Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

 

As the nation’s special education law, The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) provides rights and protections to students with disabilities

and their parents/guardians.  The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) is a federal law that mandates and affirms the right of all students with disabilities to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). 

The purposes of IDEA are to do the following: 

1. Ensure that all students with disabilities have available to them a Free Appropriate Public Education that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs and prepare them for employment and independent living;
2. Ensure that the rights of students with disabilities and parents/guardians of such students are protected; Assist states, localities, educational service agencies, and federal agencies to provide for the education of all students with disabilities; and assess and ensure the effectiveness of efforts to educate students with disabilities. 

Least Restrictive Environment“

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)” is the placement/services or program that can best meet an individual student’s needs and does so with a minimum loss of contact with the general education curriculum, programs, and typically developing peers. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has a strong preference for educating students with disabilities in the general education classroom with appropriate aids and services. 

The IEP team may decide that the student cannot be educated satisfactorily in the general education classroom, even when aids and services are provided. The IEP team must then consider other placements and/or services. A full continuum of program options must be available within the LEA to the extent necessary to ensure the student receives a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).