Section 504

Referral Process 

Eligibility Criteria

Physical or Mental Impairments 

Major Life Activities

All Plano ISD Staff are required to locate, identify, and evaluate all children with disabilities from birth through age 21. The Child Find mandate applies to all children who reside within a State, including children who attend private schools and public schools, highly mobile children, migrant children, homeless children, and children who are wards of the state. (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(3)). Child Find is a part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Section 504 maintains its own Child Find requirement, which requires districts to annually undertake to identify and locate every qualified individual with a disability residing in the district’s jurisdiction who is not receiving a public education.

For additional information about the rights of parents of eligible children, or for answers to any questions you might have about identification, evaluation, and placement into Section 504 programs, please contact the District’s Section 504 Coordinator, Kimmie Conlon, at kimmie.conlon@pisd.edu

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 794 (“Section 504”), is a federal civil rights law that protects the rights of students with disabilities in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance. Specifically, Section 504 states: “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States…shall, solely by reason of his or her disability, be excluded from participation in, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” 

As an institution that receives Federal financial assistance, the Plano Independent School District (“Plano ISD” or “District”) maintains applicable Board of Trustees (“Board”) Policies related to Section 504. The relevant board policies include but are not limited to the following Board Policies: 

• FB (LEGAL)
• FB (LOCAL)
• FB (EXHIBIT)
• FFH (LEGAL)
• FFH (LOCAL)

All relevant Board Policies are available online.

General Rights and Procedural Safeguards

As an individual with disabilities, the following rights are provided to the parents, guardians, or the student upon reaching the age of majority in accordance with the Section 504 implementing regulations found at Title 34, Part 104 of the Code of Federal Regulations (“C.F.R.”): 

• The District has an obligation to identify and locate every qualified individual with a disability (“qualified individual”) residing in the District’s jurisdiction/boundaries who is not receiving a public education and must take appropriate steps to notify persons with a disability and their parents or guardians of the District’s obligation under Section 504 (34 C.F.R. § 104.32). This notice fulfills the District’s obligation under this paragraph. 
• The District has an obligation to provide all qualified individuals with a free appropriate public education (34 C.F.R. § 104.33).
  • An education is appropriate when a qualified individual receives the provision of regular or special education and related aids and services that are designed to meet the individual educational needs of the qualified student and are based upon adherence to the procedures outlined in Section 504 and its implementing regulations. 
• All qualified individuals have the right to be educated with their nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate based on the individual needs of the qualified student (34 C.F.R. § 104.34(a)). 
• All qualified individuals have the right to participate in nonacademic and extracurricular activities, including but not limited to recess, meals, counseling services, and athletics with nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate based on the individual needs of the qualified student (34 C.F.R. § 104.34(b)).  
• All qualified individuals have the right to be educated in comparable facilities, services, and activities to their nondisabled peers (34 C.F.R. § 104.34(c)). 
• The District shall conduct an evaluation of all students suspected to need special education or related services prior to engaging in placement procedures (34 C.F.R. § 104.35(a)). Parents or guardians have the right to refuse the initial evaluation of a student suspected to have a qualifying disability.  
• The District must comply with evaluation procedures which ensure that tests and other formal evaluation materials are validated for the specific purpose for which they are used and administered by trained personnel in conformance with the instructions provided by their producer, and are tailored to assess specific areas of educational need, and accurately reflect a student’s aptitude when administered to a student with impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills (34 C.F.R. § 104.35). 
• The Section 504 committee, in reviewing evaluation data and making placement decisions, must:
  • Draw upon information from a variety of sources, including but not limited to aptitude and achievement tests, teacher recommendations, physical condition, social or cultural background, and adaptive behavior;
  • Establish procedures to ensure that information obtained is documented and carefully considered; 
  • Ensure that the placement decision is made by a group of persons, including persons knowledgeable about the child, the meaning of evaluation data, and the placement options; and
  • Ensure that the placement is in the least restrictive environment (34 C.F.R. § 104.35(b)). 
  • Parents or guardians have the right to refuse placement/services.
• The District must conduct periodic reevaluations of qualified students (34 C.F.R. § 104.35(c)). A reevaluation must occur at least every three years or when a significant change of placement occurs. 
• Parents or guardians have the right to receive notice of any actions related to the identification, evaluation, or placement of a qualified student (34 C.F.R. § 104.36). 
• Parents or guardians have the right to examine all relevant records of your child, including those related to the provision of Section 504 services to a qualified student (34 C.F.R. § 104.36). 
• The parent/guardian/adult student has been informed after five (5) years of inactive status or graduation, Section 504 records will be destroyed and will no longer be available. 
• At the age of majority (18), all rights provided herein will transfer to the adult student.  

Complaint Processes/Avenues

Section 504 records will be destroyed and will no longer be available five(5) years following inactive status or graduation.

To request your Section 504 Records: 

For former Plano ISD students, please contact Plano ISD Student Records.

For students currently enrolled in Plano ISD, please reach out to your campus’s Student Support Liaison.