Jefferson County Schools2012

Section 504Mandy Schneitman, Director of Student Support Services

History of Laws

• 1964 – Civil Rights Act

• 1965- Elementary & Secondary Educ. Act

• 1972- Title IX

• 1973- Section 504 of 1973 Rehab. Act

• 1976- P.L. 94-142 – Handicapped Children

• 1990 – Americans with Disabilities Act

• 2008 – ADA Amended

Goal

• To level the playing field

• Not to treat everyone equally

• Applies to all entities that receive federal funding

•Prohibit discrimination of any program on the basis of any disability

•Provide appropriate educational services to the same extent as needs of non-disabled

Purpose

Revisions of Section 504

• Due to the Amended “America with Disabilities Act” of 2008

• Affects the meaning of “disability” as defined in Section 504

• The Amendment Act broadens the interpretation of “disability”

Comparisons

Title II and Americans with Disabilities Act

IDEA Section 504

Facilities

accessible

Curriculum accessible

Programs or activities

accessible

IDEA and 504 One way to meet Section 504 requirements for

FAPE is to implement an IEP

• IDEA• FAPE• Eligibility – adversly

affects• All IDEA protected under

504• Compliance for IDEA

satisfies compliance for 504• Procedural safeguards• List of disabling conditions

• 504• FAPE• Eligibility – substantial

limitation• Some 5may also be IDEA

• NO funding

• Procedural Safeguards• Broader eligibility

IDEA and 504 One way to meet Section 504 requirements for

FAPE is to implement an IEP

• IDEA• Stay put - no• Services if eligible• Suspensions over 10 days

requires services• Re-evaluations every 3

years• IEP must include all

needed accommodations (no additional 504 Plan)

• 504• Stay-put – yes until

decision• Can be eligible for 504 but

have no services• No services while

suspended or expelled• District determines re-

evaluation procedures• 504 Plan cannot substitute

for an IEP

Where do services take place?

• Regular classroom

• Regular classroom with supplemental services

• Special education setting and related services

Programs?Any School Sanctioned Activity

• Instructional• Support• Field trip• Athletics• Banquets

• Class Party• Extracurricular

activity• Parent meeting• Adult education

Who Enforces?

• OCR has administrative authority to enforce Section 504

• Voluntary compliance through negotiation • Corrective action agreement• May terminate “financial assistance”

federal funding• Refer to Dept. of Justice for judicial

proceedings

Eligibility = 3 prongs

• Physical or mental impairment

• Substantially limits

• One or more major life activities

Physical or Mental Impairment

• Physiological disorder• Cosmetic disfigurement• Anatomical loss affecting body systems

(ex – speech, digestive, neurological, respiratory)• Mental or psychological disorders• Emotional or mental illness• SLD• Episodic (cancer, epilepsy, hypertension, MS,

asthma, diabetes, major depression, bipolar, severe allergies) these may trigger consideration

Cultural, Environmental & Economic Factors

Not by themselves covered by definition

•Homeless or migrant or transient

•ESL or poverty

•Divorce or death of family member

•Military deployments of family

•Lack of motivation or attendance problems

Major Life Activities

• Caring for one’s self• Performing manual tasks• Walking• Seeing• Breathing• Learning• Working• Eating, Sleeping, Standing, Lifting, Bending• Reading, Concentrating, Thinking, Communicating –

all added from Amended Act

Major Bodily Functions that are Major Life Activities under Amended Act

• Immune system• Normal cell growth• Digestive• Bowel• Bladder• Brain• Circulatory• Endocrine• Reproductive

Substantial

• Consider the nature and severity of the impairment

• Consider the duration or expected duration

• Consider the permanent or long range impact

Assessment

• By committee of persons knowledgeable about the student

• Assess from a variety of sources, not just one: aptitude, achievement, teacher recommendations, physical condition, social and cultural background, adaptive behavior

• Decision made by school team, parents may agree or disagree

Any automatic qualifications?• No, an impairment does not necessarily mean a

disability ; it must substantially limit one or more major life activities

• A medical diagnosis may be considered as one of the sources in the evaluation

• An illness must cause a substantial limitation in the child’s ability to learn or other major life activity

• No specific disease or disability automatically qualifies but… many will qualify by nature of impairment (bipolar, autisim)

Mitigating Measures

• Cannot consider mitigating measures for eligibility (health care plan, meds, assistive tech.)

• The requirement to screen out mitigating measures only applies to the first step of eligibility

• Mitigating measures could be used as relevant to determining special education or related services needs.

Other requirements

• Parent permission to evaluate, parental safeguards

• Re-evaluation is required including prior to a change of placement, termination or significantly reducing services

• A manifestation determination is required prior to disciplinary change of placement

Special Considerations• Students actively using illegal drugs are

excluded form eligibility on that basis.

• Students actively using alcohol are NOT excluded from eligibility on that basis.

• Former illegal drug users who have completed a drug rehab program ARE protected under Section 504

• ALL children infected with HIV are eligible regardless of being symptomatic.

Not Covered Under Section 504

• Slow learners

• Non-English Proficient

• LGBT

• Affected by environment, cultural, economic disadvantage

Teachers

• Participate in the development of the student’s Service Plan.

• Request a meeting to review the plan if it is no longer is appropriate.

• Implement the provisions of Section 504 plans• Failure can cause the school district to be in

noncompliance with Section 504• Ask for a copy of the plan’s accommodations to keep on

file• Be sure your substitute teacher plans includes 504 or IEP

accommodations for eligible students

Referrals

Notify your counselor or principal to refer a student who is:

•Under health care plans

•Students needing long-term academic or behavioral interventions

•Chronic absentism

•Impairment suspected

Bullying and Discrimination

• Districts must investigate when they learn a student may have been bullied because of his / her disability.

• This is true even when the person reporting the harassment gives no indication that it was disability-related

• A “Parental Complaint Grievance Form” is posted on the JCS website under the parent tab.

Related School Board Policies

• 1.802 504 ADA Grievances

• 6.301 Rights and Responsibilities

• 6.302 Procedural Due Process

• 6.303 Interrogations and Searches

• 6.304 Student Discrimination / Harassment

• 6.305 Complaints and Grievances