The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened an investigation on Friday into Houston Independent School District (HISD) in Houston, Texas, to determine whether the district violated federal disability rights law after it announced plans to restructure special education services and consolidate programs into designated campuses beginning in the 2026–27 school year.
The investigation followed reports based on leaked draft documents that outlined HISD’s plan to centralize special education services at select schools, which would require some students to transfer from their neighborhood campuses to designated hub schools for specialized instruction.
Federal officials stated that public schools must educate students with disabilities alongside nondisabled peers when appropriate and must follow individualized procedures when making placement decisions. OCR said it will examine whether HISD’s plan complies with those requirements.
HISD, which has operated under state control since 2023, said in a statement on Friday that more than 15,000 of its approximately 21,000 special education students receive instruction in inclusive settings. The district also said about 5,000 students in self-contained settings would continue to receive small class sizes, lower student-to-staff ratios, and placement with same-age peers under the new structure. HISD said special education services would remain available at more than half of its campuses.
The district also said its updates for the 2026–27 school year aim to expand access to services in the least restrictive environment, improve instructional systems, and support student outcomes.
After the draft documents became public, parents raised concerns about possible student transfers between campuses.
Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said placement decisions must be made individually based on student needs rather than through broad policies tied to disability categories. She said federal law requires schools to educate students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment when appropriate.
“The allegations described here are alarming,” Richey said. “The Trump Administration will fully investigate this situation and fight to ensure every child with a disability receives the education and support guaranteed under the law.”
Mireille Patman, a parent of a 15-year-old student with Down syndrome who planned to attend Heights High School, said she raised concerns about the proposed changes after reviewing reports on the plan. She said the family had prepared for the student’s transition to high school.
“The first thing I really did think about when I saw that online was, ‘This is straight up segregation,’” Patman said in an interview previously reported by Houston Public Media.
Patman said she chose public education for her child due to federal protections for students with disabilities.
“I actually feel that there’s a lot more expertise in public school for special education,” she said. “And I didn’t want to compromise Teddy’s ability to be educated with his peers.”
