OSERS Head Resigns Ahead of Staff Move to HHS

Kelly Rogers, who has overseen the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) since last May, resigned on Wednesday, one day before staff were scheduled to move to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Her departure leaves the remaining OSERS personnel facing additional uncertainty as they transition to a new federal agency under an interagency agreement (IAA) established last spring. Among its many charges, OSERS currently administers more than $15 billion in funding to support implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). 

The leadership vacancy and continuing uncertainty over oversight of OSERS functions raise questions about accountability and whether the rights and protections afforded to students with disabilities under IDEA will be adequately safeguarded during the transition. Chad Rummel, Chief Executive Officer of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), expressed concern to National Public Radio (NPR), saying, “There's not clarity as to who's overseeing this outsourcing of special education through the IAA.”

Read the NPR article here.