It's tough to keep up with all the changes going on at the Federal level or understand how that might impact people with Down syndrome in our local areas. We were joined on the podcast by two experts in education policy from the National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC). Stephanie Smith Lee is the Policy & Advocacy Co-Director for the NDSC and Ricki Sabia is the Senior Education Policy Advisor for the NDSC. On the podcast, we'll discuss the history and current state of the IDEA as well as discuss how the federal changes may impact our loved ones with Down syndrome. This is Part 1 of a two part series looking at Policy and Advocacy at the Federal level.

For more information:

National Down Syndrome Congress (https://www.ndsccenter.org)

Information and application for NDSC's National Down Syndrome Advocacy Coalition https://ndsccenter.org/policy/national-down-syndrome-advocacy-coalition-ndac/about-ndac.html

Why Protecting IDEA and the U.S. Department of Ed is Essential for Students with Disabilities https://ndsccenter.org/file_download/c0680d5a-fbe5-4b87-806b-93f110b3c320

Action Alert about dismantling the U.S. Department of Ed https://www.votervoice.net/mobile/NDSCCenter/Campaigns/123043/Respond

Letter signed by education officials from past Administrations asking Congress Not to Close the Department of Ed, Move Office of Special Education programs, or Block Grant IDEA https://ndsccenter.org/letter-to-congress/

If you would like to suggest a topic for us to cover on the podcast, please send an e-mail to [email protected].

If you would like to partner with the Down Syndrome Center, including this podcast, please visit https://givetochildrens.org/downsyndromecenter.

We are thankful for the generous donation from Caring for Kids – The Carrie Martin Fund that provides the funding for the podcast recording equipment and hosting costs for this podcast.