Shaheen, Hassan Announce $11.7 Million Heading to New Hampshire to Support Students with Disabilities
(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) announced today that New Hampshire will receive more than $11.7 million to help address the unique needs of students who experience disabilities in New Hampshire. The announcement follows U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan’s successful efforts to secure $3 billion in dedicated federal funding to support students with disabilities in the American Rescue Plan.
“Students with disabilities have faced unique challenges and endured serious hardships with remote learning and hybrid schooling during this pandemic. That’s why boosting funding in the American Rescue Plan to respond to these obstacles and provide assistance to students and schools was so important,” said Senator Shaheen. “This funding is urgently needed in New Hampshire schools, and I urge the State to swiftly get this aid out the door so our kids have the tools they need to succeed and flourish.”
“Students who experience disabilities far too often do not receive the support that they are entitled to under the law, and this has been particularly true during the pandemic. That is why I fought to secure dedicated funding in the American Rescue Plan to better support students with disabilities,” Senator Hassan said. “This federal funding to New Hampshire will go a long way to help schools provide much-needed support for students with disabilities and help ensure that these students can make up for learning losses that they experienced during the pandemic. I will continue working to ensure that individuals with disabilities can participate fully in our communities and have the support that they need to thrive."
As part of the funding for K-12 education, the American Rescue Plan includes more than $2.5 billion in state grants to support K-12 students with disabilities, $200 million to support preschoolers with disabilities, and $250 million for infants and toddlers under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Senators Shaheen and Hassan had previously pushed for funding specific to students with disabilities, and the American Rescue Plan is the first COVID-19 package to include this type of dedicated funding.
Senator Shaheen and Hassan are committed to supporting individuals with disabilities in New Hampshire and across the country. Senator Hassan led efforts to include $12.6 billion in dedicated emergency funding for State Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) in the American Rescue Plan to better assist older Americans and people with disabilities who receive critical health care and support services in their homes. Senators Shaheen and Hassan also recently helped introduce legislation to make a historic investment in home- and community-based services by expanding access to quality home care services and lifting up the caregiving workforce that provides them. Additionally, the Senators previously cosponsored legislation to fully fund the IDEA, and Senator Hassan has reintroduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) to address the critical need for more Direct Support Professionals in the workforce, who provide vital support to individuals who experience disabilities.
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