OSERS Selects Westat to Lead New Center

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) has chosen Westat, a research and professional services company, to lead a new technical assistance center aimed at addressing data quality regarding disproportionality in special education. The center, named the Data Center for Addressing Significant Disproportionality, will receive a five-year, $14.5 million contract to assist states in collecting, reporting, analyzing, and utilizing data related to racial disparities in special education. The goal is to help states and districts accurately identify and address inequalities and root causes of over- and under-identification of students in special education programs. The number of states identified as significantly disproportionate has increased over the past six years, with extremes seen on both ends of the scale, Maryland moving from 8% in 2015-16 to 63% in 2020-21 and Rhode Island from 52% in 2015-16 to 18% in 2020-21. Federal rules mandate that districts annually measure racial disparities in special education across various categories, with those identified as significantly disproportionate required to allocate 15% of their federal IDEA Part B funds for remedial programs. The center intends to provide additional support by accelerating outreach to states and helping them build capacity to work with districts in addressing these disparities. 

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