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Home > Ask the Advocate > Protecting Students in Post-Secondary Education by Pat Howey |
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| Protecting Students with Disabilities in Post-Secondary Education
To assist your child in learning about her civil rights contact:
Section 504 and the ADA Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provide slightly different protections. Your child must become familiar with both, as the ADA will follow her into the workplace after her postsecondary education. Section 504 is a civil rights law and is intended to protect your child against discrimination. Self-Advocacy As a parent, it is important for you to understand is that your child is considered to be an adult. You have no right to advocate for her at the postsecondary level. Your child should check with an experienced civil rights attorney to determine whether she can designate you to act as her advocate. I strongly encourage all parents to help their special needs children to learn self-advocacy skills during their high school years so that they will be prepared for life after high school. In some cases, your child may not be diagnosed until after high school. However, it is not too late for her to learn self-advocacy skills. If there is a Partners in Policymaking group in her area, that is an excellent program for learning self-advocacy skills. Accommodations At the postsecondary level, the school is not automatically responsible for providing any services or accommodations. Your child is responsible for identifying herself to postsecondary staff and asking for assistance and reasonable accommodations. Therefore, any letters you write or any communications you have with postsecondary school staff will possibly be ignored and may even be unread. Another resource that may help your child is your state's Vocational Rehabilitation agency. Vocational Rehabilitation provides evaluation and assistance to adults. This agency may be able to assist your child with services at the postsecondary level. You may want to suggest that your child go to Vocational Rehabilitation and ask for evaluation and possible assistance and/or services to help her succeed at the postsecondary level. You'll find additional resources on Wrightslaw's page, College: Continuing and Higher Education. Discrimination: Section 504 and ADA AA. Pat began her advocacy career as a volunteer for the Task Force on Education for the Handicapped (now InSource), Indiana’s Parent Training and Information Center. In 1990, she opened her advocacy practice and served families throughout Indiana by representing them at IEP meetings, mediation, and due process hearings. In 2017, Pat closed her advocacy practice and began working on a contract basis as a special education paralegal. Attorneys in Indiana, Texas, and California contracted with her to review documents, spot issues, draft due process complaints, prepare for hearings, and assist at hearings. In January 2019, she became an employee of the Connell Michael Kerr law firm, owned by Erin Connell, Catherine Michael, and Sonja Kerr. Her duties have now expanded to assisting with federal court cases. Contact Information Created: 11/30/17
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At least two federal laws provide protection for your child at the postsecondary level. There may be other state and/or local laws that also provide protection. 
