This correlation, quantitative, non-experimental, ex-post-facto study examined the relationship of the percentages of students that were identified as being from high poverty districts and the rate of students identified as eligible for services under Individual with Disability Act (IDEA). To do this, 188 randomized elementary public-school district report cards in the State of Illinois for the year 2017 were reviewed and the percentages of children eligible for special education and Title I were compared. School districts are exploring the ways to support children who have experienced trauma, much of which is associated with poverty. This study's research questions examined the relationship between poverty and the rate at which districts identify children as being eligible for special education entitlement services. The results indicated that while no positive relationship could be established between overall rates of poverty and eligibility for entitlement under IDEA as a whole, a positive relationship was seen between the eligibility categories of Intellectual Disability and Speech and Language Delay. The review of the literature presented was limited to peer-reviewed articles that were conducted and published from 2000 to 2019. A search of the ERIC database using the search terms special education research yielded 340 matches. The search was further refined with the terms rates or statistics or occurrence or incidence. This refinement of this initial search resulted in 49 peer-reviewed articles. Additional searches in the ERIC database included the impact of poverty on educational outcomes. Additional searches using Google Search included the terms Poverty in Education. Additional searches of the Eric database included special education rates and risk factors in education. These searches resulted in many articles related to the impact of poverty on education and risk factors for special education needs. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]