Study Finds ‘Section 504’ Rules Source of Confusion for Schools

Students with health or cognitive problems who aren’t eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act have protection under another federal law: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

But school administrators may be confused about evaluating students for Section 504 eligibility, research conducted by a Pennsylvania middle school principal and a law professor shows.

“There’s a lot of openings for problems and slip-ups,” said Rachel A. Holler, the principal of Stewart Middle School in Norristown, Pa., who conducted the research as her doctoral thesis. A report on her findings , written with Perry A. Zirkel, was published in this month’s edition of the NASSP Bulletin , a publication of the National Association...