IN THE NEWS- DEVOS; MINIMUM PROGRESS FOR KIDS WITH DISABILITIES 'PREPOSTEROUS'

This from Chalkbeat Colorado...

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, flanked by school officials at a private autism center in Denver, called on the nation's public schools to work with parents to better serve students with special needs.

Minimum progress for students with disabilities, she said, "is preposterous. Our students deserve better."

DeVos' statement comes nearly six months after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling that set a new- and higher- standard for how schools educate students with special needs.

DeVos spoke this week after touring Firefly Autism center as part of her first multi- state tour as education secretary.

The location was in keeping with the theme of what the federal Education Department is billing the "Rethink Schools" tour. DeVos is promoting a vision of school choice that includes a roster of schools that fill niches serving students with particular needs. The premise, for DeVos, is that schools haven't changed significantly in a century and are in need of a reboot.

DeVos did not issue any new department directives or give any indication of what the standard for serving students with special needs should be.

During her comments, DeVos did criticize "artificial barriers" schools create to meet the needs of students. She did not identify those barriers.

"When it comes to educating students with special needs," she said, "failure is not an option."

DeVos said parents should have the freedom to choose whichever school best meet their students' needs.

"They shouldn't have to sue their way to the Supreme Court," she said.

Firefly Executive Director Jesse Ogas said he told DeVos that the state's public schools- and their tax dollars- were critical to Firefly.

"I never want to discount how important our school districts are," he said. "It's a strong partnership and without our district partners, we wouldn't be here today."

He added that the school districts aren't receiving the federal dollars they were promised to educate students with special needs.

"They're not the level they should be," he said.

How- and where- to best serve students with special needs is an ongoing debate in public education. Many advocates for students with disabilities favor full inclusion in schools and, when possible, general education classrooms. Those who embrace specialized centers like Firefly may see the setting as a bridge to a more inclusive environment.

In visiting a private center serving children with autism and a college campus that is also a military installation (the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs), DeVos limited the potential for the kinds of public protests that have followed her on other trips. Hundreds turned out in July to protest DeVos' appearance at a conservative political conference in Denver.

This week, no more than a handful of protesters shadowed Devos outside the Firefly autism center, holding signs in support of a program that provides protections for young immigrants. The Trump administration has announced it will roll back the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, initiative. Devos has said her "heart is with" DACA recipients but indicated lawmakers must settle the issue.