State

House passes bill sponsored by Crystal Lake state rep aimed at helping special education students hit by remote learning

Bill would allow those students who aged out during the pandemic to keep receiving services in their IEP through the 2021-22 school year

By Emily K. Coleman
Suzanne Ness, right, then a McHenry County Board member, speaks during a public health and community services committee meeting Sept. 26, 2019, at the McHenry County Administrative Building in Woodstock.

Suzanne Ness, now a state representative, (right) talks with Valley Hi administrator Tom Annarella during a Sept. 26, 2019, presentation to the public health and community services committee at the McHenry County Administrative Building in Woodstock. (Matthew Apgar)

A bill, sponsored by a Crystal Lake Democrat, aimed at helping special education students whose in-person learning was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic passed the Illinois House of Representatives last month.

The bill would allow for eligible students who turned 22 between March 17, 2020, and the end of the 2021-22 school year to continue receiving educational services outline in their individualized education programs through the end of the 2021-22 school year, according to a news release from state Rep. Suzanne Ness’s office.

House Bill 2748, which was sponsored by Ness – passed out of the House unanimously and now awaits consideration in the Senate, Illinois General Assembly records show.

“COVID-19 has been tough on all students, however for special needs students and their families, it has been especially devastating,” Ness said in a statement. “These students have had limited or no opportunity to engage in the in-person activities and services required by their IEP and have been limited in achieving their transition goals. Because of this, many students not only stopped making progress, but they also began to regress, leaving parents struggling financially and emotionally to deal with the situation.”

Ness is in her first term in the Illinois House. She represents the 66th District, which stretches from Lakewood, Lake in the Hills and the northern half of Huntley in the north through Gilberts, Sleepy Hollow and West Dundee down to just north of Elgin.

Suzanne Ness
Emily Coleman

Emily K. Coleman

Originally from the northwest suburbs, Emily K. Coleman is Shaw Media's editor for newsletters and engagement. She previously served as the Northwest Herald's editor and spent about seven years as a reporter with Shaw Media, first covering Dixon for Sauk Valley Media and then various communities within McHenry County from 2012 to 2016.