Section 504 is a part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It is a federal anti-discrimination, civil rights statute that requires the needs of students with disabilities to be met as adequately as the needs of their non-disabled peers.  Section 504 prohibits discrimination against disabled individuals by school districts receiving federal financial assistance.  It requires that schools provide access to a “free, appropriate public education” (FAPE) for disabled students.

Section 504 states that:  “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 706(8) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” [29 U.S.C. §794(a), 34 C.F.R. §104.4(a)].