Publish Date: December 7, 2025 9:36 am Author: Texas AFT
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Friday, December 5, 2025
A Great IDEA turns 50
IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, celebrated its 50th anniversary this November. The act, signed into law by President Gerald Ford as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (renamed in 1990), transformed the educational experiences of millions of children with disabilities in this country, and it remains an indispensable part of equity and justice in our schools.
Historically, children with disabilities faced significant obstacles to obtaining a free appropriate public education (FAPE), with an estimated 1 million being denied access in the 1970s, and low-income and minority students more likely to be excluded. IDEA changed that by establishing FAPE as a civil right for children with disabilities. Today, the landmark legislation provides support for more than 7 million students with disabilities — 15% of all public school students.
While beset by funding challenges (today, the federal government picks up the bill for about 12% of per-student funding for special education, down from 40% in 1975), IDEA’s legacy remains strong with generations of students having gained access to education and opportunity they did not have before. As we celebrate its 50th anniversary, we are reminded that the fight for equality and inclusion is an ongoing one.
When the U.S. Department of Education (ED) quietly signed six interagency agreements on November 18, the move didn’t come with a congressional vote. Nor did it come with a stakeholder comment period, public hearings, or broad consultation.
For Texas, a state where public education already straddles deep inequities, patchy funding, and shifting policy winds, the change represents far more than bureaucratic shuffling.
Over the past month, a new wave of challenges has swept across public higher education, targeting funding, course content, academic freedom, and the speech rights of faculty.
This past week, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Kelly Hancock announced the final rules for the $1 billion private school voucher scheme passed by the Texas Legislature.
The rules cover the administration of the program, education service providers and much more.
More parents across Texas are joining the diverse legal effort to stop the implementation of Senate Bill 10, the state law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
In the past week, families in multiple public school districts have signed onto a new class-action lawsuit, broadening the challenge and signaling deepening statewide resistance to the mandate.
Join AFT President Randi Weingarten for a thought-provoking conversation with historian and education advocate Diane Ravitch about her new memoir, An Education: How I Changed My Mind About Schools and Almost Everything Else. Once a leading voice for high-stakes testing and school choice, Ravitch reflects on what led her to challenge those ideas and become one of the strongest defenders of public education.
Last Chance! Save on Union-Made for the Holidays.
Our week-long sale at store.texasaft.org is coming to a close! In the spirit of giving (and savings), enjoy a10% discounton all merchandise through the end of Saturday. Your savings will be automatically applied at checkout!
All purchases from our webstore are a direct donation to Texas AFT’s Committee on Political Education (COPE).
📰 Indiana school leaders warn property tax reforms are destabilizing public education budgets.As the property tax debate continues in Texas, in the Hoosier statedistricts small and large are bracing for significant funding cuts and layoffs resulting from property tax reforms passed this year – more than 60% of districts have already reduced support staff.(Indiana Capital Chronicle, Dec. 4)
📖 The Lege’s ‘Big Government Intrusion’ into University Academics. Expanding on last session’s anti-DEI campus crackdown, some Republicans in the Legislature are now going after gender and ethnic studies programs and faculty independence. (Texas Observer, April 24)
🎧 The Shocking Billionaire Plot to Dismantle Public Education. Texas is on the verge of passing a law that could defund public education. Vouchers send public taxpayer dollars to private schools. It could cost taxpayers $10 billion by 2030. And it could destroy Friday Night Lights. (More Perfect Union, April 22)
This Education Department Official Lost His Job. Here’s What He Says Is at Risk. Fewer teachers. Incomplete data. Delays in addressing problems and getting financial aid information. Those are just some of the impacts Jason Cottrell, who worked as a data collector at the Department of Education for nine and a half years before being laid off along with more than a thousand other agency employees, warns the Trump Administration’s massive cuts to the department’s funding and workforce could have on the country’s education system. (Time, July 18)
This Education Department Official Lost His Job. Here’s What He Says Is at Risk. Fewer teachers. Incomplete data. Delays in addressing problems and getting financial aid information. Those are just some of the impacts Jason Cottrell, who worked as a data collector at the Department of Education for nine and a half years before being laid off along with more than a thousand other agency employees, warns the Trump Administration’s massive cuts to the department’s funding and workforce could have on the country’s education system. (Time, July 18)
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