On March 18, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced the District of Columbia Public Schools violated the civil rights of students with disabilities by denying timely evaluations, individualized placements and reliable transportation, according to results of a year-long investigation.
OCR said the district violated Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by denying students with disabilities a free and appropriate public education (FAPE).
Among other issues, the OCR’s investigation found that DCPS allowed:
-Untrained staff members to make decisions about the educational needs of students with disabilities.
-Education services to be removed from students’ individualized education programs if the school social worker ran out of time or if a student seemed unmotivated to participate.
-Some students to wait four months or longer for special education evaluations, which OCR said delayed the support needed for their learning and development.
OCR wants the district to revise policies related to the identification, evaluation and placement of students with disabilities, among other actions.
For more from K-12 Dive, click here.