Equal Opportunities in Extracurricular Athletics for Students with Disabilities

Extracurricular athletics—which include club, intramural, or interscholastic athletics at all education levels—are an important component of an overall education program. The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report that underscored that access to, and participation in, extracurricular athletic opportunities provide important health and social benefits to all students, particularly those with disabilities. However, the GAO found that students with disabilities are not being afforded an equal opportunity to participate in extracurricular athletics in public elementary and secondary schools.

In response to GAO's findings, the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, released guidance to clarify schools’ responsibilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which requires schools to provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate alongside their peers in after-school athletics and clubs.

The Rehabilitation Act provides that schools may not exclude students who have an intellectual, developmental, physical, or any other disability from trying out and playing on a team, if they are otherwise qualified. However, this does not mean that schools have to change the essential rules of the game. Schools are not required to do anything that would provide a student with a disability an unfair competitive advantage; but they do need to make reasonable modifications to ensure that students with disabilities get the very same opportunity to play as everyone else.

The guidance issued will help schools meet this obligation and will allow increasing numbers of kids with disabilities the chance to benefit from playing sports.

Specifically, this guidance:

·         Provides an overview of the obligations of public elementary and secondary schools under Section 504 and the Department’s Section 504 regulations.

·         Cautions against making decisions based on presumptions and stereotypes.

·         Details the specific Section 504 regulations that require students with disabilities to have an equal opportunity for participation in nonacademic and extracurricular services and activities.

·         Discusses the provision of separate or different athletic opportunities.

For more information please see the released guidance here.

Sirenia Jimenez, law clerk

US Department of Education's Labor-Management Collaboration Conference Underway

The 2012 Labor-Management Collaboration Conference, held by the US Department of Education, is currently underway in Cincinnati, Ohio.  The two-day conference encourages participating school district and state officials and union leaders to exchange ideas, share lessons, and encourage participants to engage in similar collaborative efforts when they return home.

More information is available at the US Department of Education's website, including live video of the opening and closing sessions.

Meghan Covert Russell

Twitter Town Hall 4/11 Hosted by Council for Exceptional Children

On Wednesday, April 11 at noon PST, the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services Alexa Posny, will host a Twitter Town Hall discussion.  The discussion, which coincides with CEC's Annual Conference and Expo, will focus on "the importance of early learning, great teachers and leaders, high student achievement, and college and career readiness as we strive to improve results and outcomes for all infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities."

To participate, use the hashtag #CECTownHall or follow @usedgov, @arneduncan and @CECMembership.  

For more information, visit the US Department of Education's blog post here.

Meghan Covert Russell

You can also read these blog posts and other education and law-related news on Twitter by following @MeghanCRussell

US Department of Education Seeks Your Input on Testing Integrity

In response to recent, highly publicized reports of misconduct by school officials in administering academic tests, the US Department of Education (“DOE”) is seeking input about best practices to facilitate further discussions and to help local and state educational agencies prevent, detect, and respond to irregularities in academic testing. 

Some of the questions posed by the DOE include:

           

(1) Detection: How are testing irregularities generally detected? What are the different types of analyses that can be used to detect testing irregularities?

(2) Investigation: If testing irregularities are detected, what are the best practices for investigating them? What forensic analyses should be used? If alleged testing irregularities are a result of wrongdoing, under what circumstances is it appropriate to impose strict and meaningful sanctions against wrongdoers?

(3) Online and Computer-Based Assessments: In a world where academic assessments are increasingly delivered online and by computer, how do responses to the questions listed above change when applied to online and computer-based assessments?

Written submissions must be received by the DOE by February 16, 2012.   For more information, including the full set of questions posed by the DOE and how to submit your comments, see the DOE’s Request for Information here.

Meghan Covert Russell

Teach Talk with US Department of Education: January 27, 2012

On Friday, January 27 at 4:45pm PST, the US Department of Education (DOE) will host a Twitter discussion regarding how to reshape the culture of American education to better attract, retain and support highly effective teachers. The Twitter discussion will be held in conjunction with a live discussion and will follow a screening of the documentary, “American Teacher,” which chronicles the stories of four teachers.

To participate in the Twitter discussion, log onto Twitter and use the hashtag #TeachTalk.

For more information, visit the DOE’s blog here.

Meghan Covert Russell

Easy Ways to Green Your School

Andrea Falken, Director of the Green Ribbon Schools program, provides her thoughts on greening schools on the US Department of Education’s Blog. Some ideas include planting a community garden, encouraging students to bring reusable lunchware, and starting a recycling program.

What has your school done to go green?

Meghan Covert Russell