Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is major federal legislation that impacts entities that receive federal funding.  It is civil rights legislation for persons with disabilities, designed to prevent any form of discrimination based on disabilities.  Individuals with disabilities, who are otherwise qualified are protected.

Definition of Disability under Section 504

Under Section 504, a person is considered to have a disability if that person (29 U.S.C. Sec. 706 (8)):

(1) has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities;

(2) has a record of such impairment, or

(3) is regarded as having such an impairment.

The Act defines a physical or mental impairment as:

(A) any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one
or more of the following body systems:  neurological; muscoloskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory,
including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive; genito-urinary; hemic and lymphatic;
skin and endocrine; or

(B) any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, emotional or
mental illness, and specific learning disabilities.
         

What Schools Must Do to Meet the Requirements of Section 504

OCR (1989) describes the following requirements:

•   Undertake annually to identify and locate all children with disabilities who should be served.

•   Provide a "free appropriate public education" to each student with disabilities, regardless of the
    nature or severity of the disability.  This means providing regular or special education and related
    aids and services designed to meet the individual educational needs of disabled persons as adequately
    as the needs of non-disabled persons are met.

•   Ensure that each student with disabilities is educated with non-disabled students to the maximum
    extent appropriate.

•   Establish nondiscriminatory evaluation and placement procedures to avoid the inappropriate education
    that may result from the misclassification or improper placement of students.

•   Establish procedural safeguards to enable parents and guardians to participate meaningfully in decisions
    regarding the evaluation and placement of their children.

•   Afford children with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in nonacademic and extracurricular
    services and activities.