Education Policy Basics: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Current Environment

Nicole Fuller

National Center for Learning Disabilities

Associate Director of Policy and Advocacy

Nicole Fuller is the Associate Director of Policy and Advocacy at the National Center for Learning Disabilities, where she supports and advances NCLD’s public policy and advocacy agenda. She co-chairs two national coalitions, the IDEA Full Funding Coalition and the National Coalition for Public Education, and serves on the Board of Directors for the Committee for Education Funding. Prior to joining NCLD, Nicole was a middle school math teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools. She also has worked with Transition Tennessee where she developed resources for Vocational Rehabilitation providers, families, and students on Pre-Employment Transition Services for students with disabilities. Additionally, Nicole supported policy research and development for the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission. Nicole holds a B.S. in Education from the University of Maryland and an M.Ed. in International Educational Policy and Management from Vanderbilt University, Peabody College.

Stephanie Smith Lee

National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC)

Policy & Advocacy Co-Director

Stephanie Smith Lee is the Policy & Advocacy Co-Director of the National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) and has over forty years of public policy experience including serving in senior staff positions in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Since her daughter, Laura, was born with Down syndrome in 1982, she has led many successful disability advocacy efforts at the local, state, and Federal levels. As the Director of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in the US Department of Education, Ms. Lee directed the implementation of IDEA, the Federal special education law. As Senior Policy Advisor for the National Down Syndrome Society, she developed and trained in effective grassroots, advocated with Congress, and directed a postsecondary project that created inclusive postsecondary programs and coalitions in various states. She led the successful effort to amend the Higher Education Act (HEA) to obtain federal financial aid and model programs for students with intellectual disability (ID). Ms. Lee continues that leadership role on behalf of NDSC in advocacy to continue funding for inclusive postsecondary programs as Co-chair of the Inclusive Higher Education Committee. She is also the past chair of the National Coordinating Center Accreditation Workgroup that developed model accreditation standards for these programs and Board President of the Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council, an accrediting agency for such programs. Ms. Lee co-leads advocacy and policy initiatives for NDSC and specializes in education and employment policy.