Section 504 Process Best Practices

Steps to take when requesting a Section 504 referral:

  1. Contact your child’s school administrator or designee.
  2. The school administrator or designee will send you a consent form seeking your permission to evaluate and a Notice of Procedural Rights.
  3. Once the school administrator or designee is in receipt of the signed consent form, they will notify staff involved with evaluating your child.
  4. The school administrator or designee will convene a Section 504 Team comprised of people who are knowledgeable about your child, the disability, and the evaluation data.
  5. Once the assessments and/or review of information is complete, the administrator or designee will schedule an Eligibility meeting.
  6. The school administrator or designee will send you an Invitation Notice detailing the date, time and place of the Eligibility meeting. (You may choose to invite physicians, mental health professionals, and counselors.)
  7. During the Eligibility meeting, the Section 504 Team will consider multiple sources of information, review evaluation results and determine if your child is eligible to receive accommodations and/or related services under Section 504.
  8. You will be provided with a copy of the Notice of Procedural Rights at the meeting.

If your child is found eligible:

  • The Team will develop a Section 504 Plan that clearly states the disability and the major life activity impacted by the disability.
  • The Section 504 Plan will list the accommodations, materials and/or services required to level the playing field for your child.
  • The Administrator or designee will monitor the implementation of your child’s plan.
  • A liaison may be assigned by the Administrator or designee as a contact person regarding your child’s Section 504 Plan.
  • You will be provided with a copy of the Section 504 Plan. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to your building based 504 administrator, your child's principal, or Christine DeAmbrose, Teacher in Charge of 504 planning for the Cambridge Public Schools at 617.349.6508.

If your child is not found eligible:

  • You will be provided with a copy of the Section 504 Non-Eligibility form.

Annual Reviews

  • The school administrator or designee is responsible for ensuring that Section 504 Plans are reviewed at least annually or more frequently as conditions warrant. The purpose of this review is to determine the appropriateness of the current 504 Plan and to make any necessary modifications.

3-Year Reevaluations

  • The school administrator or designee is responsible for initiating the Section 504 reevaluation process to determine continued eligibility every three years or more frequently if conditions warrant. 
  • The process for the reevaluation is the same as the process that was followed during the initial evaluation. Refer to the previous steps 2-8.
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