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In 1803, the first higher educational institution to admit women in the United States was founded in Massachusetts: Bradford Academy. It was founded as a co-educational institution, but became exclusively for women in 1837. It later became Bradford College, but closed down in 2000. Correlating with the topic of inclusion, Portia Washington Pittman, Booker T. Washington's daughter, was one of the first African-American graduates of the institution.

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1837 - The African Institute (later called the Institute for Colored Youth) opens in Cheyney, Pennsylvania. Now called Cheyney University, it the oldest institution of higher learning for African Americans.

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In 1852, Massachusetts (again, a leader in education inclusion) enacted the first mandatory attendance law, which set a large and effective precedent. By 1885, 16 states had compulsory-attendance laws, and all states had them by 1918. They gradually became more strictly enforced, and now the right and provision to an education is expected across the country and the globe.

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1954 - On May 17th, the U.S. Supreme Court announces its decision in the case of Brown v. Board. of Education of Topeka, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," thus overturning its previous ruling in the 1896 case of  Plessy v. Ferguson.   Brown v. Board of Education is actually a combination of five cases from different parts of the country. It is a historic first step in the long and still unfinished journey toward equality in U.S. education.

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In 1975, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act, or PL 94-142, became a federal law. It calls for and required that a free and appropriate public education, that is suited to the student's individual needs, is offered in the least restrictive setting for all "handicapped" children. The Act had stated that each state would be given until 1978, and later extended to 1981, to fully implement the law. This largely brought inclusion for the ESE community.