As students head back to school, many districts across the country are facing a shortage of special education staff. An article in Disability Scoop reports that the majority of states (42 out of 50) “have fewer special education teachers than schools need.” In some districts where there is no trained staff, families of kids with disabilities are being told to find another school or forego special ed services altogether.  

While the shortage is marginally less severe than it was last year, when all but 3 states reported shortages, it still leaves many students with learning differences and other disabilities unable to access the services their IEPs call for. 

This comes at a time when demand for special education educators has been on the rise for a decade. According to Denise Marshall, CEO of The Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA), a nonprofit that advocates for students with disabilities, COPAA members are reporting that services are being compromised in significant ways:

COPAA members are experiencing IEP meetings where a district will seek to keep a certain type of service out of the IEP and/or reduce or limit access/number of minutes/hours to certain specialized services (like) school counseling and speech and occupational therapy. Access to qualified staff has much to do with these limitations being placed on IEP services.

As frustration mounts, COPAA suggests the solution is for Congress to increase investments in special education teacher training to ensure an adequate number of properly trained educators are available for all students.