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Study Finds `Section 504' Rules Source of Confusion for Schools

By A. s

Students with health or cognitive problems who aren't eligible for

services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act have

protection under another federal law: Section 504 of the

Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

But school administrators may be confused about evaluating students

for Section 504 eligibility, research conducted by a Pennsylvania

middle school principal and a law professor shows.

" There's a lot of openings for problems and slip-ups, " said A.

Holler, the principal of Middle School in Norristown, Pa.,

who conducted the research as her doctoral thesis. A report on her

findings, written with A. Zirkel, was published in this month's

edition of the NASSP Bulletin, a publication of the National

Association of Secondary School Principals.

The study is the first that has attempted to quantify the number of

students nationwide who are receiving accommodations through Section

504, according to Ms. Holler and Mr. Zirkel, a professor of education

and law at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., where Ms. Holler

earned her doctorate.

Their estimate, based on answers received in 2005 from 549 public

school administrators, suggests that about 1.2 percent of public

school students receive Section 504 services only, compared with 12

percent served under the IDEA.

Every student who is eligible for help under the IDEA is also covered

under Section 504, which prohibits discrimination against people with

disabilities by any agency that receives federal money.

Not all Section 504 students, however, are necessarily eligible for

special education services. And recent legal decisions suggest that a

child who is not eligible for the IDEA is likely not eligible for

Section 504 accommodations either, the researchers say.

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