The Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education (“OCR”) has delivered a Report on the disparate impacts of COVID-19 on students in K-12 and in higher education, Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students (“Report”). Not surprisingly the Report concludes that the impact of COVID-19 has deepened disparities in educational opportunity and achievement for students of color, students with disabilities, LGBTQ+ students and students in other protected categories.
Many of these inequalities are longstanding. While every parent of a struggling student knows the impact of the pandemic on learning, the Report validates these struggles and reminds school districts and colleges of the importance of taking steps to protect vulnerable students. As OCR notes of vulnerable students, “[t]hose who went into the pandemic with the fewest opportunities are at risk of leaving with even less.” The Report particularly notes concern on increasing suicidal ideation among students, particularly among vulnerable groups.
