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Section 504. A tutorial. Your hosts. Dr. Rod Lucero Colorado State University Ms. Darcie Votipka Poudre School District. Section 504…
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Section 504 A tutorial
Your hosts • Dr. Rod Lucero Colorado State University • Ms. Darcie Votipka Poudre School District
Section 504… • “No qualified individual with disabilities, shall, solely by reason of his/her disability be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
A Quick comparison Section 504 IDEIA (formerly IDEA) Educational Legislation Professional Liability Discipline as a Manifestation Parental Involvement for Placement, Services, and “Refusal of Services”. • Civil Rights Legislation • Professional Liability • Personal Liability • Discipline as a Manifestation • Parental Consent for Evaluation • General Education Population
Eligibility • Student has a mental or physical impairment, which substantially limits one or more of such person’s major life activities • Student has a prior record of a diagnosed impairment • Student is regarded as having a diagnosable impairment. • Diagnosis provided by a licensed/certified clinician OR • “Staffed-Out” of Special Education
Major Life Activities • Caring for oneself • Performing Manual Tasks • Walking • Seeing • Hearing • Speaking • Breathing • Learning • Working
Procedural considerations • Referral can be made by anyone • Once the referral is made, a team of professionals, who have knowledge of the referred student is convened. This team will determine eligibility • Parents will be invited to be on the team, but are not required to attend • If a 504 Plan is warranted, the counselor will formalize the teams recommendations, get the appropriate signatures, and give the final document to the building 504 Coordinator for final signature and distribution. • Parents will receive a copy of the 504 plan and a copy of the “Parents Rights” • Faculty/Staff will be notified on a NEED TO KNOW, basis, every semester. • (Notification must be done within a reasonable time after the onset of the semester…we recommend two weeks?)
Writing the 504 plan • Must include the results of any evaluations done • An explanation of the disability, • Identification of the Major Life Activity limited by the disability • The Educational impact • Necessary and reasonable accommodations • (What is “reasonable” • Placement in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) • Plan must be periodically reviewed (Our recommendation…annually)
Cautions • 504 Plans are highly confidential…violating their confidential nature constitutes a violation of a student’s civil rights (an OCR complaint) • The 504 Coordinator for the building should be the only one with a “listing” of all 504 Plans • Do not publicly address a student with a 504 Plan regarding the plan. Any conversations around a student’s 504 Plan should be done in private with discretion • All decisions related to the 504 Plan must be made by the Interdisciplinary committee. Unilateral decisions are a violation.