Dear Congressmen and Congresswomen,

I am currently a bachelor’s level student in the Grace Abbott School of Social Work at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. As a committed social work student and future professional, I follow the guidelines written in the National Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics.

Social justice is one of the values that social workers are ethically obligated to abide by. According to the National Association of Social Workers (NASW),¹

social workers are ethically obligated to advocate “on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed individuals and groups of people.” In the education system, individuals with disabilities fall under the vulnerable and oppressed category. Especially oppressed are the deaf, hard of hearing, blind, visually impaired, and deaf-blind students. The House of Representatives bill 1120 addresses these concerns and strives to give this population fair treatment in the education system.

Alice Cogswell was the first Deaf student to receive a formal education in the United States. Anne Sullivan Macy was Helen Keller’s teacher. H.R. 1120, also known as the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act, is named after these inspiring women. According to Abenchuchan,²

H.R. 1120 asks for:

All deaf, hard of hearing, blind, visually impaired, and deaf-blind children to be properly counted and served, for there to be a proper evaluation of their learning needs, ensure states and districts have a plan to meet each child’s needs, that the U.S. Dept. of Education will hold the schools accountable, have qualified staff to serve them, and deaf-blind students get trained and qualified interveners.

Before I read this bill, I had no idea that these laws were not already in place within the other special education bill. Currently, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) misses the specific details. The Deaf, DeafBlind, Blind, Visually Impaired, and Hard of Hearing group makes up only 1% of the population covered by IDEA and are overlooked.

Currently, no representatives in Nebraska cosponsor H.R. 1120, and only three Midwestern states (Illinois, Minnesota, and Ohio) currently cosponsor the bill.³ To me, this means that the Midwestern representatives are not concerned with the education of their states’ children, specifically the vulnerable and oppressed students covered by the Cogswell-Macy Act. Yes, international affairs, agriculture and food, and taxation are important. Is the adequate education of all children important as well? It absolutely is!

Rep. Cartwright from the 17^th District in Pennsylvania, who introduced H.R. 1120 to the House of Representatives states in a press release⁴

that, “every child deserves the opportunity to succeed in school and achieve his or her potential.” For this statement to not be true is social injustice! Rep. Cartwright⁴ also refers to the Cogswell-Macy Act as a crucial bill, which it most certainly is! It is so important that it has been introduced in both the 113^th and 114^th Congresses.⁵

Everyone deserves equal rights and opportunities. This is the definition of social justice. Without H.R. 1120, students with sensory disabilities do not receive the same educational opportunities as every other student. The American Foundation for the Blind⁶ reports that, “once enacted, the Cogswell-Macy Act will ensure that every student with a sensory disability will be properly counted, taught, and evaluated in accordance with their unique educational needs.” It has already been long enough that students who are blind, visually impaired, deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind have received an inadequate education.

On behalf of myself and all people affected by the Cogswell-Macy Act, I ask, Rep. Fortenberry, that you consider the vulnerable and oppressed children in the education system when voting to advance H.R. 1120.

Respectfully,

Hailey Rathje

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¹

National Association of Social Workers. (2008). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/pubs/code/code.asp

²

Abenchuchan, Alex. (2017). Interview with PSD Head of School Peter Bailey: H.R. 1120. Retrieved from https://www.dailymoth.com/single-post/2017/03/08/I...

³

Congress.gov. (n.d.). All bill information (except text) for H.R. 1120 – Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act. Retrieved from https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house...

⁴

United States Congress, Office of Rep. Matt Cartwright. (2017). Rep. Cartwright introduces bill to address education for students with sensory disabilities [Press release]. Retrieved from https://cartwright.house.gov/media-center/press-re...

⁵

Civic Impulse. (2017). H.R. 1120 – 115^th Congress: Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act. Retrieved from https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr1120

⁶ American Foundation for the Blind. (2017). American Foundation for the Blind applauds bipartisan action to transform special education for students with sensory disabilities. Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/about-us/press-room/press-...

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