Nothing matters more to a parent than their children's well-being. If you're the parent of a child with a disability, well-being takes on special significance. You worry over how they're doing physically, psychologically, and emotionally. You pay attention to how they are treated. And you want to make sure they have the very best education options, no matter what their individual disability may be.
The law is on your side. Your child is protected by two major federal laws: the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). They have additional rights under Washington state law and Washington Department of Education policies.
No one can take these rights away. No one. That said, there are certainly educators and administrators in Washington school districts and at Washington colleges and universities who either don't fully understand the law or are lax in following it. You don't have to accept that. Your child deserves the same opportunities as every other child in America, and the Lento Law Firm is dedicated to making sure they have them.
Attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Team know your rights. They also have years of experience pressuring school districts to give students those rights. Whether you're looking to get your child the accommodations they deserve or you simply want to restructure your child's educational support structure, you can count on Joseph D. Lento and his Team to fight hard on your family's behalf.
The Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue Area
The Lento Law Firm is proud to work with disabled students and their families throughout the Seattle metro area, including residents of King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties and the cities of Tacoma and Bellevue.
The Seattle metro region is home to more than 4 million residents, making it the fifteenth most populous area of the country. Given those numbers, it should come as no surprise that it also contains numerous local schools and districts, including
- Auburn School District
- Bellevue School District
- Enumclaw School District
- Federal Way School District
- Highline School District
- Issaquah School District
- Kent School District
- Lake Washington School District
- Mercer Island School District
- Northshore School District
- Renton School District
- Riverview School District
- Seattle Public Schools
- Shoreline School District
- Snoqualmie Valley School District
- Tahoma School District
- Tukwila School District
- Vashon Island School District
Despite their proximity to one another, none of these schools is exactly alike. They all have different populations, demographics, and district policies. The one thing they all have in common is that they are all subject to federal and state laws and guidelines for dealing with disabled students.
If you attend school at any of them, the Lento Law Firm has your back. If you're unsatisfied with how your child is being treated, Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Team are here to help.
Colleges and Universities in the Seattle Metro Area
Disability rights in education don't just apply to K-12 students. College and university students have important rights as well, particularly under the ADA. As with school districts, Seattle is home to many institutions of higher education.
- Seattle College
- Seattle Pacific University
- Cornish College of the Arts
- University of Puget Sound
- Northwest University
- University of Washington, Tacoma
- University of Washington, Bothell
- City University of Seattle
- Antioch University
- Northwest College of Art and Design
- Seattle Film Institute
If you're a student at any of these schools and you feel you're being mistreated in any way because of your disability, Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm can help you as well.
Of course, you should bear in mind that universities aren't required to provide the same level of services K-12 schools are. For example, professors are under no obligation to develop student IEPs; nor are they required to conduct manifestation determinations (see below). They must abide by federal law, though. That includes using fair admission standards for all students and providing accommodations for any student with disabilities.
Understanding FAPE, IEPs, and Reasonable Accommodation
You know that your child is covered under the law no matter what school they attend in the Seattle metro area. In concrete terms, though, just what does that mean?
Let's start with federal law.
Every child in the United States has a right to a free public education. The Bill of Rights and the other amendments to the Constitution clarify that this right should apply to all students equally, including students with disabilities.
The ADA, IDEA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 go further in specifying how the basic principle of equal education should apply to disabled students. All three of these laws make clear that public schools must provide students with whatever materials and support they need to obtain that education.
You may already know that just like other public buildings, schools are required to create wheelchair access points and elevators to help physically disabled students get to class. You may not realize that so-called “hidden” disabilities like dyslexia, ADD, and ADHD are covered under the law as well. In fact, the complete list of disabilities covered under these three laws includes
- Autism
- Deaf-blindness
- Deafness
- Developmental delay
- Emotional disturbance
- Hearing impairment
- Intellectual disability
- Multiple disabilities
- Orthopedic impairment
- Other health impairment (OHI)
- Preschool severe delay
- Specific learning disability (SLD)
- Speech or language impairment (SLI)
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Visual impairment
These laws also delineate exactly what kinds of services schools must provide to disabled students in order to ensure they are receiving an equal education.
- Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): The notion that all US children deserve a “free and appropriate education” (FAPE) doesn't just apply to disabled students. Over the years, it has been used to make sure members of all protected classes of individuals are treated equally in the classroom. FAPE is particularly important for disabled students, though, because it requires districts to provide whatever resources a student may need to obtain that education without regard to cost. If your child needs a tutor, for example, the district is obligated to provide them with one. Such expenses must be within reason, and they cannot unduly interfere with other students' education, but FAPE takes the financial burden off of parents.
- Individual Education Programs (IEP): All K-12 students with disabilities are also entitled to an Individualized Education Program (IEP). This is basically a plan describing the goals for your child's education and what steps the school intends to take to reach those goals. You have a right to be involved in developing your child's IEP. You are also entitled to suggest modifications and updates to that IEP as necessary.
- Reasonable Accommodations: Again, this aspect of the law puts the burden of accommodating disabled students on the district rather than parents. Of course, not every “accommodation” involves an expense. The requirement for reasonable accommodation also means instructors must allow students with disabilities to complete homework, take exams, and write papers in formats tailored to their specific needs.
- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): This basically encodes the idea that students learn best when they are with their peers. As a result, no student, regardless of their disability, should be forced out of mainstream classrooms. Of course, it is worth noting the language used here. “Least restrictive” isn't a guarantee that a regular classroom is the best environment for a disabled student. A district does have the right to move students to “alternative” learning environments if it believes those students will benefit educationally. However, a district cannot do this without very clear and specific reasons, and you, as the parent, always have a say in such decisions.
Taken together, these rights should provide disabled students with everything they need to receive a quality education. That doesn't mean your school or district will meet all your child's needs. There are plenty of individuals out there, and whole districts, that try to drag their feet when faced with an accommodation request or who don't fully understand your rights to participate in your child's education. When you encounter that kind of resistance, that's when you call in Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Team. They can make sure your child is being treated fairly and afforded every right they deserve.
Washington Law and DOE Policies
Washington state is fully supportive of federal law as it applies to students with disabilities and has even gone further in passing its own laws and developing Department of Education policies.
RCW 28A.155.020, for instance, reaffirms the state's commitment to following all federal laws with regard to disabilities. Beyond this commitment, Washington law also guarantees
- All children who receive parental consent will be tested for disabilities
- Transportation and room and board are provided at no cost when disabled students need them
- Other accommodations will be made as needed at no cost
- Parents are notified before any use of restraints or other isolation strategies
- Parents have the right to appeal disability designation decisions
Manifestation Determinations
One of the most important provisions of Washington disability law concerns how disabled students are disciplined. The law recognizes that disabled students may have legitimate reasons for violating school policies, and manifestation determinations are designed to make sure they aren't held accountable when this is the case.
Manifestation Determinations are typically conducted by members of your child's IEP support team. The purpose of these reviews is to determine whether a given disciplinary violation could have been caused by the student's disability. In such cases, the school can't reasonably hold the student responsible.
Importantly, the review team also considers whether a disciplinary violation might have been prevented if an appropriate IEP had been in place. In other words, if the school could have taken some action to prevent the violation, it is ultimately responsible for that violation.
As the child's parent, you are not allowed to participate directly in a Manifestation Determination. However, you do have the right to challenge the team's decision. Appeals are granted under the state's general education procedures, and in cases involving disabled students you can request an expedited hearing.
Disciplinary sanctions of any kind can have devastating effects on children. The most serious sanctions, those that exclude students from mainstream classrooms (suspension, expulsion, placement in alternative schools) can be particularly harmful. Not only do they serve as a disruption in learning, but they subject students to public shame and ridicule and can have long-term effects on students' psychological and emotional health. Exclusionary discipline hurts all kids, but its effect on students with disability, students who often already suffer from feelings of exclusion, can be especially keen.
Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Team have helped hundreds of students challenge Manifestation Determination decisions. They know the process, and they know the best tactics for protecting your student's rights.
Information for University Students
As mentioned above, college and university students don't have the same disability rights as K-12 students. IDEA, for example, doesn't apply to post-secondary programs at all. That doesn't mean college students with disabilities don't have rights. Both the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 apply. Those two laws ensure
- No college or university can exclude you strictly on the basis of your disability. You have the right to fair treatment by admissions boards.
- Your school must provide you with appropriate support and appropriate accommodations, and they must do so at no extra cost to you. This means the school must make public areas accessible. It means professors must provide alternative test-taking and assignment procedures if you need them. It means you have the right to any materials or services any other student has, even if those materials and services must come in modified form.
One important difference between K-12 students and college students is that the latter is subject to FERPA as well as disability laws. FERPA gives you an absolute right to academic privacy. Your school cannot demand you disclose your disability; it cannot disclose your disability to others; it cannot disclose the fact that you have accommodations as a result of your disability. Consider, for instance, that K-12 students are all tested for disabilities, and the school is obligated to identify students who have them. That won't happen to you. If you choose to keep your disability to yourself, no one will ever know about it.
Of course, you can't expect a professor to provide you with accommodations if you haven't notified them that you need accommodations. Ultimately, though, it's your choice.
If you're meeting resistance from a professor or from your school in terms of providing you with the materials and resources you deserve, contact the Lento Law Firm today. Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm Team can make sure your college or university grants you every right you deserve.
Protect Your Student's Right to an Education
Disability law can be complicated, particularly when it's applied to education. As a result, it's not unusual to come into contact with educators, even seasoned educators, who either don't know the law or don't know how to implement it properly. This doesn't necessarily mean they don't want to help. They may genuinely have your and your child's best interests at heart but still get things wrong.
In those situations, Joseph D. Lento and his Team can be a big help. They know the law, and they know how to help others better understand the law. They know how to talk with school officials and work out resolutions. They also know how to be tough when they must, and how to fight to ensure your child is treated fairly and given every chance to succeed.
To find out more about what the Law Offices of Joseph D. Lento can do for you and your child, contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-555-3686, or use our automated online form.
