### OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY

March 16, 2007

Dear Colleague:

The mission of the U.S.  Department of Education is to ensure equal access to education and to  promote educational excellence throughout the nation. The Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) contributes to this mission  through vigorous enforcement of civil rights laws.  I am writing to ask for your help in  furthering an important part of that mission by disseminating information about  the legal rights and responsibilities of students with disabilities as they  transition from secondary to postsecondary education settings.

  Increasingly, after completing high school, students with  disabilities continue their education at institutions such as two- and  four-year colleges and universities and at vocational and career schools.  Data from the Department of Education's most  recent National Postsecondary Student Aid Study indicated that, in the 2003-04  academic year, more than 2 million postsecondary students reported having some  type of disability.  They accounted for  more than 11 percent of postsecondary students and represent a 2 percent  increase in the number of postsecondary students who reported having  disabilities just four years earlier.  Postsecondary students with disabilities have a range of  impairments, such as visual, speech and hearing impairments; specific learning  disabilities; attention deficit disorder; mental illness; developmental  disabilities; orthopedic disorders and others.   Institutions of postsecondary education are responsible for providing  disability-related services to students with disabilities.  OCR’s experience as a law enforcement agency,  however, and other data, indicate that some students have reported that they  need disability-related services and accommodations but do not receive them.

  OCR enforces Section 504 of the *Rehabilitation Act of 1973* (Section 504) and Title II of the *Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990* (Title II), which prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability.  Every school district and nearly every  institution of postsecondary education in the United States is subject to Section  504 or Title II, which have similar requirements.  Private institutions of postsecondary  education that do not receive federal financial assistance are not subject to  Section 504 or Title II.  They are, however,  subject to Title III of the *Americans with Disabilities Act*, which  prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by private entities that  are not private clubs or religious entities and which is enforced by the U.S.  Department of Justice.  Entities covered  by these civil rights laws have an obligation to comply with legal requirements  and to carry out their programs and activities in a manner that does not  discriminate on the basis of disability

Through the Office of  Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), the Department of  Education administers the *Individuals with Disabilities Education Act* (*IDEA*),  which provides funds to states to assist in making a free appropriate public  education (FAPE) available to eligible children with disabilities.  *IDEA* requirements apply to state  education agencies, school districts and other public agencies that serve *IDEA*-eligible  children.  Institutions of postsecondary  education have no legal obligations under *IDEA*.  OSERS also administers the state Vocational  Rehabilitation (VR) Services program, a formula grant program that provides  funds to state VR agencies to assist eligible individuals with disabilities to  obtain employment, including the provision of services designed to facilitate  the transition of eligible students with disabilities from school to  post-school activities.  

  OCR strongly encourages students with disabilities to know  their rights and responsibilities and the responsibilities of institutions of  postsecondary education under Section 504 and the *Americans with  Disabilities Act*.  This information  will help to facilitate equal access to postsecondary education programs and  activities for students with disabilities.   This information may also help students successfully make the transition  from a secondary school system in which parents and school staff have typically  advocated on their behalf to a postsecondary system in which they will be  expected to advocate for themselves.  

OCR also provides information to educators to help answer  students’ questions about their rights and responsibilities, to aid in offering  practical suggestions to students to facilitate the successful transition to  postsecondary education and to ensure that educators are aware of postsecondary  institutions’ obligations to students.   Institutions of postsecondary education have significantly different  responsibilities from those of elementary and secondary school districts.  The unique relationship between institutions  of postsecondary education and students with disabilities is apparent in the  application and pre- and post-admissions processes.  For example:

**Prior to Admission**

- Institutions       of postsecondary education may not make inquiries about prospective       students’ disabilities prior to admitting them.  Prospective students may choose to       provide an institution with information about disabilities, but any       disclosure of disability is voluntary. 

- Institutions       of postsecondary education may inquire about whether prospective students       can meet the academic and technical standards that are required for       admission, provided that such inquiries are not designed to reveal the       existence of disabilities.

- Prospective       postsecondary students may obtain changes in standardized testing       conditions in the administration of entrance examinations if they can       provide documentation from a qualified professional that supports the       existence of a disability and the need for the specific change.

**Following Admission**

- Institutions       of postsecondary education do not have a legal duty to identify students       with disabilities.  These       institutions’ obligations are different from those of school districts,       which must identify elementary and secondary school students with       disabilities.  

- After       admission, institutions of postsecondary education may make confidential       inquiries of students about disabilities that may require       accommodation.  A postsecondary       student does not have to disclose that he or she has a disability.  To obtain academic adjustments, however,       students must identify       themselves to institutions of postsecondary education as having       disabilities and must make a request for an academic adjustment.  A student may request an academic       adjustment at any time, but advising the institution as soon as possible       of the need for an academic adjustment can help to ensure that the       institution has adequate time to review the request and provide an       appropriate academic adjustment.  

- Section 504 and  IDEA  require       school districts to conduct an evaluation of a student suspected of having       a disability at no cost to the student or his or her parents to determine       whether the student has a disability and, because of that disability,       needs special education and-or related services.  Institutions of postsecondary education,       however, are not required to pay for such evaluations.  Therefore, if funding from other       sources, such as the state VR agency, is not  available to a postsecondary student,       the student may have to pay for the evaluation.

- To comply with the requirements of  IDEA ,       a school district or other public agency must have in effect an       individualized education program (IEP) for children with       disabilities.  School districts may       also create a plan or other document describing the evaluation and       placement decisions they make for elementary and secondary school students       pursuant to Section 504.        Institutions of postsecondary education have no obligation to       create these documents.

- Institutions of postsecondary       education must provide appropriate academic adjustments based on       students’ disabilities and individual needs when necessary to avoid       discrimination.  In providing an academic adjustment, a       postsecondary institution does not have to eliminate or lower essential       requirements, or make modifications that would result in a fundamental       alteration of the programs or activities being offered or impose an       undue burden on the institution. 

- Institutions of postsecondary       education may establish reasonable procedures for requesting academic       adjustments, and students are responsible for knowing these procedures and       following them.  Postsecondary       institutions may require students who request academic adjustments to       provide documentation of their current disabilities and the need for       academic adjustments.  The       institutions must inform students of the documentation they require.  Elementary and secondary school IEPs       generally will not be sufficient documentation, due to the different       contexts and requirements of postsecondary  education.  However, existing assessment  reports and a summary of the student’s academic achievement provided in  compliance with  IDEA  may meet some documentation requirements.

- Institutions of postsecondary       education may not require students with disabilities to pay part or       all of the costs of academic adjustments.        Postsecondary institutions may not condition their provision of       academic adjustments on the availability of funds, refuse to spend more       than a certain amount to provide academic adjustments, or refuse to       provide academic adjustments because they believe other providers of such       services exist. 

These are just a few examples of the changes students with  disabilities may encounter as they make the transition from high school to  postsecondary education.  

To further inform students with  disabilities and their parents and educators working with the students, OCR has  prepared a pamphlet entitled *Students with Disabilities Preparing for  Postsecondary Education:  Know Your  Rights and Responsibilities* and a guide entitled *Transition of Students  with Disabilities to Postsecondary Education: A Guide for High School Educators.*  The pamphlet and guide explain the legal  requirements of Section 504 and Title II in the postsecondary education  context.  Copies of each document are  enclosed. You may obtain the pamphlet electronically at http://www.ed.gov/ocr/transition.html and the guide electronically at http://www.ed.gov/ocr/transitionguide.html.  You may obtain additional copies of the  pamphlet by writing to ED Pubs, Education   Publications Center,  P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398; by faxing to  301-470-1244; by e-mailing to edpubs@inet.ed.gov;  by calling 1-877-433-7827 or 1-800-872-5327; by TDD and TTY at 1-877-576-7734;  or by ordering online at www.edpubs.org.  Both the pamphlet and the guide are available  in alternative formats, such as Braille, large print or computer diskette by  calling 202-260-0852 or 202-260-0818.    The pamphlet is also available in Spanish.  (See http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/transition-sp.html).

In addition, I have prepared the enclosed “Dear Parent”  letter regarding the subject of transition.   Please help us to continue to raise awareness of this important matter  by sharing the “Dear Parent” letter with the parents of students with  disabilities with whom your institution or organization has contact.  I also encourage you to post this letter, the  “Dear Parent” letter and links to the pamphlet and guide on your Web site.  You may also contact the OCR Enforcement  Office for your state for additional information and assistance.  Contact information for these offices is at http://wdcrobcolp01.ed.gov/CFAPPS/OCR/contactus.cfm. 

Thank you for helping OCR to reach out to and better  inform students with disabilities.

| Sincerely  yours,                     |
|---------------------------------------|
|                                  |
| Stephanie Monroe                      |
| Assistant Secretary for  Civil Rights |

Enclosures    

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