Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act

Strengthens special-education rights for deaf, blind, and deafblind students — guarantees ASL/Braille access, protects their schools from closure.

The details

The Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act would rewrite parts of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It would strengthen special-education and early-intervention services. This covers children who are deaf, hard of hearing, deafdisabled, blind or visually impaired, or deafblind. States would have to identify these students, even when officially classified under a different disability. States must file written compliance addenda within two years. These must show how they deliver services such as American Sign Language and Braille instruction. States must also keep a full continuum of specialized placements open. Closing a school for the deaf or the blind would count as an illegal cut to special-education funding. The bill would require evaluations tailored to each group, such as language-proficiency and Braille assessments. It would add teachers of students with sensory disabilities and one-to-one interveners to the list of qualified early-intervention personnel. It would direct the Education Department to expand training programs for these specialists. The bill would also create a new Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and Educational Excellence. A consortium of nonprofits and universities would run it under a contract of at least five years. It would be funded by "such sums as may be necessary." No more than 15 percent of each year's appropriation could carry over. The Secretary of Education would have to monitor state compliance and report findings to Congress. The Secretary must also review and republish long-standing policy guidance at least every five years. New regulations would define "deafblindness" and "intervener services." Families of these children, special-education teachers, educational interpreters, and state education agencies would be the groups most affected.