Section 504 is part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a federal civil rights law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education. Section 504 states that: "No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 706(8) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…" [29 U.S.C. §794(a), 34 C.F.R. §104.4(a)].
Wiseburn Unified School District complies with this legislation and provides a "free appropriate public education" (FAPE) to each qualified student with a disability who is in the school district's jurisdiction, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability. Under Section 504, FAPE consists of a provision of services designed to meet the student's individual educational needs as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students are met. Please reference the WUSD Parent's Guide to Section 504 for more specific information.