classroom, learning alongside their peers without 
     disabilities, has heightened the Nation's awareness of the 
     needs and capabilities of students with disabilities;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-446) reauthorizes 
     IDEA and ensures that children with disabilities are 
     guaranteed a quality education based on the high academic 
     standards required under the Elementary and Secondary 
     Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), as amended by 
     the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110);
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 strengthens IDEA's focus on the 
     educational results of children with disabilities and better 
     prepares those children for further education beyond high 
     school or employment;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 further enables special education 
     teachers, related services providers, other educators, and 
     State and local educational agencies to focus on promoting 
     the academic and functional achievement of children with 
     disabilities;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 places a new priority on providing 
     students with disabilities with positive behavioral supports 
     through school-wide interventions;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 enables students with disabilities, 
     through the power of technology, to achieve better 
     educational outcomes and enhance independent living skills;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 protects the procedural safeguards 
     that guarantee the rights of children with disabilities to a 
     free and appropriate public education while establishing 
     mechanisms for parents and schools to resolve disagreements 
     about educational planning and the implementation of such 
     planning, thus reducing unnecessary litigation;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 continues to ensure that all students 
     with disabilities receive the services and supports necessary 
     in order to achieve positive educational outcomes in both 
     public and private educational settings;
       Whereas the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
     Improvement Act of 2004 ensures that the vast majority of 
     IDEA funds will go directly to the classroom and provides 
     States and local educational agencies additional flexibility 
     to provide for the costs of educating high need children with 
     disabilities;
       Whereas IDEA has supported, through its discretionary 
     programs, 3 decades of research, demonstration, and personnel 
     preparation in effective practices for educating children 
     with disabilities, enabling teachers, related services 
     providers, and other educators to effectively meet the 
     educational and developmental needs of all children;
       Whereas Federal and State governments support effective, 
     research-based practices in the classroom to ensure 
     appropriate services and supports for children with 
     disabilities; and
       Whereas IDEA continues to marshal the resources of this 
     Nation to implement the promise of full participation in 
     society for children with disabilities: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the 30th anniversary of the enactment of the 
     Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (Public 
     Law 94-142);
       (2) acknowledges the many and varied contributions of 
     children with disabilities and their parents, teachers, 
     related services providers, and other educators; and
       (3) reaffirms the commitment of Congress to the Individuals 
     with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) so 
     that all children with disabilities receive a free 
     appropriate public education.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a resolution that 
recognizes the 30th anniversary of the enactment of the predecessor to 
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA, to commemorate 
its passage, commend its many authors, and suggest some actions we 
should take to protect, preserve, and advance its legacy as a vital 
component of our laws on education and civil rights.
  On November 29, 1975, President Gerald Ford signed into law the 
Education for All Handicapped Children Act, a landmark piece of 
legislation that reflected America's fundamental and continuing concern 
for education and human rights. This legislation reaffirmed the most 
basic values of our democracy by extending education and civil rights 
protections to individuals with disabilities. As we celebrate the 
anniversary of the IDEA's enactment, it is, like all anniversaries, an 
appropriate time to both recount the past and contemplate the future.

[[Page S13400]]

  Before 1700, there was little toleration for anyone who was 
different. Persons with disabilities were often abused, condemned as 
incapable of being able to participate in social activities, and simply 
forgotten. In 1817, Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, a teacher of individuals 
who are deaf, opened a school for people who are deaf in Connecticut. 
This was the first school in America designed to serve individuals with 
disabilities. In 1850, at a time when most caregivers believed that 
persons with disabilities needed to live in institutions apart from 
their families, a school for youth with cognitive disabilities was 
opened in Massachusetts.
  In the late 1800s, the number of children with disabilities attending 
public schools increased dramatically due to education and child labor 
laws. Many public schools developed special education for children with 
disabilities, however, this usually involved creating separate classes. 
In 1899, Michigan was the first State to introduce these classes 
statewide, and by the 1920s, special education had become well 
established throughout the Nation.
  For the next 50 years, special education took place mostly in 
isolated classrooms where children with disabilities seldom mixed with 
their nondisabled peers. It is against this backdrop that advocates in 
the disability community worked tirelessly to affect the passage of the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It is also against this 
backdrop that this Congress had the wisdom and understanding to fully 
comprehend the nature of the problem and the resolve and determination 
to act. Similar to May 17, 1954, when the U.S. Supreme Court announced 
the Brown v. the Board of Education decision that ``separate 
educational facilities are inherently unequal'' with the signing of the 
Education for All Handicapped Children Act, families, Congress, and the 
President believed that a segregated form of education for students 
with disabilities was inappropriate and narrowed what children with 
disabilities could learn and become in society.
  As President Ford noted when he signed the Education for the 
Handicapped Act into law: ``Everyone can agree with the objective 
stated in the title of this bill--educating all handicapped children in 
our Nation.'' IDEA was advanced on the equally simple and equally 
compelling notion that segregation was not the answer and all people 
should have the opportunity to receive a free and appropriate public 
education. It is therefore fitting that we take a moment to remember 
all those men and women who worked with such purposefulness and passion 
to ensure that such a simple yet enduring value of our culture was 
properly reflected in our education laws.
  Since the passage of the IDEA, we have seen significant improvements 
in the educational employment and economic well-being of citizens with 
disabilities. According to the Department of Education, IDEA currently 
serves almost 7 million schoolchildren, preschoolers, and infants and 
toddlers with disabilities along side their counterparts without 
disabilities. What was unheard of 30 years ago is now a reality for 
millions of students with disabilities across the Nation: a right to 
receiving a free and appropriate education in their neighborhood 
school. Because of IDEA and other similar laws, the education that 
students with disabilities are receiving is providing such individuals 
with the skills necessary to succeed in postsecondary environments, 
work, pay taxes, live independently, and pursue the American dream.

  However, anniversaries are not just for looking back, and celebrating 
the achievements of the past. They must also be an occasion for looking 
forward in anticipation of the challenges that still lie before us. All 
involved should be proud of the accomplishments embodied in the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, but no one should believe 
our work is done. Indeed, there is still more to do.
  A report issued by the Institute for Higher Education Policy in 2004 
focusing on the education level of students with disabilities in the 
United States contains some disturbing data. It notes that while 91 
percent of the general adult population has a high school diploma, only 
78 percent of adults with disabilities do. Even more disturbing is the 
fact that only 57 percent of youths with disabilities received standard 
high school diplomas. Although the 78 percent graduation rate 
represents a significantly higher rate than 15 years ago, it remains 
inadequate, and significantly behind the rate for individuals without 
disabilities.
  The National Educational Longitudinal Study reported in 2000 that 73 
percent of high school graduates with disabilities enrolled in some 
form of postsecondary education compared to 84 percent of their peers 
without disabilities. However, students with disabilities who were 
highly qualified academically enrolled in 4-year colleges at the same 
rate, 79 percent, as their peers without disabilities.
  The lesson here is a simple one. When we believe in and have high 
expectations for all Americans, Americans with disabilities can compete 
at the same level as Americans without disabilities. With the passage 
of the No Child Left Behind Act, the Individuals with Disabilities 
Education Act, and possibilities available within the soon to be 
reauthorized Higher Education Act, we have the opportunity to make 
significant strides and further level the playing field. As elected 
officials, it is our responsibility to ensure that students, teachers, 
school systems, and teacher education programs are all held to high 
standards, improving the education levels, graduation rates, and 
postsecondary achievements of all students, including students with 
disabilities.
  It is fitting that today, in this place, we recognize and celebrate 
the anniversary of legislation that says so much about who we are as a 
people and what we stand for as a nation when it comes to educating all 
of our citizens. It is the responsibility of those of us who follow to 
ensure that the brightness never fades, the promise of opportunity 
never wanes, and our rights to education, life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness apply equally and fully to all Americans, 
including those with disabilities.

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