SECTION 504 OF THE REHABILITATION ACT

A presentation of the Center for Independence of the Disabled,New York - Queens

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What is Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act?

Section 504 is a federal civil rights law that makes it against thelaw to discriminate because of disability.

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Higher Education

Today, we will be talking about higher education and howsomeone with a disability is protected by Section504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

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Who is a person with a disability?

The legal definition under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is• Someone with a mental or physical impairment that

substantially limits one or more major life activity;• Someone who has a record of such an impairment; or• Someone who is regarded as having such an impairment.

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What is an impairment?

Any disability, long-term illness or disorder that makes it hard tolearn in school or other institution, or that makes it hard toaccess services.

The condition does not have to be obvious.

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What are examples of impairments?

• Deafness• Blindness• Bipolar disorder• Chronic depression• Paraplegia• AIDS• Cancer

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What does “substantially limits” mean?

It depends on the kind of disability you have and how much itgets in the way of your ability to learn.

Your abilities must be compared to students of the same agewho do not have disabilities.

When your ability to learn is looked at, you can takeyour medication or use accommodations that you use in youreveryday life (material in large print, an interpreter, extra time, aquiet place) .

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What are examples of major life activities?

• walking; • seeing; • speaking; • thinking; • concentrating; • interacting with others; • caring for yourself; and• learning

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What does “record of an impairment” mean?

This means you a doctor has examined you and says you have a disability. You have documents that say you are disabled.

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What does “regarded as having an impairment” mean?

When someone thinks another person has a disability but theydo not. Example: Someone thinks that a person who is Gay must be HIV

positive.

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What do I do if I need a reasonable accommodation at school?

• Ask for help at your school’s Office for Students with Disabilities.

• Tell them you have a disability.• Bring medical proof of your disability. • Ask for the reasonable accommodation you need.

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What are some examples of reasonable accommodations?

• Extended time on tests or assignments;• Private rooms for tests or assignments;• Note taker;• Books on tape;• Computer-aided instruction;• Large print;• Accessible classroom locations, etc.

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What must schools do to follow this law?

Schools must:• have written policies for and ways to work with students with

disabilities;• look at each student’s needs based on their disability;• give students with disabilities equal opportunity to compete

with non-disabled students.

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When is a student not allowed to be in a classroom?

• When the student is disruptive and affects other students’ ability to learn.

• When the accommodation asked for creates undue hardship or basic changes to the classroom.

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What can you do if you cannot get a reasonable accommodation?

• Ask to see your school records and reasons for not giving you an accommodation.

• Request an impartial hearing.• Have an attorney or representative with you at the hearing.• File a complaint with the school’s 504 coordinator.• File a complaint with your regional office of civil rights.

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Who to call at the Office of Civil Rights

Michael Carter, Regional ManagerOffice of Civil RightsU.S. Dept. of Health and Human ServicesJacob Javits Federal Building26 Federal Plaza – Suite 3312New York, NY 10278212-264-3313

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For more questions or help

CIDNY – Queens 137-02A Northern Blvd Flushing, NY 11354

(646) 442-1520 (Tel)(866) 948-1064 (VP), (718) 886-0427 (TTY)

www.cidny.org

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