CEC’s Partners Reflect on 50 Years of IDEA: IRIS Center

November 29, 2025, marks the 50th anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Originally passed as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, this landmark legislation guarantees every student with a disability the right to a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). Over the past five decades, IDEA has opened classroom doors and transformed lives—ensuring that millions of children and youth receive the education they deserve.

As we commemorate this milestone, CEC is inviting our partners to share their stories—reflecting on their contributions to special education and how IDEA has shaped their work and impact. Located at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College, the IRIS Center provides free, engaging online resources about evidence-based instructional and behavioral practices to support the education of all students, particularly struggling learners and those with disabilities.

IRIS Center’s Contribution

“IRIS develops free online resources about effective instructional and behavioral practices for use by pre-service and practicing educators and other school personnel. These engaging, interactive resources increase educators' knowledge and skills, supporting them as they work to increase educational outcomes for all students, particularly struggling learners and those with disabilities served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504. Designed to translate research to practice, IRIS resources are used by school personnel throughout their careers—from college students to seasoned classroom veterans. The information is also accessed by others in the special education community. Parents, related service providers, school bus drivers, lunchroom and front office personnel are increasingly using IRIS materials to support students with disabilities across their varied educational environments.”

"It has been an honor to serve the special education community for nearly 25 years—half of IDEA's lifetime! We appreciate CEC's strong leadership in advocating for students with disabilities, their families, and the professionals who work with them. Finally, we truly value our partnership with CEC, which helps us share our free resources with special educators and families everywhere.”

Reflections on 50 Years of IDEA

“The work of the IRIS Center would not exist without IDEA! IDEA provides the funding for IRIS, allowing us to develop and distribute our resources for free. These resources, in turn, help special education stakeholders implement IDEA effectively. More specifically, those stakeholders are better prepared to ensure that students with disabilities receive a free, appropriate education in the least restrictive environment.”

Testimonials

“Our team was tasked to support content development in a district that did not previously require specific training on IEP development. Our goal was to provide a common understanding…and ensure correct information that participants could continually refer to beyond an initial training. And to fill in those gaps, we went with a trusted and reliable resource that participants could keep going back to review. We initially chose IRIS because of the past experiences and their credible research-based, high-quality modules that align with specific areas of growth and [our] need to support a state-directed corrective action plan in our region. IRIS had exactly what we needed…And after successful completion of the IEP training of this magnitude, the participants noted that it was so powerful that they had the autonomy of time and space to complete the online learning, but to review over and over and use it as a resource later as an onboarding mechanism to support common messaging for new faculty and staff that join the district.”