Photo by Jade Johnson | The Signal
The Department of Justice is suing the state of Georgia for allegedly segregating students with disabilities by throwing them in old, run-down facilities. This will be the first lawsuit against any state-run school system in United States’ history.
In 2010, Georgia put into action the Georgia Network for Educational and Therapeutic Support (GNETS) which according to the Department of Justice is a system of state-run facilities lacking libraries, science labs, gyms, extracurricular activities, and certified teachers. Today, the program has over 4,600 students.
Leslie Lipson, an attorney for the Georgia Advocacy Office, said the program was first audited by the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts in 2010.
“From 2010 to 2015, the [Georgia] Department of Education ignored the audit,” she said. “I really thought they weren’t going to keep the program, [the GNETS] doesn’t have any return on your investments and it’s not efficient.”
The Department’s findings and recommendations in the audit included that the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) should “develop a methodology for tracking the academic progress of GNETS students, so that the academic impact of the Program can be measured, as well as needed to “take steps to apply specific and measurable Program goals for the GNETS Program and hold Programs accountable for meetings those goals”.
Some of the schools are from the late 1880s and had to be shut down after found with black mold, considered to be a safety hazard. The students in the GNETS program do not receive diplomas after graduating and according to the report by the Department of Justice, the majority are black males.
An investigation by the AJC found that 54 percent of students in the program are African American, and in a single facility, 9 out of ten students are black. In the schools, the investigation reported, the children were restrained with dog leashes, had behavioural experiments performed on them against their will, and placed in solitary confinement.
In one of those rooms, behind the bars, a 14-year-old boy hanged himself.
Bennett Gaddes, chapter leader of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network of Atlanta said the organization supported the Department of Justice’s decision to sue.
“Currently, when a student is either disabled or has behavioral issues, the state basically gives up on them. They are placed in old, poorly maintained buildings, given instruction by computer, and have no chance to participate in extracurricular activities,” he said.
Gaddess said the students do not receive any kind of diplomas or certification that they attended the school.
“Worst of all, the DOJ says that the segregation that takes place in GNETS is completely unnecessary. There is no reason why regular schools could not educate their disabled students if they offered them appropriate support,” he said.
In an effort to avoid the lawsuit, Georgia tried to compromise with the department by vowing to change some of the aspects of the program, however, according to head of the civil rights division Vanita Gupta’s statement, the damage is already done.
“We have determined that we must pursue the United States’ claims in federal court to vindicate the rights of thousands of affected students with behaviour-related disabilities across Georgia,” she said. “We are not convinced that those efforts, provided in segregated settings, are designed to achieve equality of educational opportunity.”
An anonymous source with experience on special education said the way that the program is now, the incarcerated youth of Georgia are experiencing “better programing” than the children under the GNETS program.
“This is because [the] Department of Corrections [of Georgia] has moved forwards with initiatives to implement multi-tiered support systems focused on positive behaviour support in addition to banning isolation as a behavioral consequences,” the source told The Signal. “Why has the [Georgia] Department of Education not made a similar move?”
According to the Department of Justice, the program violates Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all “activities, programs, and services of public entities”.
“If they’re in an environment with others that are struggling and that’s all [they] surround themselves with and not participating in any activities or sports, I think it’s fair to say their behaviour is getting worst,” Lipson said.
She said she has represented multiple families with kids in the GNETS program who have claimed the behaviour of their kids has gotten worse while in the program. Lipson said that’s not a surprise, as the kids are secluded and receiving inferior education.
The anonymous source said students with disabilities have been proven to do better in contexts where expectations are high.
“Students with disabilities, including emotional/behavior disabilities, can succeed in higher education if provided strategies to succeed, appropriate behavioural intervention and support, and support for academic achievement,” the source said.
However, there is still a push-back on those trying to shut down the program.
Richard Woods, Georgia schools’ superintendent, released a statement after the decision, saying he believed the GNETS efforts have been successful and are a legal alternative for the children that are not able to attend school with the “general education population”.
“GNETS is a critical resource for the children it serves, many of whom would otherwise face isolation in residential treatment facilities. We are disappointed in the [Department of Justice’s] decision to sue, especially given the tremendous efforts we’ve put into enhancing the educational experience for the small percentage of children who receive education services from GNETS programs,” he said. “We will continue to make the wellbeing of these children our first priority.”
