The Diana v. State Board of Education (Diana) case originated when a group of Spanish-speaking students were inappropriately assigned to what used to be labeled “Educable Mentally Retarded (EMR)” classes based on an assessment by an unqualified, monolingual English-speaking assessor.[1] The psychologist tested Spanish speakers in English and used this data to place students in special education classes. The case, filed in 1969, was settled out of court in 1970. Under the stipulated settlement agreement, the California Department of Education (CDE) is required to:
- Monitor schools for racial imbalance,
- Correct any imbalance,
- Collect data annually, and
- Use representatives of the Latino community when audits are performed in school districts.
In 1967, at the time of the case was being litigated, Latinx students were over-represented in classes for children with intellectual disabilities, constituting 26% of the total statewide children with intellectual disabilities population, but only 14% of the statewide school-age population in 1967.
To this day, CDE is required to comply with the 1971 court order and monitor special education to ensure Spanish-speaking students are not overrepresented in special education. Because of Diana, state law contains provisions for testing in the child’s native language so that no child will be placed into special education only because of a limited ability to speak English.[2]