School may be out for summer, but the wheels are in motion in Washington, D.C., to change how the federal government organizes and funds education starting in the fall. (See our article Federal Policy Updates That Could Change the Landscape for People with Disabilities for up-to-date details.) How might these potential changes affect our kids who need special education services to access a free, appropriate public education with their peers?
We sat down with Denise S. Marshall, CEO of the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA), to help us understand what changes are being proposed, what to expect, and what we can do to protect our kids’ rights.
The federal administration has stated that they want to eliminate the Department of Education, although it does take an act of Congress to officially do this. They laid off hundreds of workers in March, only to have a judge in late May order those employees back, but employees have not yet received communications on returning to work, and now the American Federation for Teachers is escalating the case to the Supreme Court.
Marshall says, “It would take an act of Congress to effectively dismantle it or take it away. They seem to be saying, ‘In the meantime, we're just going to dismantle it ourselves by firing all these people.’ There are legitimate questions as to what they are actually able to continue to do. Many of the functions are mandated by statute.”
So will we have a Department of Education this fall? Ultimately, Marshall says, “The Department of Ed is kind of in a holding pattern right now. We don't know what is actually going on within the department, or how they could possibly be carrying out their mandated functions with so few staff.” As of now, there is no date set by which we will have a definite answer; it depends on when/if the Supreme Court decides to hear the case.
The federal administration wants to move the responsibilities of the Department of Education under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Marshall explains why advocates for students with disabilities are against this move:
If the Department of Education is gone, what happens with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)?
Marshall says, “The department is currently saying that they have no plans on attacking or trying to take down [IDEA]/resources/116). Changing any parts of IDEA, in this case, would be through a backdoor kind of mechanism through a policy writer that would go through appropriations, as opposed to a full amending of the law that would go through Congress and would change the statute. It wouldn't eliminate the statute, but it would change the requirements of the statute.”
The statutes of IDEA lay out three ways that the federal government provides funding to states for education. Marshall explains:
The administration has proposed to eliminate Part D with funding being rolled into state grants, and then states can decide how they will spend that money. On the surface, more state control might sound positive, but one key concern is that if Part D is eliminated, states could be allowed to eliminate any program they want within these state block grants. For example, each state has a Deafblind project supported by the National Center on Deafblindness, and many of those state projects are 100% funded by Part D of IDEA. If Part D funding is now eliminated and folded into state grants, states could decide to dissolve their state Deafblind projects and spend that money where they want.
Marshall explains how educators and families directly benefit from Part D grants:
School choice is once again receiving federal attention. Proponents of school choice want families to be allowed to use IDEA funds to pay for private schools through voucher programs. While some families might be excited about the fact they have options beyond public schools, others are concerned that this further diminishes funding for public schools. Parents may wonder if IDEA applies to their children in private schools funded by state dollars, since private school students traditionally have very limited protections under IDEA.
Marshall says, “COPAA doesn't have a position against vouchers per se, because we know there are a lot of families and students who have benefited from that model, but we are very against the loss of rights.” Hear her explanation for what parents of children with disabilities need to watch out for when placing their child in a private school:
Marshall says that COPAA has pending legislation against the current administration regarding the attempted dismantling of the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, which is responsible for investigating complaints of discrimination, including mistreatment of students with disabilities. In March 2025, the federal administration closed seven offices and fired 300 people, leaving even fewer staff members to process the 15,000-20,000 complaints pending investigation. Marshall says, “OCR is supposed to be there to be able to investigate discrimination at the local level and remedy that for families. What our biggest fear and worry is, is one effective and big piece of the arm missing in terms of doing that?”
If you have a pending claim with OCR, Marshall advises, “Make sure you keep a paper trail. Keep any kind of documentation that's sent to you. If you're asking questions or trying to get a status report, do it by email or by writing. On the phone, keep a log of who you spoke to and on what date, if it ever comes to needing to challenge whether or not they're fulfilling their obligation under the law.”
When asked if families considering filing a claim with OCR should do so given the current uncertainty, Marshall says it really depends on your situation, so look at all the dispute resolution options in your state and choose the one that works best for you. “Sometimes, if you're doing more than one thing at one time, for example, if you have an OCR complaint and a due process complaint, they can interact with each other. It can be very complicated, and so we urge people to investigate and get some advice at their state level. Talk to someone who is familiar with it and may be able to tell them.”
Marshall emphasizes that executive orders cannot change the law. For parents who may be worried that executive orders will interfere with efforts to protect against discrimination of their child, Marshall says, “All of the protections of the current laws are still in place. What those executive orders have done is create that level of chaos, fear, and discord, with some districts hurrying to pull some of the curriculums and books, but the rights of students are protected. The federal law leaves what's taught to students to the states, so executive orders really have no bearing on the law or on the curriculum.”
Can the federal government actually withhold funding from states that don’t comply with executive orders? Marshall says no. Listen to her explanation here:
There is a pending lawsuit that challenges updated regulations for Section 504, which protects people’s rights to reasonable accommodations in their communities, including 504 plans for students who need accommodations at school but don’t qualify for special education services.
The next filing is due in court July 21. Before then, Marshall says that if you live in one of 17 states that are part of this lawsuit, “push your state to withdraw from the lawsuit. Tell the Attorney General how important Section 504 is to you or your family or a loved one, and the right to live in the community or to get medical treatment or to have access to effective communication.”
Many of these proposed changes are deeply concerning, but they’re not set in stone. The federal budget needs to be decided by September 30. Marshall says, “They passed the House budget. Now, it's in the Senate, so they have to reconcile and come to agreement in order to move the bill forward, and they only need a majority vote for a reconciliation. If there's no pass, it will need to go to a continuing resolution, because October 1 is when the new budget is supposed to take effect.”
As far as when we might start seeing changes at the state level, Marshall says, “What we're hearing from people is a lot of states are already starting to worry about and make budgetary decisions on the chance that they aren't going to get some funds. That's extremely concerning. This upheaval without a whole lot of detail is concerning.”
Education isn’t the only thing on the line. “The proposed cuts to Medicaid that we keep hearing about could be really devastating,” Marshall says. “Medicaid is a lifeline for families who may be receiving services through Medicaid at the school level or across their lifespan.”
The bottom line is that cuts at the federal level will impact our kids at the state level. Marshall says, “There's a narrative that doing this will save money and allow states to be more effective. In fact, they will cost the states more in times when states are already struggling with their state budgets, and they will need to figure out how to either find money to replace what's been lost or fill the gaps. Let's say the funding for parent information training centers does go away. Then who fills that service? Or is that something that people are just prepared to go without?”
What can we do? Marshall says, “Tell your Senators no, do not pass this budget. It's already passed the House, but just in case there's future activity there, depending on what happens in the Senate and with the reconciliation, tell all your elected officials.”
She concludes, “Our kids’ lives are too important. We're not messing around with this right now.”
Thank you to Denise Marshall and the efforts of all her colleagues COPAA to ensure that vital programs for our children continue to exist. You can watch our full conversation (with transcript) here.
Our team at Undivided will continue to keep you updated on potential changes to education and public benefits so that as a community and as families, we can advocate for the supports our children need. Join our newsletter list if you haven’t already to get the latest updates in your inbox every week!
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