Trends in Special Education Identification During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Michigan

We use data from Michigan and an interrupted time series (ITS) strategy to show how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted new special education classifications and discontinuations. We find a substantial decrease in K-5 classifications and discontinuations during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years. Classifications fell by 19 and 12 percent in these years, respectively, with smaller but still significant reductions in discontinuations. Districts with remote schooling and Black, Asian, and economically disadvantaged students saw larger decreases in classifications. While rates returned to trend in 2021-22, there was little “catch up” beyond that to make up for these delays, suggesting that as of that year many students had not yet gained access to services for which they may be eligible.