APPENDICES IDEA AND SECTION 504: A Comparison Component IDEA Section 504 Purpose To provide federal financial To eliminate discrimination on assistance to state and local the basis of disability in all education agencies to assist programs and activities them to educate children with receiving federal financial disabilities. assistance. Who is protected? All school-age children who fall All school-age children who within one or more of 13 specific have a physical or mental categories of disability and who, impairment which substantially because of such disability, need limits a major life activity, have a special education and related record of such an impairment or services (i.e., intellectually are regarded as having such an disabled, hard of hearing, impairment. Major life activities speech or language impaired, include walking, seeing, visually impaired, seriously hearing, speaking, breathing, emotionally disturbed, learning, working, caring for orthopedically impaired, other oneself and performing manual health impaired, deaf, tasks, thinking, concentrating, multiple disabled, specific eating, sleeping, lifting, bending, learning disabled, autistic, or reading, communicating, traumatic brain injured). reaching and interacting with others. Section 504 protects a broader group of students than does the IDEA. Duty to provide a Free and Both laws require the provision of FAPE. Section 504 defines Appropriate Public Education FAPE more broadly than does the IDEA. (FAPE)
APPENDICES IDEA AND SECTION 504: A Comparison Component IDEA Section 504 Purpose To provide federal financial assistance to state and local education agencies to assist them to educate children with disabilities. To eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability in all programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. Who is protected? All school-age children who fall within one or more of 13 specific categories of disability and who, because of such disability, need special education and related services (i.e., intellectually disabled, hard of hearing, speech or language impaired, visually impaired, seriously emotionally disturbed, orthopedically impaired, other health impaired, deaf, multiple disabled, specific learning disabled, autistic, or traumatic brain injured). All school-age children who have a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits a major life activity, have a record of such an impairment or are regarded as having such an impairment. Major life activities include walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, caring for oneself and performing manual tasks, thinking, concentrating, eating, sleeping, lifting, bending, reading, communicating, reaching and interacting with others. Section 504 protects a broader group of students than does the IDEA. Duty to provide a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) Both laws require the provision of FAPE. Section 504 defines FAPE more broadly than does the IDEA.
Section_504_Handbook_January_2014.docx