Chatham Central School District - Everyone Everyday

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, commonly known in the schools as “Section 504,” is a federal law passed by the United States Congress with the purpose of prohibiting discrimination against disabled persons who may participate in, or receive benefits from, programs receiving federal financial assistance. In the public schools specifically, §504 applies to ensure that eligible disabled students are provided with educational opportunities equal to those provided to non-disabled students.

Under §504, a student is considered “disabled” if he or she suffers from a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as learning, walking, seeing, hearing, breathing, working, and performing manual tasks. Students can be considered disabled, and can receive services under §504, even if they do not qualify for, or receive, special education services.

The purpose of this notice is to inform parents and students of the rights granted them under §504. The federal regulations that implement §504 are found at Title 34, Part 104 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and entitles parents of eligible students, and the students themselves, to the following rights:

1. You have a right to be informed about your rights under §504. The School District must provide you with written notice of your rights under §504. This document represents written notice of rights as required under §504. If you need further explanation or clarification of any of the rights described in this Notice, contact Brian Simon, Section 504 Compliance Officer, at 392-1535 who will assist you in understanding your rights.

2. Under §504, your child has the right to an appropriate education designed to meet his or her educational needs as adequately as the needs of non-disabled students are met.

3. Your child has the right to free educational services, with the exception of certain costs normally also paid by the parents of non-disabled students. Insurance companies and other similar third parties are not relieved of any existing obligation to provide or pay for services to a student that becomes eligible for services under §504.

4. To the maximum extent appropriate, your child has the right to be educated with children who are not disabled. Your child will be placed and educated in regular classes, unless the District demonstrates that his or her educational needs cannot be adequately met in the regular classroom, even with the use of supplementary aides and services.

5. Your child has the right to services, facilities, and activities comparable to those provided to non-disabled students.

6. The School District must undertake an evaluation of your child prior to determining his or her appropriate educational placement or program of services under §504, and also before every subsequent significant change in placement.

7. If formal assessment instruments are used as part of an evaluation, procedures used to administer assessments and other instruments must comply with the requirements of §504 regarding test validity, proper method of administration, and appropriate test selection. The District will consider information from a variety of sources in making its determinations, including, for example: aptitude and achievement tests, teacher recommendations, reports of physical condition, social and cultural background, adaptive behavior, health records, report cards, progress notes, parent observations.

8. Placement decisions regarding your child must be made by a group of persons (a §504 committee) knowledgeable about your child, the meaning of the evaluation data, possible placement options, and the requirement that to the maximum extent appropriate, disabled children should be educated with non-disabled children.

9. If your child is eligible for services under §504, he or she has a right to periodic evaluations to determine if there has been a change in educational need. Generally, an evaluation will take place at least every three years.

10. You have the right to be notified by the District prior to any action regarding the identification, evaluation, or placement of your child.

11. You have the right to examine relevant documents and records regarding your child (generally documents relating to identification, evaluation, and placement of your child under §504).

12. You have the right to an impartial due process hearing if you wish to contest any action of the District with regard to your child’s identification, evaluation, or placement under §504. You have the right to participate personally at the hearing, and to be represented by an attorney, if you wish to hire one. You have the right to mediation to try to resolve your issues before going to a hearing.

13. If you wish to contest an action taken by the 504 Committee by mediation or an impartial hearing, you must submit a “Request for Due Process Proceedings” form to the District 504 Coordinator at the address below:

Section 504 Coordinator:

MED: Renee Morgan
Middle School: Michael Stead
High School: Justin Forrest

Chatham Central School District
50 Woodbridge Avenue
Chatham, NY 12037

Phone (518) 392-1535, Fax: (518) 392-1881

14. If you disagree with the decision of the hearing officer, you have a right to seek a review of that decision before a court of competent jurisdiction (normally, your closest federal district court).

15. With respect to other issues surrounding your child’s education that do not specifically involve identification, evaluation, or placement, you have a right to present a grievance or complaint to the District’s §504 Coordinator (or their designee), who will then investigate the situation, taking into account the nature of the complaint and all necessary factors, in an effort to arrive at a fair and speedy resolution.

16. You also have a right to file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Education. The address of the OCR Regional Office that covers Chatham is:

New York Office, Office for Civil Rights
US Department of Education
75 Park Place
New York, NY 10007-2146
Tel. (212) 637-6466