separate facility for students with disabilities
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the U.S. Department of Education investigates complaints with a goal of reducing and eventually eliminating discrimination against students with disabilities. If a school district is found to be violating the requirements of Section 504, OCR will encourage the school district to enter into a corrective action agreement in order to address the problem. However, in the rare case that a school district refuses to comply with the requirements of Section 504, OCR has the right and responsibility to begin enforcement action whereby the case may be referred to the Department of Justice, or the OCR may terminate Department of Education financial assistance to the school.
The provisions of Section 504 are sometimes used as a basis for providing services for students who have learning difficulties but who do not have an IDEA-eligible disability. Some services provided under Section 504 include adaptation or modification of testing conditions such as providing exams in alternative locations, extending the allotted testing time, providing oral exams, and other reasonable accommodations (see chapter 4 for explanations of testing adaptations and modifications). However, Section 504 does not require schools to change the nature of their programs to accommodate individual students. And, as under IDEA, students who qualify for Section 504 protections may not be suspended, expelled, or otherwise punished for manifestations of their disability (see chapter 5 for an explanation of IDEA’s discipline requirements).
Evaluation and Placement
In order to be protected under Section 504 and receive services, students must be evaluated and placed. Placement decisions are determined by a team of individuals (convened by the principal) who know the student, know how to interpret evaluation data, and know the variety of placement options available in the school or school district. Although the specific members of the team can vary by student, the team generally includes a general education classroom teacher and other school personnel with expertise that could be beneficial to helping the student such as a building nurse, the school psychologist, a social worker, and so on. As in IDEA, the team is required to use information from a variety of sources and base all placement decisions on the individual needs of the student. Once a student is identified as needing services under Section 504, the school should develop an individual plan to ensure appropriate accommodations are available to the student. Although a written document is not mandated by law, it is generally suggested as best practice to develop one and an individualized education program similar to that outlined in IDEA may be used as the Section 504 plan. The purpose of the 504 plan is to explicitly define accommodations or modifications needed by the student in order to successfully participate in the general education setting. Accommodations might include monitoring of blood sugar levels, provision of wheelchair ramps, a peanut-free lunch environment, or a tape recorder or keyboard for taking notes in the classroom setting. The 504 plan is a legally binding document that encourages consistency of accommodations and services provided to the student as well as accountability.
Procedural Safeguards
As Mitchell Yell (2006) explains, parents are entitled to a number of specific rights under Section 504, including the following:
• Right to be notified of procedural rights under Section 504
• Right to be notified when their child is referred, evaluated, and placed
• Right to notification when eligibility is determined
• Right to an evaluation that uses information from multiple sources and is conducted by knowledgeable persons
• Right of the student to have access to equivalent academic and non-academic services
• Right of the student to receive an appropriate education in the least restrictive setting, which includes accommodations, modifications, and related services
• Right to file grievance with the school district
• Right to an evaluation prior to making a significant programming or placement change
• Right to be informed of proposed actions affecting the program
• Right to examine all relevant records and request changes
• Right to receive information in the parents’ native language or primary mode of communication
• Right to periodic reevaluations
• Right to an impartial hearing when a disagreement occurs
• Right to be represented by counsel in the hearing
• Right to appeal the hearing officer’s decision (p. 137)
To ensure that the rights of parents are upheld, schools are responsible for establishing a system of due process procedures to protect the rights of parents of students with disabilities. Schools are encouraged, but not required, to use the procedural safeguards of IDEA as a guide for ensuring the procedural safeguards of Section 504 are met.
For more information on Section 504, including information on evaluation, placement, procedures, and discipline, visit the Council of Educators for Students With Disabilities website (www.504idea.org/Council_Of_Educators/Resources.html).
Americans With Disabilities Act
Congress enacted ADA in 1990 to protect against discrimination of individuals with disabilities. While many ADA provisions are similar to those defined in Section 504, ADA provides even broader antidiscrimination coverage by protecting individuals in both public and private sectors (Marshall & Patterson, 2002). Although most provisions of ADA are already covered under IDEA and Section 504, there are a few additional situations in which ADA affects school operations. For example, under ADA, school districts must ensure that all school events are physically accessible to students with disabilities. Therefore, school districts are required to provide a barrier-free school environment including access to specialty areas of the school such as auditoriums and athletic stadiums (La Morte, 2005). Although there are no direct funds attached to ADA, many federal agencies offer grants to support training and technical assistance on ADA requirements. Also, businesses, organizations, and schools that are working on removing architectural or transportation barriers could be eligible for a tax credit. Visit www.ada.gov/publicat.htm for more information about ADA regulations, organizations that provide technical assistance, and funding opportunities that are available to help support the implementation of ADA regulations.
The purpose of this chapter was to provide a general overview of IDEA and its key provisions and provide a basic structure for understanding special education policies, including not only IDEA but also Section 504 and the ADA. In the next chapter, we turn our focus to the detailed process of determining student eligibility for receiving special education and related services and to the role of the principal throughout the eligibility and evaluation process.
CHAPTER 2
Determining Who Is Eligible for Special Education
Questions Principals Ask
• Who is eligible for services under IDEA?
• How is the decision made to
