Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara applauded State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli for releasing a report detailing how the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted vital special education services. Earlier this year, Santabarbara co-sponsored and helped pass a law providing additional time for special education students to complete their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) rather than “aging-out” of public education (Ch. 167 of 2021).

“Remote learning presented serious challenges last school year to meet the educational needs of students, especially for those with disabilities,” Santabarbara said. “Between the difficulties of adapting to online learning and the unique challenges that many disabled students already face in their education; Comptroller DiNapoli’s report reaffirms the necessity of having supportive school districts that meet the specific needs of our students. The bill I helped pass helps ensure every student with disabilities can academically recover and complete their IEP without an unfair penalty.”

In New York State, students are entitled to a public school education until the end of the school year in which they turn 21. Although most students graduate within four years, students with disabilities often require additional time to acquire the skills they need to be successful. Many special education students found difficulty engaging in remote learning or adapting to online lessons, essentially losing a year of education. The law that Santabarbara helped enact offers impacted special education students an opportunity to complete their IEP or continue their education until turning 23 years old — whichever is sooner.

According to the comptroller’s report, students with disabilities lost partial or full special education services because of school shutdowns and the shift to remote learning during the pandemic, which likely exacerbated pre-existing achievement gaps. During the 2019-20 school year, nearly 464,500 students in New York public schools, or approximately 18% of the state’s total K-12 enrollment, had a disability.

DiNapoli stressed that school districts should prioritize spending state and federal aid on special education services to help address short-term setbacks and longstanding inequities for students with disabilities. As Chair of the Assembly Subcommittee on Autism Spectrum Disorders, Santabarbara has long fought for individuals with disabilities to receive the resources and opportunities they need to lead fulfilling, independent lives.