Category: Government Actions

Shapiro Administration Hosts Roundtable on Creating Inclusive Workplaces, Continuing Historic Progress to Support Pennsylvanians with Disabilities in 2025-26 Proposed Budget (April 21, 2025)

In less than one year, the PA Department of Human Services (DHS) has reduced the adult emergency waiting list for home- and community-based services by 20 percent. This is a remarkable shift given that the emergency waiting list had been growing for years. During the Shapiro Administration, more than 3,000 additional individuals have been enrolled in services, and that number will continue to rise. In addition, for the first time ever more than 40,000 individuals are receiving ID/A services through the DHS. Funding in Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 proposed budget will continue this progress, which includes 1,300 people newly receiving services since July 2024.

At present, Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposes an additional $5 million to support Labor & Industry’s Office of Vocational Rehabilitation in assisting people with disabilities in finding employment through personalized services, vocational guidance, goal setting, job placement, and counseling.

On April 21, 2025, DHS Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh and Labor and Industry (L&I) Secretary Nancy A. Walker joined students and employers at Drexel University for a roundtable discussion highlighting the success of the Shapiro Administration’s multi-year growth strategy for intellectual disability and autism (ID/A) services, the importance of the continued funding in Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposal for this community and the workforce that supports them, and discussed how the Commonwealth and community partners are working together to train and employ Pennsylvanians with disabilities and create inclusive workplaces. 

“Receiving job skills training and securing employment helps Pennsylvanians with intellectual disabilities and autism chart their own course, pursue their goals, and live their Everyday Life among family, friends, and peers in their communities,” said Secretary Arkoosh. “For those with ID/A, that means having access to the right services at the right time so they can live healthier, independent lives. Pennsylvania is achieving this goal by making critical budget investments and supporting the vision of the ID/A community through employment programs. We still have work to do, and that is why continued funding for ID/A services are critical to the future health and wellbeing of this community.”

The 2024-25 bipartisan budget made historic new investments in Pennsylvanians with ID/A and the direct support professionals (DSPs) who care for them by securing $354.8 million in federal and state funding to provide more resources for home and community-based service providers. Services for people with ID/A are covered through Medicaid, which helps three million Pennsylvanians access care and supports that allow them to live healthier, work, and support themselves, their families, and their communities. 

“Creating inclusive workplaces not only empowers individuals with disabilities but also strengthens our workforce and our communities,” said Secretary Walker. “The Department of Labor & Industry is committed to expanding employment opportunities through its Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, ensuring Pennsylvanians with disabilities receive the resources and support they need to achieve meaningful and sustained employment. Governor Shapiro’s proposed investment underscores Pennsylvania’s commitment to building a workforce that is diverse, inclusive, and equitable for all.”

The Department of Labor & Industry’s Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) helps people with disabilities find employment through personalized services such as goal setting and counseling, vocational guidance, and job placement. Last year, OVR engaged with 74,000 individuals with disabilities, including more than 21,000 students, and placed more than 6,000 people with disabilities into competitive integrated employment. OVR also supported more than 3,800 individuals attending post-secondary training and provided more than $32 million in tuition assistance. Additionally, OVR’s signature paid work-based learning program, MY Work, connected nearly 300 employers with more than 1,200 students in the summer of 2024. Governor Shapiro’s proposed budget calls for an additional $5 million investment in OVR to sustain these critical employment services.

The roundtable was held in partnership with Community Integrated Services (CIS) and Transition Pathways at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute. CIS is the region’s largest provider of employment services for people with disabilities. CIS’s mission is to empower people with disabilities through individualized employment opportunities that foster self-sustainability, equality, and community.

“At Community Integrated Services, we believe that employment is a vital pathway to independence, economic mobility, and real connection,” said CIS Executive Director Susan Schonfeld. “Today’s conversation reflects the progress we’re making together — alongside the Autism Institute at Drexel University, our state partners, and dedicated employers — to build a more inclusive workforce for people with disabilities. With continued investment and collaboration, we can expand opportunities and empower more people to lead fulfilling, community-centered lives. CIS is proud to be part of this effort, and we’re committed to making sure inclusive employment isn’t just an idea — it’s the standard across Pennsylvania.”

The A.J. Drexel Autism Institute at Drexel University pioneers research to better understand autism and drive impactful change in communities and worldwide. Transition Pathways at the Autism Institute offers a growing collection of programs that prepare young people on the autism spectrum for employment and connect them to career opportunities.

“I am very proud of the work the Transition Pathways team has done, in partnership with Community Integrated Services and the School District of Philadelphia, to support autistic young adults in getting and sustaining meaningful employment. This work is critical to our mission of driving impactful change for autistic people,” said Dr. Diana Robins, Director, A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, Drexel University. 

Learn more about Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 Budget proposal and its commonsense goals for Pennsylvania.

U.S. Ed. Sec. Kennedy Makes Offensive Remarks and Wild Claims Regarding Autism (April 19, 2025)

According to NPR, on April 16, 2025 U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated that autism is a rapidly growing “epidemic” in the U.S. and vowed to identify the “environmental toxin” he says is to blame, calling it “a preventable disease.” In addition, he said that within two to three weeks HHS will announce a series of new studies “to identify precisely what the environmental toxins are that are causing” autism, adding “we’re going to get back to it with an answer to the American people very, very quickly.” HHS also announced it expects to begin to have answers by this September.

However, some experts and advocates have cautioned that such a short time span is inadequate to design and conduct a study that could produce a reliable answer.

Kennedy also made remarks that were stigmatizing, inaccurate, and dehumanizing with regard to autistic people.

Further, although Kennedy was adamant that environmental causes are driving the increase in autism diagnoses, an April 17, 2025 CDC report has indicated that better screening may play a large role. The report also notes that differences in the prevalence across communities “might be due to differences in availability of services for early detection and evaluation and diagnostic practices.”

To make matters worse are proposed cuts to Medicaid, which some autistic people depend on, and the dismantling of the Administration for Community Living, a sub-agency of HHS.

Source: NPR.

Trump Prelim Budget Plan “Zeroes Out” Head Start (April 19, 2025)

A draft preliminary 2026 federal budget by the Trump administration that is expected to be sent to Congress would eliminate Head Start. In fact, according to K-12 Dive, Head Start is among other initiatives targeted for termination that support low-income families and children — including the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) — under the preliminary budget document for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Project 2025 — a blueprint for the current Republican administration issued during the presidential campaign by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank — recommended zeroing out the program. While some conservatives have called Head Start ineffective, supporters point to academic, social, and economic benefits.

Head Start which will be celebrating its 60th anniversary in May, serves nearly 800,000 infants, toddlers and preschool children from families with low incomes. A National Institutes of Health (NIH) study has shown that “although the differential benefits of Head Start for high-risk children are limited, nonetheless children enrolled should continue to receive services as, on average, the program boosts pre-academic skills and reduces problem behavior.”

Once it receives the proposed budget, Congress will debate the recommended allocations before sending appropriations bills to the president for signature. The federal fiscal year starts October 1, 2025.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

NAEP will Happen in 2026 Despite Layoffs (April 18, 2026)

On April 17, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) announced that a severely diminished crew will administer and analyze the Nation’s Report Card (NAEP) as planned in 2026. According to U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, “The Department will ensure that NAEP continues to provide invaluable data on learning across the U.S” and “The 2026 NAEP assessments in reading and math are on track for administration in January 2026.”

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

Lawsuits: IES Cuts will Impede High-quality Research (April 17, 2025)

According to a lawsuit filed in Maryland district court on April 16, 2025 by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE), “Dramatic, unreasoned, and unlawful actions” taken by the Trump administration to significantly downsize the U.S. Department of Education’s(USDE) Institute of Education Sciences (IES) are making it impossible to carry out education research. The lawsuit further avers that the funding and staffing cuts made to IES will hamper the institute’s ability to conduct impartial, high-quality research and share those findings with educators, researchers and policymakers, according to the federal lawsuit, which was filed in Maryland district court.

Another lawsuit that disputes IES shrinkage was previously filed by the Association for Education Finance and Policy and the Institute for Higher Education Policy on April 4th in federal court in Washington, D.C.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.