Category: News

USDE to Make Changes in Measuring Racial Disparities in Special Ed. (July 7, 2026)

According to a July 5, 2026 announcement that many missed due to the holiday weekend, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) is planning to make changes to a federal rule that requires states and districts to measure racial disparities in special education. Known as the Equity in IDEA regulation, the rule requires that school districts be measured for racial disparities in special education annually in 14 categories. Such data determines if a district is significantly disproportionate.

Districts deemed significantly disproportionate must reserve 15% of their federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B funds for programs that remedy racial disparities and biases, including for initiatives that support all students and students at risk of needing special education services. 

The IDEA requirement to address significant disproportionality has been in place for more than 20 years to combat racial disparities in identification, discipline, and segregation.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

U.S. House Passes Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act (July 3, 2026)

On June, 29, 2026, the U.S. House passed the Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act in a 267-117 vote. The proposed legislation would require additional safeguards for children and teens online, including an update to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) that would expand protections currently available to children up to the age of 12 to teens up to age 17. In addition, the updated act would ban websites from using targeted advertising on children and teens.

However, critics of the KIDS Act say it leaves out a crucial enforcement measure — a “duty of care” measure that would require tech companies to design their online platforms to be safe by default.

The proposed legislation now moves on to the Senate.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

Education Groups Sue USDE and OMB for Access to Nearly $2B in Funds Linked to Special Ed. (July 2, 2026)

On June 30, 2026, a coalition of disability and education organizations sued the the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) and the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) over its withholding of almost $2B in USDE funds that were appropriated by Congress for education research, data collection, program evaluation, and assistance to states and school The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts districts, alleges that the failure of the USDE’s Institute of Education Sciences and OMB to provide funding for grants and contracts violates the Administrative Procedures Act, the Antideficiency Act and the constitutional separation of powers.

It is the contention of the plaintiffs and many within the education community that the withholding or failure to “apportion” those funds will impact all students, including those with disabilities, as researchers, schools, and families have less access to research-based guidance and information for effective practices. Thus, the plaintiffs are asking the court to ensure that congressionally appropriated funds are made available for spending. The lawsuit also challenges a federal grantmaking process that requires competitive grants to comply with certain Trump administration priorities, including an executive order to end diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts in federal activities and spending, which is in contradiction to the congressionally mandated requirement within the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to provide for a student’s inclusion in general education classrooms through providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE).

For more details from K-12 Dive, click here.

Supreme Court Decision Allows Schools to Separate Sports Teams Based on ‘Biological Sex’ (July 2, 2026)

According to a June 30, 2026 U.S. Supreme Court (Court) decision, girls’ and boys’ sports teams can be separated based on “biological sex.” It also allows state laws separating athletics based on “biological sex” to remain in place. The ruling included a West Virginia case (West Virginia v. B.P.J. ) that was filed on behalf of a teen assigned male at birth but who has publicly identified as a girl since third grade. The student took medication to stave off male puberty and also began estrogen hormone therapy but, as an 11-year-old middle schooler in 2021, that student was prohibited by state law from trying out for and playing on the girls’ cross country team since West Virginia’s 2021 state law barred transgender students’ participation on sports teams based on their gender identity.

Prior to 2021, West Virginia schools allowed transgender students to play on teams aligning with their gender identity on a case-by-case basis, according to court documents.

In their decision, justices in the majority opinion said the 2021 West Virginia law and others similar to it nationwide ”are reasonable” because of physical differences between men and women such as height, weight, strength, speed, endurance and jumping ability — even in cases where hormones and puberty blockers are involved. However, the divide between justices about whether transgender students may be prohibited from playing on sports teams aligning with their gender identity in all cases or whether there should be some exceptions to that prohibition reflects a broader one nationwide among legislators, families, educators, education leaders, and the general public.

According to JD Supra, under the Court’s decision, Pennsylvania school districts are now permitted, but not required, to maintain girls’ sports teams limited to biological females, students assigned female at birth. Critically, the decision permits, but does not mandate, that states restrict athletic participation based on biological sex. Because Pennsylvania has not enacted a statute comparable to those in West Virginia or Idaho, its school districts retain discretion to set their own eligibility policies, subject to the executive order and state-law obligations discussed below.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

For more from JD Supra, click here.

PDH Takes Action to Address Measles Outbreak (June 29, 2026)

The Pennsylvania Department of Health (PDH) is working directly with local health care and community partners to address the increasing number of measles cases statewide among people who are not fully vaccinated, particularly in the Lancaster-Lebanon region. n 2026 so far, 84 measles cases have been identified in Pennsylvania, with 72 cases in the Lancaster-Lebanon region alone, beginning in late-April, including: Berks (2), Dauphin (2), Lancaster (41), Lebanon (20), Northumberland (6), and York (1) counties. Earlier in the year, cases were identified in Lancaster (8), Montgomery (3), and Chester (1).

Because measles was essentially eradicated in the U.S. since 2000, the majority of health care providers have not treated a patient with the disease. To ensure Pennsylvania providers have the information they need, PDH issued multiple Health Alert Network messages outlining the signs and symptoms of measles and reminding clinicians to encourage patients to stay up to date on their vaccinations.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people most at-risk are: 

  • Unvaccinated;
  • Infants too young to have received the MMR vaccine; and 
  • People from parts of the world where there is low vaccination coverage or where there is circulating measles. 

PDH currently provides school vaccination data at the county and state level. In the next couple of weeks, school-level vaccination information will be available online so families have additional information to make personal health and educational decisions. This is directly in line with the Shapiro Administration’s commitment to boosting public access to information and ensuring transparency in our work to protect public health.

People who believe they were exposed to measles and are experiencing symptoms should contact their health care provider or call the PDH’s toll-free hotline at 877-PA-HEALTH (877-724-3258).

More information on measles is available at www.pa.gov/measles.