504 Lawsuit

[Anonymous]

What is going on with the 504 suit that states are bringing? Has MCPS commented about what they’re hearing or what their plan is? They have all these Special Ed paras and teachers in the budget would that change?

[Anonymous]

Maryland isn't part of that suit

[Anonymous]

But if Section 504 protections are removed it will impact everyone.

[Anonymous]

First I’m hearing of this. Do you have more information on the lawsuit

[Anonymous]

504 plans are not special education. They don’t get special staffing.

[Anonymous]

Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

This is what they are saying but there are key points that would eliminate 504 all together.

“ Then, on page 37, as it reached its third of four counts, the lawsuit switches gears, arguing not for an excision of the new language, but the elimination of Section 504 entirely. The suit argues that Section 504 is “coercive, untethered to the federal interest in disability, and unfairly retroactive” and therefor unconstitutional”

But the language of the lawsuit is quite clear. The fourth item under “Demand for Relief” is

Declare Section 504, 29 U.S.C. § 794, unconstitutional

Followed by

Issue permanent injunctive relief against Defendants enjoining them from enforcing Section 504

“ For all intents and purposes, Section 504 would cease to exist, and with it, any requirement for states to meet the needs of students with special needs currently benefiting from 504 plans, or any such students in the future. If the Trump administration goes through with plans to dissolve the Department of Education and turn IDEA funding into block grants that states can use for any purpose, students with special needs will suffer a double hit.”

[Anonymous]

Section 504 is a disaster and needs a complete overhaul. Getting rid of it is not the answer, but it’s certainly a terribly written and outdated law.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

Yes, I hoped that they would demand equitable access to the test by granting more time for all students, not only students who can afford specialized diagnostics.

[Anonymous]

Please email the states Attorney General even though MD is not part of it. It’s still important to advocate for him to submit an amicus brief on the importance of 504 for people with disabilities (this includes health issues such as anxiety, depression, diabetes, allergies, etc). Section 504 protects a lot.
https://www.accessliving.org/newsroom/action-alerts/action-alert-save-section-504/

If you know someone in one of the 17 states please consider asking them to also email their AG to drop out of the suit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

Yes, I hoped that they would demand equitable access to the test by granting more time for all students, not only students who can afford specialized diagnostics.

Extra time on tests does not require "specialized diagnostics". It is a myth that a 504 plan requires a diagnosis:

"Section 504 requires a child to have an evaluation before receiving a 504 Plan. An evaluation does not have to be formalized testing, but it must consider information from a variety of sources (parent notes, doctors’ notes if available, test scores, observations, etc.). Decisions about who qualifies for Section 504 cannot be based solely on a single source of data (i.e. a doctor’s diagnosis or grades). A medical diagnosis is NOT required under Section 504." (from https://chadd.org/for-parents/section-504/)

Of course, school committees will consider a diagnosis if there is one, but it is also a myth that diagnosis has to be expensive. First and foremost under the states' "Child Find" obligation, schools must identify all disabled children in their district. When presented with a written letter from a parent outlining a suspected disability, a school district is obligated to offer a full and free evaluation. Second, private diagnosis does not have to be expensive, i.e. a full psych or neuropsych - it can be made by a pediatrician, an NP, a physician assistant, a therapist, etc.

Finally, the process for extra time on exams (in school or SAT, etc.) now largely accepts any 504 paperwork from school (whereas years ago it did require more expensive documentation.)

I deal with students like these all the time, and IMO, I think the main obstacle is discrimination and not expense of diagnosis. When a kid is struggling in school, regardless of color, both school and parents mistakenly assume that the kid is not trying, unmotivated, uninterested insubordinate, or just not smart. IMO, this is a kind of disability discrimination - we incorrectly see symptoms of all kinds of invisible disabilities as "chosen behavior" - negative behavior that needs to be punished. A second aspect of discrimination is race-based discrimination - white kids are far more likely to have a parent or teacher who believes they are smart and helps them access a 504. Kids of color (or from a different language or culture) have far more people (doctors, teachers, admin) in their life who are willing to believe they are dumb or unmotivated, etc. and thus don't access the process for them or actively put obstacles in their way. For kids of color, this is compounded by a long history of racial discrimination that unnecessarily pushed kids of color into special education, a legacy which may make schools reluctant to offer special ed to kids of color.

And before someone responds that the real problem is parents just can't believe that their kids aren't special snowflakes, IME it is almost always the case that when parents and school are disagreeing about whether a kid is disabled or just not smart, the IQ in evaluation ends up being at or above median. I also see many cases where the student has an IQ of 120 (90th percentile or above) - so definitely intelligence is not the interfering factor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Section 504 is a disaster and needs a complete overhaul. Getting rid of it is not the answer, but it’s certainly a terribly written and outdated law.

Can you be more specific about what is terribly written about it and how it is outdated?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

Yes, I hoped that they would demand equitable access to the test by granting more time for all students, not only students who can afford specialized diagnostics.

Extra time on tests does not require "specialized diagnostics". It is a myth that a 504 plan requires a diagnosis:

"Section 504 requires a child to have an evaluation before receiving a 504 Plan. An evaluation does not have to be formalized testing, but it must consider information from a variety of sources (parent notes, doctors’ notes if available, test scores, observations, etc.). Decisions about who qualifies for Section 504 cannot be based solely on a single source of data (i.e. a doctor’s diagnosis or grades). A medical diagnosis is NOT required under Section 504." (from https://chadd.org/for-parents/section-504/)

Of course, school committees will consider a diagnosis if there is one, but it is also a myth that diagnosis has to be expensive. First and foremost under the states' "Child Find" obligation, schools must identify all disabled children in their district. When presented with a written letter from a parent outlining a suspected disability, a school district is obligated to offer a full and free evaluation. Second, private diagnosis does not have to be expensive, i.e. a full psych or neuropsych - it can be made by a pediatrician, an NP, a physician assistant, a therapist, etc.

Finally, the process for extra time on exams (in school or SAT, etc.) now largely accepts any 504 paperwork from school (whereas years ago it did require more expensive documentation.)

I deal with students like these all the time, and IMO, I think the main obstacle is discrimination and not expense of diagnosis. When a kid is struggling in school, regardless of color, both school and parents mistakenly assume that the kid is not trying, unmotivated, uninterested insubordinate, or just not smart. IMO, this is a kind of disability discrimination - we incorrectly see symptoms of all kinds of invisible disabilities as "chosen behavior" - negative behavior that needs to be punished. A second aspect of discrimination is race-based discrimination - white kids are far more likely to have a parent or teacher who believes they are smart and helps them access a 504. Kids of color (or from a different language or culture) have far more people (doctors, teachers, admin) in their life who are willing to believe they are dumb or unmotivated, etc. and thus don't access the process for them or actively put obstacles in their way. For kids of color, this is compounded by a long history of racial discrimination that unnecessarily pushed kids of color into special education, a legacy which may make schools reluctant to offer special ed to kids of color.

And before someone responds that the real problem is parents just can't believe that their kids aren't special snowflakes, IME it is almost always the case that when parents and school are disagreeing about whether a kid is disabled or just not smart, the IQ in evaluation ends up being at or above median. I also see many cases where the student has an IQ of 120 (90th percentile or above) - so definitely intelligence is not the interfering factor.

This is an excellent comment. Please save it and re-post it on relevant threads in future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s an article about it

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2025/02/13/17-states-sue-to-end-protections-for-students-with-special-needs/

It seems like it’s mostly a suit about those states not wanting to support trans students. When I saw this topic, I was hoping someone was fighting back against parents who buy their children extended time on the SAT and other tests by claiming they have anxiety.

Yes, I hoped that they would demand equitable access to the test by granting more time for all students, not only students who can afford specialized diagnostics.

Extra time on tests does not require "specialized diagnostics". It is a myth that a 504 plan requires a diagnosis:

"Section 504 requires a child to have an evaluation before receiving a 504 Plan. An evaluation does not have to be formalized testing, but it must consider information from a variety of sources (parent notes, doctors’ notes if available, test scores, observations, etc.). Decisions about who qualifies for Section 504 cannot be based solely on a single source of data (i.e. a doctor’s diagnosis or grades). A medical diagnosis is NOT required under Section 504." (from https://chadd.org/for-parents/section-504/)

Of course, school committees will consider a diagnosis if there is one, but it is also a myth that diagnosis has to be expensive. First and foremost under the states' "Child Find" obligation, schools must identify all disabled children in their district. When presented with a written letter from a parent outlining a suspected disability, a school district is obligated to offer a full and free evaluation. Second, private diagnosis does not have to be expensive, i.e. a full psych or neuropsych - it can be made by a pediatrician, an NP, a physician assistant, a therapist, etc.

Finally, the process for extra time on exams (in school or SAT, etc.) now largely accepts any 504 paperwork from school (whereas years ago it did require more expensive documentation.)

I deal with students like these all the time, and IMO, I think the main obstacle is discrimination and not expense of diagnosis. When a kid is struggling in school, regardless of color, both school and parents mistakenly assume that the kid is not trying, unmotivated, uninterested insubordinate, or just not smart. IMO, this is a kind of disability discrimination - we incorrectly see symptoms of all kinds of invisible disabilities as "chosen behavior" - negative behavior that needs to be punished. A second aspect of discrimination is race-based discrimination - white kids are far more likely to have a parent or teacher who believes they are smart and helps them access a 504. Kids of color (or from a different language or culture) have far more people (doctors, teachers, admin) in their life who are willing to believe they are dumb or unmotivated, etc. and thus don't access the process for them or actively put obstacles in their way. For kids of color, this is compounded by a long history of racial discrimination that unnecessarily pushed kids of color into special education, a legacy which may make schools reluctant to offer special ed to kids of color.

And before someone responds that the real problem is parents just can't believe that their kids aren't special snowflakes, IME it is almost always the case that when parents and school are disagreeing about whether a kid is disabled or just not smart, the IQ in evaluation ends up being at or above median. I also see many cases where the student has an IQ of 120 (90th percentile or above) - so definitely intelligence is not the interfering factor.

This is an excellent comment. Please save it and re-post it on relevant threads in future.

People who are interested in this issue or who are having trouble getting a 504 or IEP in MCPS or in any kind of SAT, ACT, etc. testing should post in the Special Needs forum. There are many posters there who are knowledgeable about disability rights in education.

[Anonymous]

In addition to the issues going on with 504’s… Please familiarize yourself with the executive order that came out yesterday regarding “making America healthy again“ there are serious concerns with ADHD, anxiety and depression medication’s for kids under 19 years old, continuing under this administration.