Education Secretary Linda McMahon says the agency is joining with the Department of Health and Human Services to optimize federal services for students with disabilities and to better serve them. 

McMahon on Tuesday in announcing the partnership – formally known as an inter-agency agreement (IAA) – said it is focused on special education and rehabilitative services and will allow the agencies to coordinate resources, share expertise and work jointly toward shared goals, considering HHS already oversees programs for "millions" of people with disabilities.

She also expressed hope that the agreement will “strengthen access to programs and information, and support people with disabilities so they can gain self-sufficiency, life tools, and meaningful employment that they need to succeed in their lives.”

"Some of these programs should have always been under HHS purview," HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. argued in a congressional hearing last spring. 

"It just makes more sense. They're health-related programs rather than particularly educated programs, and we have many parallel programs at HHS that can benefit from synergies from each other."

McMahon also cited existing challenges faced by families of students with disabilities in public education, including onerous “federal micromanagement,” adding that the IAA will “reduce bureaucratic barriers [and] strengthen coordination and efficient provision of resources.” 

The Education Department confirmed that the partnership will not alter existing rights and protections for students with disabilities, such as the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA). The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will also continue their legal and enforcement responsibilities. 

The department also introduced on Tuesday three additional IAAs with the Justice Department to bolster federal civil rights enforcement, protect student privacy, and implement new training and advisory partnerships for schools.

The agreements follow 10 IAAs made over the last year.

IAAs are part of the Education Department's larger plan to improve and expedite education services, cut bureaucratic red tape, and better serve students while working towards a permanent agency closure.