July Policy News Round-Up

AI in education continues to be a driving topic of conversation in Washington, D.C., a new federal government watchdog report reveals shortfalls in resources for students with disabilities and more. Learn more about what NCLD did in July.

Senate and House Appropriations Committees Advance Very Different Versions of FY 2025 Education Funding Bill

The end of the current fiscal year, September 30, is approaching. On August 1, the Senate Appropriations Committee marked up and passed the Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education (LHHS-ED) funding bill for FY 2025. The bill seeks to increase funding for the U.S. Department of Education by about $1 billion over FY 2024 levels. It proposes a $295 million (2.1%) increase to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) state grants. In contrast, the House LHHS-ED bill for FY 2025 would drastically cut funding for education and slash important programs for English learners (ESSA Title III) and educator professional development (ESSA Title II). Because of the upcoming election, we do not expect an FY 2025 funding bill to be passed by September 30, and we expect a stopgap funding bill or continuing resolution.

New AI Policy Brief Highlights Necessary Civil Rights Protections with Disabilities

NCLD contributed to a policy brief developed by the Educating All Learners Alliance (EALA) and New America called “Prioritizing Students with Disabilities in AI Policy,” released in late July. The brief discusses civil rights considerations and necessary protections for students with disabilities in the age of artificial intelligence. It serves as a guide for policymakers at all levels of government who are responsible for education policy relating to AI. EALA and New America convened stakeholders from across education, policy, government, and industry, including representatives from NCLD, earlier in the year for a summit to delve into the opportunities and challenges of deliberately designing and implementing AI to uphold civil rights protections for students with disabilities. Through this process, the coalition developed principles and action steps included in the policy brief. 

GAO Report on Resources and Data for Students with Disabilities

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report evaluating how well the U.S. Department of Education (USED) assesses and manages resources for students with disabilities, including the availability and effectiveness of data. In the report, the GAO noted that resources for students with disabilities often come up short in schools, with staffing vacancies impacting service delivery. For example, the report found that nationally, 44% of public school students attend schools with no full-time psychologists to support special education services and conduct special education evaluations. The report found that there were significant gaps in data collection on what resources are available to students, often lacking specificity at school and district levels. Also, it revealed that reporting practices are inconsistent across states. It recommended that USED could collect data such as the number of students who receive specific types of special education-related services, the number of staff providing services, and expenditures for services. 

OET Releases Guidance on AI for Education Technology Developers 

The U.S. Department of Education (USED) Office of Educational Technology released a report on designing artificial intelligence systems for education targeted to AI developers. The report builds upon previous USED publications on AI and education and provides guidance to developers and their teams for creating effective and ethical AI technology for the education environment. USED also included suggestions for best practices focused on collaboration with educators, smooth integration, and ongoing support. 

In Case You Missed It

• The American Enterprise Institute and Education Trust joined forces for an event on the increasing chronic absenteeism rates nationwide. At the event, experts called on states and districts to set a goal of cutting chronic absenteeism by 50% over the next five years. 
• NCLD’s policy manager, Nicole Fuller, attended Disability:IN’s annual conference in Las Vegas. Read more about her experience in her recent blog post. 
• Representatives from NCLD joined partner organizations with the Committee for Education Funding (CEF) for their annual day of advocacy on Capitol Hill. This year, CEF advocates focused heavily on preventing the devastating cuts to education funding proposed in the current House appropriations bill. 

The Center for Higher Education Policy and Practice released a new paper on supporting learners with disabilities in higher education. The paper lays out how learner-centered design can make higher education more inclusive.