NCLB Trumps IDEA, Appeals Court Rules

A federal appeals court has turned away a lawsuit by two Illinois school districts and four families that said the No Child Left Behind Act was in conflict with requirements of the main federal special education law.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, in Chicago, ruled unanimously on Feb. 11 that even if the NCLB law was at odds with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the special education law “must give way” because NCLB is the newer statute.

The 1,600-student Ottawa High School District and 2,000-student Ottawa Elementary School District 141, along with the parents of four students in special education in the districts’ schools, had sued U.S. Secretary of Education...