Section 504, Discrimination, Accommodations, and Confidentiality Presented By: United I.S.D. Section 504 Coordinator Campus Professional Development Presentation

What is Section 504? Part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Civil rights law that prohibits DISCRIMINATION Grants equal access to qualified persons with disabilities to all programs and activities receiving federal funding The Rehabilitation Act of 1973. commonly known as Section 504. The purpose of the ACT is to prohibit discrimination and to assure all students have equal educational opportunities. The focus is non-discrimination. It focuses on ensuring individuals with disabilities are not denied equal opportunity to access or benefit from programs receiving federal funds. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Campus Professional Development Presentation What Does Section 504 Say? “No qualified person with a disability shall, solely by reason of his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal assistance.” Campus Professional Development Presentation

Campus Professional Development Presentation Discrimination Discrimination, as defined in Section 504, is the failure to provide students with disabilities the same opportunity to benefit from education programs, services, or activities as is provided to their nondisabled peers. Schools cannot exclude students with disabilities from facilities, programs, benefits, activities, or services that are provided to students without disabilities. Schools must make sure that all students receive equal access to educational opportunities. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Campus Professional Development Presentation DON’T FORGET NOTICES School district violated its obligation to provide a homebound high school student with an equal opportunity to participate in extracurricular and non-academic activities. Student was not fully informed of all school activities. Equal access means access to all extracurricular and nonacademic activities, which necessarily includes proper notice on a consistent basis. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Children are Eligible for Protection Under Section 504 if: Three main factors must be considered by the Section 504 Committee: 1- Is there a physical or mental impairment 2- Does that physical or mental impairment substantially limit one or more major life activities 3-Does the student need Section 504 accommodations in order for his/her educational needs to be met as adequately as those of non-disabled peers? YES to three questions=ELIGIBILITY Campus Professional Development Presentation

Major Life Activities Include: Caring for one’s self (Depression) Performing manual tasks (Arthritis) Walking (Orthopedic Impairment) Seeing (Visual Impairments) Hearing (Hearing Impairments) Speaking (Tourette’s Syndrome) Breathing (Environmental Factors) Working (Chronic Fatigue) Eating (Bulimia/Anorexia) Sleeping (Night Terrors) Standing Lifting (Broken Limbs) Bending (Scoliosis) Learning (Academic Difficulties) Reading (Dyslexia) Concentrating (AD/HD) Thinking (Drug/Alcohol Addiction) Communicating (Speech Impairments) Disability only needs to limit one major life activity in order to qualify Campus Professional Development Presentation

May Also Include Major Bodily Functions Functions of the immune system (HIV/AIDS, Lupus) Normal cell growth (Cancer/Leukemia) Digestive (Crohns Disease) Bowel (Colitis) Bladder (Kidney Disease) Neurological (Epilepsy) Brain (Schizophrenia) Circulatory (Heart Disease) Respiratory (Asthma) Endocrine (Diabetes) Reproductive Functions (Pregnancy) Campus Professional Development Presentation

Student’s Rights Under Section 504 Right to be free from actions that discriminate on the basis of disability; Equal right to access extracurricular activities and nonacademic services; Right to manifestation determination prior to disciplinary changes in placement; Right to protection from accumulations of short-term disciplinary removals that, collectively, amount to a pattern of exclusion; Right to make complaints to the Office of Civil Rights (OCR); Right to Section 504 Due Process Hearings; Right to periodic evaluations. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Who Makes Accommodations Decisions? For a student with disabilities: Section 504 Committee The Section 504 Committee should include all relevant individuals involved in the student’s education. Should be a committee of knowledgeable people. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Campus Professional Development Presentation Reasonable Accommodations in Schools may Include Adaptations and Modifications of Academic Activities Preferential seating Adjusting the time to complete an assignment Allowing tape recording of lecture Allowing students to dictate answers Allowing more time to take tests Providing an interpreter Adjusted test procedures Individualized homework assignments Calculator, computer, tape recorder, word processor/Alpha Smart Pairing verbal & visual directions Assignment notebook/other personal organization system Ask student to use an assignment planner and check that assignments are recorded daily. Develop a timeline for long-term assignments. Make sure students understand the directions before beginning the lesson. Provide a photocopy to reduce the amount of work copied from board or book. Use peer assistance by other adults, classmates, or older students. Allow the student to take breaks between assignments. Use a reward system for assignments turned in on time. Use preferential seating. Allow the student to read test directions aloud. If eligible, read test items and answer choices. If eligible, extend time allotted for test. Allow the student to test in a few sessions, taking frequent breaks. Communicate with student and parents about long-term assignments and break these into shorter steps with due dates to project completion. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Why Do We Have to Implement Accommodations? Federal and State Laws and Regulations require schools to provide accommodations to make sure that students with a disability have access to an appropriate education program.   Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires that accommodations be provided to students with a disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits discrimination against any people with disabilities. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 1997) requires that students with a disability have the opportunity to be involved and make progress in the general curriculum. Campus Professional Development Presentation

Range of 504 Accommodations and Services Environmental accommodations Instructional accommodations State assessment accommodations Instructional technology accommodations Extracurricular accommodations Supplementary aids and services (behavior intervention plans or health plans) Related services (such as counseling, homebound, transportation, dyslexia) Organizational aids (assignment notebooks or planning aids) Tutoring or other intervention programs available to all struggling students This listing is not exhaustive, moreover, as a Section 504–eligible student would be entitled to any accommodation or service that is necessary in order to have his or her educational needs met as adequately as those of their peers. Campus Professional Development Presentation

2016-2017 Campus Professional Development Presentation What are the responsibilities of regular education teachers with respect to implementation of Section 504 plans? What are the consequences if the district fails to implement the plans? Regular education teachers must implement the provisions of Section 504 plans when those plans govern the teachers' treatment of students for whom they are responsible. If the teachers fail to implement the plans, such failure can cause the school district to be in noncompliance with Section 504. NON-COMPLIANCE??? A school district is out of compliance when it is violating any provision of the Section 504 statute or regulations. 2016-2017 Campus Professional Development Presentation

What can Happen to a School that Does not Comply with Section 504? Office of Civil Rights has the authority to terminate the school’s federal funding Parents can file Due Process Hearing and initiate court proceedings Office of Civil Rights may initiate complaint investigation, compliance reviews, and enforcement proceedings Campus Professional Development Presentation

Campus Professional Development Presentation Accommodations are EVERYONE’S responsibility and they are REQUIRED as outlined in Federal and State LAW Campus Professional Development Presentation