This week, the Department of Education buzzed with talk of the federal overhaul amid a summer heat wave. There are plans to reorganize two key functions of the central department: special education and the protection of students’ civil rights.
Disability services, currently housed within the Department of Education, will be moved to the Department of Health and Human Services, which will assume responsibility for enforcing laws regarding disabled students. The Department of Justice will take over the oversight of the civil rights of disabled students. The move is described by officials as an attempt to “streamline operations,” but there is a lot more to it than that.
There will be a big increase in outsourcing as a result of one of the consequences. The department will establish contracts with private businesses to handle some of the department’s special education tasks, particularly technical assistance and to oversee compliance with disability laws and rules. These tasks – previously handled by federal experts – will increasingly be managed by third party vendors. Within the agency, questions about continuity, knowledge, and accountability are rising as years of research, investigations, and legal counsel are at risk of being handed over to organizations that may not be properly staffed or have the same priorities.
The uncertainty is not limited to the agency. Few can imagine what the future will hold for federal employees, parents and disabled children. The effect will be felt by families straight away. Complicating the system exacerbates the already long wait for evaluations and services for disabled children.
After a conflict between districts and families, children might be denied the essential services they need for months as a smokescreen of a legal process ensues.
The more questions that are asked, the fewer answers are available. Families who are already struggling are now facing a system that grows murkier by the day. Poorer families will be disproportionately impacted. Many parents do not have the time or resources to attend meetings or to advocate. In rural communities there are often not enough private providers available to provide services. These changes do not simply involve reducing supervision, they provide a real route through which disabled children can be deprived of the support to which they are entitled. Restricting enforcement will simply increase the stress on parents who are already having to bear the burden of supporting their children’s needs. Schools are also in a limbo of uneasy preparation. Administrators rely on federal guidance to ensure that they are aware of their responsibilities and to ensure the delivery of services.
The fear is that less affluent districts will react to new pressures by cutting back on services or deferring assessments and thus exacerbate inequality. There is a pervasive sense of uncertainty, and it permeates the day-to-day choices that impact students’ experiences in school.
The impact of these changes is likely to be disproportionately felt by disabled students, both in access to therapies and assistive technology, and in terms of their vocational and post-secondary options, and in the loss of the critical opportunities for early intervention to change life paths. As the federal government either shrinks in scope or moves to contractors, threats to the quality of services increase.
It’s not about politics, it’s about the futures of kids and the systems in place to support them. I have experienced this first-hand. I used special ed services such as classroom accommodations, assistive devices, and physical therapy, which allowed me to fully participate in school from preschool through twelfth grade. This was no coincidence. Federal law provided those supports, and federal monitoring was in place to ensure districts fulfilled their responsibilities. I would be very concerned to see these changes that are taking place if I was a student today.
History has shown what happens when disability rights are left to chance: isolation, exclusion and even denial of education. Federal disability laws were enacted to help fix those injustices and federal enforcement has been critical to making them a reality. With agencies having changed in mission and with the basic functions outsourced, people might wonder if those protections will remain.
But advocacy organizations are already gearing up for a new round of battles. Districts face uncertain federal policies. Parents face an overburdened system that could dissuade them from pursuing help for their children.
The reality is that this is happening. Disabled children don’t have time to wait for Washington to resolve bureaucratic issues. They can’t wait for agencies to catch up. It is imperative that the federal government enforce the law with children in mind—ensuring that their needs are met now, not later.
Sources:
Bender, Michael C., and Sheryl Gay Stolberg. “Disability Groups Fear RFK Jr.’s New Special Education Role.” The New York Times, 20 June 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/20/us/politics/special-education-rfk.html.
Diament, Michelle. “The Ed Department Is Outsourcing Special Education. Here’s What That Means for Students With Disabilities.” Disability Scoop, 25 June 2026, https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2026/06/25/the-ed-department-is-outsourcing-special-education-heres-what-that-means-for-students-with-disabilities/32063/
Mehta, Jonaki, and Cory Turner. “Trump Further Guts Education Dept. by Shifting Oversight of Special Ed, Civil Rights.” NPR, 16 June 2026, https://www.npr.org/2026/06/16/nx-s1-5717030/special-ed-civil-rights-education-department.
Wong, Alia, Moriah Balingit, and Sharon Lurye. “Trump Is Shifting Special Ed, Civil Rights Out of Education Department. Here’s What We Know.” AP News, 17 June 2026, https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-restructuring-civil-rights-sped-043d48432bfd182cdce3743a397ce633