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LOCAL NEWS
The Gaskin Case v. the Commonwealth Department of Education In 1994, twelve children with disabilities and their families along with six advocacy groups filed a suit represented by Public Interest Law Center of Pennsylvania PILCOP against the Department of Education of Pennsylvania. Lydia Gaskin, the plaintiff for whom the case is named is the first inclusion matter in Pennsylvania to reach the state level. To read about Lydia Gaskin click here. The Gaskin case became a class-action suit in 1995 for 280,000 special education students, and eleven disabilities advocacy organizations. The suit was filed as a result of violations of the federal statute “the right for free appropriate education in a regular classroom with necessary supplemental aids and services” (IDEA). After ten years, 8 hearings and a state appeal, a settlement agreement was achieved that will provide children with the option of an inclusive school setting with non-disabled students rather than a segregated placement. The agreement is designed to change the quality of special education services throughout the commonwealth and to increase inclusion in the public school setting.
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