Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools
Additional Considerations for Placement and Services Under Section 504
Students who are identified as having a disability and needing special education and/or related aids and services are entitled to special education and a broad range of supplemental and related aids and services, as needed, such as tutors, note-takers, or one-on-one aides; assistive technology, psychological and counseling services; or speech or occupational therapy.82
To the extent that services and aids, or changes to policies and procedures (for example, allowing testing accommodations such as extended time for exams) for a student with a disability can be implemented by a student’s regular education teacher, the regular education teacher is responsible for implementing them.83
For example, a regular education teacher may need to provide a student with a disability an outline of the teacher’s lecture, permit the student to sit in the front of the classroom, or allow the student to turn in homework late.
However, the school district is ultimately responsible for ensuring there are sufficient qualified personnel available to provide the supplemental and related aids and services.84
Students with disabilities must be educated with students who do not have disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate to the needs of the student with a disability.85 In addition, school districts must place students with disabilities in the regular education environment unless the school district demonstrates that educating the student with a disability in the regular education environment with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.86 In implementing the decision of a group of knowledgeable persons to place a student in a setting other than the regular educational environment, the school must take into account the proximity of the alternate setting to the student’s home.87
To meet the requirements of FAPE, school districts, implementing the placement decision made by a group of knowledgeable persons, may place a student with a disability in, or refer such student to, a program not operated by the school district.88 Nevertheless, the school district remains responsible for ensuring that the education offered is an appropriate education, as defined in the Section 504 regulation.89 In addition, the school district cannot require the parent to pay the financial obligations (for example, tuition, the cost of room and board and non-medical care in a program that is away from home) associated with the placement.90 Transportation must also be provided at no greater cost than would be incurred if the student were placed in the home district.91 (Of course, if transportation is a related service for a particular student with a disability, the school district cannot charge the student for that transportation.92)
If, to provide FAPE, a school district places a student with a disability in a private school, then the school district is required to pay for the private school. However, if a school district makes FAPE available and the student’s parents choose to place the child in a private school, the school district is not required to pay for the student’s education in the private school.93 Disagreements between parents or guardians and the school district regarding whether the school district has made FAPE available, or regarding the question of financial responsibility for services in the private school, are subject to Section 504’s due process procedures.94
School districts must make decisions regarding the needs and placement of a student with a disability on an individual basis, rather than on presumptions or stereotypes regarding persons with disabilities or classes of such persons, or based on concerns about the costs of providing the related aids or services.95
For example, it would be a violation of Section 504 for a school district to have a policy that every student with autism, regardless of the severity of the disability, must attend a separate school designed primarily for students with autism.96 However, a school district can implement the decision of a group of knowledgeable persons to place a student with a disability in a separate class or school if the student with a disability’s needs are such that he or she cannot be satisfactorily educated within the regular educational environment even with supplementary aids and services.97
When a student with a disability transfers to a new school district, the receiving district has a responsibility to ensure it meets the student’s disability-based needs.98 In determining how to meet those needs, the receiving district must draw upon information from a variety of sources, which would include past evaluations and past Section 504 plans and IEPs.99
If the student has a current Section 504 plan from the former school and, after reviewing the plan, the receiving school believes the plan provides FAPE, there is nothing in Section 504 that prohibits the new school from adopting the plan for the student. In addition, if upon review of the plan from the former school, the receiving school determines additional evaluation is necessary or that the plan needs to be revised, there is nothing in Section 504 that prohibits the new school from implementing the current plan while it conducts the evaluation and develops a new plan.100
82 34 C.F.R. § 104.33.
83 34 C.F.R. § 104.34(a).
84 34 C.F.R. § 104.33.
85 34 C.F.R. § 104.34(a).
86 Id.
87 Id.
88 34 C.F.R. § 104.33(b)(3).
89 Id.
90 Id.
91 34 C.F.R. § 104.33(c)(1)-(3).
92 34 C.F.R. § 104.33(c).
93 34 C.F.R. § 104.33(c)(4).
94 Id.
95 34 C.F.R. §§ 104.33(b), 104.35.
96 34 C.F.R. §§ 104.4, 104.34(a).
97 34 C.F.R. § 104.34(a).
98 34 C.F.R. §§ 104.33-104.36.
99 34 C.F.R. § 104.35(c). See also OCR, Protecting Students with Disabilities: Frequently Asked Questions About Section 504 and the Education of Children with Disabilities (FAQ 38) (last modified Oct. 16, 2015), www.ed.gov/ocr/504faq.html.
100 Id.
User Comments/Questions
Add Comment/Question