Council for Exceptional Children

Historical Perspective

The International Council for the Education of Exceptional Children, which was later named CEC, has its roots in the advocacy for the education of students with special needs. In 1922, a group of students at Teachers College of Columbia University encouraged their instructor Elizabeth E. Farrell to meet with administrators, students, and other faculty members to begin a discussion about students with special needs and setting standards for teachers. Farrell had been an advocate of special children with her years of serving in the Department of Education under the National Education Association and working with ungraded classrooms in New York City. She had dealt with issues of assessment, educational policies, and teacher recruitment. The group established an organization to share information about the education of students with special needs, emphasize education instead of identification, and establish standards for professionals. They elected Farrell as their first president. Today those who enter CEC headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, can view a plaque that commemorates Farrell as a pioneer for children in need of special help and the assurance that they would find that in public schools.

In 1941, the International Council for the Education of Exceptional Children merged with the Special Education Department of the National Education Association and became a department of the National Education Association. In 1958, the [Page 228]group was renamed the Council for Exceptional Children and finally in 1977 CEC withdrew from its affiliation with the National Education Association and became its own association. From those small beginnings, CEC has grown to an organization with almost 40,000 members internationally.

A board of directors elected by and from the membership governs CEC. Under this structure, each U.S. state and Canadian province also has the opportunity to have its own federation. Groups that explore an individual aspect of special education make up 17 special subdivisions that include a focus on administrators, disability specific areas, gifted and talented, assessment, diversity, technology, and early childhood. An elected board of directors also governs each federation and subdivision. Six caucuses allow members to explore aspects of diversity that include American Indians; Asian/Pacific Islanders; Black; Hispanic; Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender; and Educators with Disabilities. Being an organization governed by membership and supporting the diversity in membership, CEC represents the profession of educators in special and gifted education.

All members are invited to convene annually at the national convention where they can attend sessions on policy, advocacy, diversity, professional development, best educational practices, educational reform, and recent research. Most importantly the Representative Assembly, which is made up of representatives from each federation and subdivision, convenes to discuss important issues in the field and make policy recommendations to the board of directors. The Representative Assembly hears issues in the field of special education and then is able to advocate for these issues. Notably CEC has had a major impact on the passage of laws reforming the processes of identification, placement, and education of students with special needs.

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