Section 504 Placement Analysis

As ADA does not have a responsibility for providing FAPE, only Section 504 and IDEA will be compared. Though both Section 504 and IDEA guarantee FAPE to students with disabilities, what qualifies an individual and what services are available to a student differ. Within the general education population, there are students with disabilities that do not have a significant impact on their education. These children need minor changes to their educational programs which can be reasonably implemented in the general education setting with general education support. Other students with more severe disabilities require more extensive services that cannot be reasonably implemented in general education. Assessment of the student’s needs will determine whether they qualify and are eligible for services under Section 504 or under IDEA.

Section 504 is a federal law that ensures that students with disabilities will have equal opportunities to participate in educational programs in the least restrictive environment. To be protected under Section 504, a student will: (1) have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; or (2) have a record of such an impairment; or (3) be regarded as having such an impairment. When a student is found eligible, an accommodation plan is written that eliminates barriers so that he/she can participate in school programs and extra curricular activities.

Efficient administrators must make certain their schools are in compliance with district, state, and federal educational guidelines. These statutes include identifying and delivering specified instructional lessons for students who qualify for services under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and the students who qualify for ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). Academic leaders who ensure compliance among these regulations and educate themselves on the appropriate instructional practices, will properly assist their teachers and students in finding academic success.

When a child has a disability or impairment, one of the biggest concerns is how those issues will affect that child’s education. Because of this concern, there are laws and contracts in place for children and their families to make sure they are legally guaranteed an education. Part B, Part C, and 504 plans are law ensuring services for students with disabilities or impairments to assure that these students get the accommodations or modifications they need to get the best education they can.

Section 504 protects the rights of people with disabilities in programs and activities that are established with federal financial assistance and funds. This basically says anyone with a disability in the US cannot be excluded from participating, denied benefits of, or be discriminated under any program or activity receiving federal assistance. More importantly, it requires school districts to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to each qualified student with a disability who is in the school district no matter the student’s disability. Unlike IDEA, Section 504 doesn’t require a public school to assign a student with disabilities an IEP, instead students may receive accommodations and

Section 504 and the ADA directly impact schools on several levels. First, all educational programs must be available to the qualifying individuals. Each eligible student who is classified as a 504 student must be offered regular or special education with the needed

Placement decisions related to students with disabilities is an issue that arises from providing a free, appropriate public education (FAPE) and the least restrictive environment (LRE). While FAPE and LRE are not new requirements, the Individuals with Disabilities Educational Act (IDEA) continues to be open to interpretation and implementation of the mandates (McGovern, 2015). A student’s least restrictive environment is the setting where the student can be integrated with his non-disabled peers. IDEA requires that students with disabilities be educated in the most integrated, least restrictive environment (Carson, 2015); however, this is where the grey area enters. The interpretation of what the least restrictive environment is, depends

In 1991 the Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was replaced by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This law was passed to provide free and appropriate public education to every child with a disability. It requires that each child with a disability “have access to the program best suited to that child’s special needs which is as close as possible to a normal child’s educational program” (Martin, 1978). The Individualized education program (IEP) was developed to help provide a written record of students’ needs and procedures for each child that receives special education services. The IEP will list all the services to be provided, the student's performance level, academic performance, and

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has established procedures for the placement of students with disabilities within a school setting. Members of the child study

One issue that impacts students and the University of Montana (UM) is high school students entering college who were previously served under Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Section 504 (504 Plan) or an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). There is a misconception that because a child was previously served under one of these programs they will continue to be served as adults under the same or similar program. In higher education, the student must provide proof of a disability and seek services out, they are not automatically established. Additionally, at the college level, student’s behavioral plans are not enforced because the student is now an adult. UM administrators have access to high school records, including behavioral plans. If UM believes

In order for special needs students to receive the proper quality of life in the classroom, they must first be provided with the equality of opportunity and full participation rights. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) organization helps to eliminate any and all discrimination on the basis of a student being disabled. The OCR helps to enforce the Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 which protects the rights of individual students with disabilities in programs and/or activities that receive Federal finance assistance from the United States Department of Education. The Section 504 plan states, “No otherwise qualified

The student Marilu is identified under the law as having the disability of attention deficit disorder.. The student attends a school where she receives the accommodation of extra time to complete her assignments and is placed near the teacher because it was proven to increase her performance in the classroom. A 504 plan can help secure success academically and provides the student with a proper learning setting.

As result of other court ruling, another law was passed in 1973 called Section 504. This law prevented discrimination against people with disabilities. The law helped students who were not covered under the law now known as IDEA. Section 504 are for students who have a physical and mental impairment.

According to a research conducted by the Washington State Department of Health in 2005, the prevalence of disabilities in children five and older was 14.3 percent, which was the same as all other states combined. Research is still being conducted to determine the reasons behind the high prevalence of disabilities in Washington. As of today, no clear reason has been found to explain the high prevalence of disabilities. Approximately 130,000 eligible students are receiving special education services within our schools. In Washington State to refer a student for special education is a ten step process, starting with the referral, evaluations being conducted, and the last step being transition. The Individual with Disabilities Act (IDEA, 2004)

A second law dealing with special needs students is section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This act requires that schools, which receive federal funding, provide equal education to all handicapped children in the schools jurisdiction (W.E.A.C, 2001). This act also requires that handicapped children be educated with other children who are not handicapped to the maximum extent (W.E.A.C, 2001). This requirement clearly points to inclusion as the best option available for handicapped students, in the opinion of the federal government. Section 504 has helped handicapped people in other areas as well. The act requires that public buildings make architectural changes to increase accessibility for those with special needs (Choate, 1997). This part of the act was important because it put an end to school?s using the structure of the school building as an excuse for providing an unequal education to those children who were handicapped or disabled.