Disproportionality in Special Education: Effects of Individual and School Variables on Disability Risk

We examined the risk of disability identification associated with individual and school variables. The sample included 18,000 students in 39 schools of an urban K-12 school system. Descriptive analysis showed racial minority risk varied across 7 disability categories, with males and students from low-income backgrounds at highest risk in most disability categories. Multilevel analyses showed that school variables were not generally significant predictors of student risk for identification. The most consistent predictors of identification across the categories were students' gender, race, socioeconomic status, and number of suspensions. We provide implications for future studies of disparities in special education, as well as practice related to identification and systemic monitoring.