Throughout January, the US Department of Education has released numerous documents that may be of interest to AJE families.
CIVIL RIGHTS DATA COLLECTION
On January 16, the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) shared new data from the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) for the 2021-22 school year, revealing critical insight regarding the extent to which students have equal educational opportunities in the nation’s public schools (press release).
Specifically, OCR released three data reports and snapshots:
- “A First Look: Students’ Access to Educational Opportunities in the Nation’s Public Schools,” spotlighting data on student enrollment; access to preschool programs; access to math, science, and computer science courses and other programs; teachers and school support staff; and school climate factors.
- “An Overview of the Department of Education’s 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection,” providing an overview of OCR’s administration of the 2021-22 CRDC.
- “Civil Rights Data Quality from Start to Finish,” explaining why data quality matters and presenting steps that OCR took to improve data quality for the 2021-22 CRDC.
Meanwhile, OCR issued for a second round of public comment its proposal for items to be collected by the CRDC for the 2025-26 and 2027-28 school years.
Also new from OCR:
- A four-year retrospective report, titled “Protecting Civil Rights: Highlights of Activities, OCR 2021-25,” describing the office’s enforcement record during the Biden Administration.
- A resource discussing some considerations for schools when taking action to remediate a hostile environment under Title VI.
- A resource explaining that schools must address sexual harassment in their education program or activity, even when such harassment occurs online or using emergent technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), under Title IX.
- A fact sheet on ensuring equal opportunity based on sex in school athletic programs in the context of name, image, and likeness (NIL) activities.
NON-REGULATORY GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS
Parent and Family Engagement — this guidance, superseding previous (April 2004) guidance, aims to assist states, school districts, and schools in administering the relevant engagement provisions of Title I, Part A.
Opportunities and Responsibilities for State and Local Report Card Requirements — this guidance, also superseding previous (March 2019) guidance, includes pertinent updates to statutory requirements and incorporates lessons learned from the Department’s own monitoring and technical assistance to states.
Title II, Part A — this guidance, the first revision since 2006, is organized by topic and reflects responses to frequently asked questions from states, districts, and school leaders regarding program requirements.
Building and Sustaining Inclusive Educational Practices — this guidance emphasizes the importance of students with disabilities achieving challenging state academic standards while being educated alongside their friends and peers in general education settings, to the greatest extent appropriate.
Plus, in a January 8 letter, Secretary Cardona outlines resources for ensuring equal access to education for immigrant students (also in Spanish).
The Department released the attached Transition Guidance that addresses, through a series of frequently-asked questions, several topics related to postsecondary transition for students and youth with disabilities. The Department is issuing this guidance in a format that is intended to be easier to understand and addresses the requirements under IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act on transition for all students with disabilities, rather than focusing solely on dual enrollment for students with disabilities. This guidance does not change the Department’s longstanding
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