Website for disabled kids disappears as DeVos takes office

[kpete]

A U.S. Department of Education website, empowering families of students with disabilities, has disappeared -- and already embattled Trump education chief Betsy DeVos may be to blame.


U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell want to know what happened to the vanished website, and have asked Education Secretary DeVos to put it back up.

The website was set up under President George W. Bush so educators, advocates and parents could get a "one-stop" explanation on the federal Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), as well as know their rights under the disability law.

The resource has been inexplicably taken away. In a letter to DeVos -- whose confirmation both senators vocally opposed -- Cantwell and Murray explained:

"We are deeply concerned that prior to your confirmation and arrival at the Department, the centralized resource website for the IDEA became inaccessible to the public for more than a week, and is now redirecting people to a site for the Office of Special Education Programs.

The new website "lacks much of the information previously available," the senators wrote.


MORE:
http://m.seattlepi.com/local/politics/article/A-disability-website-disappears-Murray-10924413.php?cmpid=twitter-mobile

[RKP5637]

1. With sadistic politicians in office it's hard to tell what to expect next. n/t

[Squinch]

2. Now she's shitting in my back yard. This fills me with rage. May she rot in hell.

It takes a really evil person to look in the face of kids with disabilities and deny them what they need.

They've already started to go after Hillary's ChIP program, which is an insurance specifically for kids.

I really hate these people.

[we can do it]

5. They are worse than deplorable.

[Squinch]

7. .

I work with disabled kids. How do you look in those faces and say, "No, we're not going to help you?" I could cry about this.

I suppose all we can do is keep fighting.

[kimbutgar]

17. I also work with disabled kids

I worry now what is going to happen to their education. I am a parent of an adult son with autism. When I started looking for schools for him in 1996 it was a struggle then. I see working as a sub things are better for kids but this evil woman is going to destroy all the good work that had been done.

[brer cat]

9. The cruelty and evil in this maladministration

is without limits.

[democrank]

3. What Education Secretary does this?

Any Secretary of Education who cares one iota about students with disabilities would never remove information on IDEA. I hope parents, advocates and educators stand up and speak out....loudly.

[democratisphere]

4. republiCONs are hardcore evil.

Disabled kids? Really?

[kimbutgar]

18. Our scrotus mocked a disabled man do you expect any less from rethugs?

[smirkymonkey]

6. How fucking cruel!

What possible reason could they have for doing this except for extreme malice? We need to drain the swamp, the sooner the better. This country will not survive four years of this evil.

[SamKnause]

8. Republicans are EVIL !!!!

Fuck Trump

Fuck DeVos

Fuck Republicans

[lark]

10. My daughter's previous best friend since she was 2 has a Down's Syndrome child.

She's so deluded by her RW boyfriend that she voted for drumpf and yelled at anyone who said he'd hurt her daughter. She said so many times on FB that this was just liberal lies and no one would hurt disabled children. Sadly, she's about to find out how wrong she is when Emma is school age in a year and there are no schools available for her or the choices dry way up. Also, unfortunately, there are lots of disabled children who will be disadvantaged by easily fooled people like her. They don't deserve it and neither does Emma.

[LisaL]

11. I guess she will find out the hard way.

Sorry for her daughter.

[lark]

12. Not sorry for her at all, which is sad since she has been my 2nd daughter for 26 years.

i'm very sad for sweet little Emma and all the other disabled and now very disadvantaged children out there. I hope the friend will realize the severe mistake she's made, but she's so into fake news and Faux Snooze, I really sadly doubt that will happen. I had to block her from my fb newsfeed because I couldn't take the horrible RW drivel she posted daily.

[dalton99a]

13. Cruella De Vil is now in charge

[left-of-center2012]

14. We've seen Trump mocking the disabled n/t

[Takket]

15. I guess Bush's treatment of the disabled

Is too liberal for this regime.

[gordianot]

16. That is a serious mistake and will mobilize serious opposition.

Expect a level of fury in opposition as never seen before from both urban and rural schools. Only a total lack of understanding of American School culture would allow this to happen.