Brown V. Board Of Education Case Summary

Individuals with Disabilities and the Law In the 1950’s case, Brown v. The Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme court ruled that African American children should be granted an opportunity for an equal education. It took 20 more years for individuals with disabilities to be granted the same. There were millions of students in the United States with disabilities whose needs were not being met, that had not been provided with equal educational opportunities to receive appropriate educational services (Essex, 2016, p.125). In the 1970’s parents used the ruling in the landmark case, Brown v. The Board of Education, to press for an equal education for all individuals. As a result, three federal laws were passed to protect individuals with disabilities.

Commonwealth and Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia. In the P.A.R.C. case, the district court ruled that students with mental retardation are entitled to a public education that is free, and if possible, in a regular classroom instead of a classroom isolated from the rest of the school. In the Mills case, the court stated that “no child eligible for a publicly supported education in the District of Columbia shall be excluded from a regular public school assignment by a rule, policy or board policy unless such child is provided adequate alternative educational services consistent with the child’s needs which may include special education or tuition grants” (Essex, 2016, p.126). The court also stated that if this happens due process is also required. In 1975, Congress passed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142), into law. This law was amended in 1997, and is now enacted as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA was passed to give school districts a clear definition of their responsibilities when it comes to students with disabilities. There are six main principles which cover the rules and regulations of IDEA. These have remained basically the same since 1975. The six main principals are as

No matter how severe a disability, the state is required to offer special education services to all children between the ages of six and seventeen. The state is also required to offer special education services to children between the ages of 3-5 and 18-21, if education services are offered to students without disabilities (Heward, Bacon, 2013, p.1). When students are found to have a disability, schools must create an Individualized Education Program (IEP). This plan brings the parents, teachers, different specialists, and sometimes the student together to identify the students present academic level and set goals for the year and identify any support that may be needed to help the student reach those goals (Long-Crowell, n.d.,