Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”)1 is a federal civil rights statute that prohibits discrimination against students with disabilities:
No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States . . . shall, solely by reason of her or his 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. . . .2
Because every public school and school district receives some form of federal funding, Section 504 applies to all school districts and all public schools, including public charter schools.
In addition to its broad protection against discrimination in schools, Section 504 also requires school districts to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to each qualified student with a disability. Under Section 504, FAPE includes regular or special education and related aids and services designed to meet the individual educational needs of a child with a disability as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students.3 Children who are found eligible under Section 504 are entitled to many of the same substantive rights and protections as students who qualify under IDEA, such as the right to FAPE in the least restrictive environment and the right to heightened disciplinary protections. Students eligible under Section 504 are provided with a 504 Plan that outlines the modifications, accommodations, and specialized services that will support them in school.
Section 504 also provides a broad spectrum of protections against discrimination in non-academic settings, including before and after-school programs, field trips, extra-curricular activities, and athletics.4 School districts must provide reasonable accommodations to allow children with disabilities to participate in these activities.5 Likewise, under Section 504, school districts are required to ensure that students and others with disabilities, including parents, are not denied access to the school’s programs or activities because of inaccessible facilities, such as school buildings, walkways, bathrooms, athletic facilities, and parking spaces.6 Finally, Section 504 also provides important protections to students with disabilities to be free from bullying and harassment based on disability.7 More information on these important protections can be found in the Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools, issued by the Office for Civil Rights, the federal enforcement agency for Section 504.8
- 129 U.S.C. § 794; 34 C.F.R. pt. 104. For more information on the requirements of Section 504 in schools, see U.S. Dep’t of Educ., Off. for Civ. Rts., Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools (2016).
- 2See 29 U.S.C. § 794.
- 334 C.F.R. § 104.33(b)(1).
- 434 C.F.R. § 104.37. For more information, see U.S. Dep’t of Educ., Off. for Civ. Rts., Students with Disabilities in Extracurricular Athletics (Jan. 25, 2013).
- 534 C.F.R. § 104.37.
- 634 C.F.R. §§ 104.22–.23; 28 C.F.R. §§ 35.150–.151.
- 734 C.F.R. § 104.4; see also U.S. Dep’t of Educ., Off. for Civ. Rts., Responding to Bullying of Students with Disabilities, www.ed.gov/ocr/letters/colleague-bullying-201410.pdf (Oct. 21, 2014).
- 8This guide is available here. OCR also enforces Title II of the ADA, but does not enforce the IDEA. The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) within the U.S. Department of Education is responsible for administering the IDEA. However, OCR does enforce the Section 504 and Title II rights of IDEA-eligible students with disabilities.