Special Education

Before 1975, only one in five children with disabilities attended public school. Federal legislation changed that. With more than 7 million children receiving special education services, educators, parents, and providers face many challenges on the road to improving outcomes—and improving lives—for students with disabilities.

Our Work

AIR conducts federal, state, and local projects designed to improve outcomes for students with disabilities and their families. We offer training and technical assistance support for implementing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and evidence-based practices for students with disabilities in each of the 50 states and ten U.S. territories, as well as in hundreds of local school districts.

Our areas of expertise in special education include:

High-quality educational programming for students with disabilities;
Multi-tiered system of supports and response to intervention;
Intensive intervention;
State general supervision and monitoring systems;
Local program reviews and evaluations;
Significant disproportionality;
Fiscal requirements; and
Teacher and leader preparation and professional development.

We also develop projects that analyze and synthesize information related to policy initiatives in special education and early intervention, and conduct cutting-edge research on emerging, high-priority topics related to special education.

Contact

Key Special Education Work

AIR Special Education News

In November 2024, Principal Researcher Tammy Kolbe was quoted in EdWeek article, “How Trump’s Policies Could Affect Special Education”, sharing her expertise on program funding allocations.

PROGRESS Center

The PROGRESS Center provides information, resources, and support for local educators and leaders responsible for the development and implementation of high-quality educational programs that ensure students with disabilities have access to free appropriate public education and that enables them to make progress and meet challenging goals.

National Center on Intensive Intervention

The National Center on Intensive Intervention's mission is to build district and school capacity to support implementation of intensive intervention, or data-based individualization, in reading, mathematics, and behavior for students with severe and persistent learning and/or behavioral needs.

Lead IDEA Center

The Lead IDEA Center helps early childhood and PreK-12 leaders effectively implement the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and improve systems serving children with disabilities and their families.

Center on Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS Center)

Since 2007, the MTSS Center has been a national leader in supporting states, districts, and schools across the country in implementing an MTSS framework that integrates data and instruction within a multi-level prevention system to maximize student achievement and support students’ social, emotional, and behavior needs from a strengths-based perspective.