For Immediate Release From USDE!
Education, Justice Departments Issue Fact Sheet on Supporting Students at Risk of Self Harm During COVID-19 Era
In recognition of World Mental Health Day, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S. Department of Justice jointly issued a fact sheet to support students with mental health disabilities, their families, and their schools in the era of COVID-19. Along with the fact sheet, OCR released a letter to educators highlighting the civil rights obligations of schools and postsecondary institutions to students with mental health disabilities.
“The COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on student mental health are widespread and deeply concerning,” the Department of Education’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Suzanne B. Goldberg. “OCR is committed to providing resources to support students with mental health disabilities, including those who may be at risk for self-harm.”
“The Department of Justice is committed to safeguarding the rights of students with mental health disabilities through vigorous enforcement of the civil rights laws, particularly given the continuing effects of the pandemic,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. “Students should be supported and not excluded from educational opportunities on the basis of disability.”
OCR’s June 2021 report, Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students, showed that COVID-19 has had disproportionately harsh effects on many students with disabilities. Today’s action responds to the pandemic’s effects on students’ mental health and provides information about the federal civil rights laws that protect students with mental health disabilities.
The fact sheet entitled Supporting and Protecting the Rights of Students at Risk of Self-Harm in the Era of COVID-19, provides information about federal civil rights laws that protect students with mental health disabilities. It includes scenarios that illustrate when the Department might investigate a potential violation; gives schools and postsecondary institutions a list of action steps to create an environment that is responsive to students with mental health disabilities; and provides educational and crisis resources for students, families, and educators.
World Mental Health Day is an international day to raise awareness of mental health issues around the world and to mobilize efforts in support of mental health. More than 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, it is particularly important to acknowledge the pandemic’s impact on mental health at home and around the world, to present an opportunity for meaningful conversations about mental health, and to celebrate schools and other institutions that have found new and promising ways to provide mental health services to their populations.
The Biden-Harris Administration has taken significant action to address the mental health needs of Americans, including through historic resources in the American Rescue Plan that can be used right now to support expanded mental health services in schools. In addition, President Biden’s Build Back Better Agenda includes funding and support for a wide range of programs aimed at improving access to mental health services.
If you believe that you or another person has been discriminated against at school based on a mental health disability, you may file a complaint with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division at
https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or
https://www.ada.gov/fact_on_complaint.htm, or with the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights at
https://www2.ed.gov/ocr/complaintintro.htm... to file a complaint in English or
www.ed.gov/ocr/docs/howto.html to file a complaint in other languages.
The fact sheet is on the Department of Justice’s website and, separately, on OCR’s website at
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr... ********
Five Board Members Appointed to Board Overseeing The Nation’s Report Card
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona has appointed an elementary school principal, a business executive, a local school board member, a testing and measurement expert, and a former governor to the National Assessment Governing Board, which oversees the only ongoing, nationally representative assessment of what American students know and can do in various subjects.
The Governing Board is a nonpartisan body established by Congress in 1988 to oversee and set policy for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as “the Nation’s Report Card.” NAEP provides objective information on student performance in various subjects and for different student groups and reports on student achievement across the nation, in states, and in large urban districts.
The 26-member Governing Board is responsible for deciding which subjects NAEP assesses, determining the assessments’ content, setting achievement levels that describe student performance, and pursuing new ways to make NAEP results useful and meaningful to the public. Although the Board operates independently, NAEP law calls for members to be appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Education.
Read and learn more HERE!:
https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/fiv...
Posted By: agnes levine
Wednesday, October 13th 2021 at 5:59PM
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