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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#221E1F">Much of this focuses on K-12 but here is a useful excerpt and a link to some useful higher education data:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#221E1F">The Department’s National Center for Education Statistics<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumiBLzF3u$" title="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60"><span style="color:#0078D7">estimates</span></a></span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#221E1F"> </span></b></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#221E1F">that
students with disabilities accounted for 21% of undergraduates and 11% of postbaccalaureate students in the 2019-20 school year.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;color:#221E1F"><a href="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60">Disabled Postsecondary Students: Fast Facts</a></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Sent:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt"> Tuesday, February 20, 2024 11:11 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> OCR <OCR@ed.gov><br>
<b>Subject:</b> U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights Releases New Resources on Students with Disabilities</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121">FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><br>
Feb. 20, 2024</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121">Contact: Press Office</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><br>
(202) 401-1576 or<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="mailto:press@ed.gov" title="mailto:press@ed.gov"><span style="color:#0070C0">press@ed.gov</span></a></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights Releases New Resources on Students with Disabilities</span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released four new resources today with information for students, parents and families, and schools addressing civil
rights of students with disabilities, as well as a data snapshot about education access for students with disabilities drawn from OCR’s 2020-21<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/civilrightsdata.ed.gov/__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumuQZQvCs$" title="https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/"><span style="color:#0078D7">Civil
Rights Data Collection (CRDC)</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">OCR issued these new resources to inform students with disabilities, and their families and schools, about their legal rights under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Section 504 prohibits discrimination against students with disabilities by institutions that accept federal financial assistance, which includes almost all public schools and public and private institutions of higher education.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">“We issued these new resources to give students, including those with asthma, diabetes, food allergies, and GERD, as well as their families and schools, important tools to understand
when and how they are protected by federal disability rights laws,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">OCR’s new CRDC<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-student-disabilities-snapshot.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguump0zyEl5$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-student-disabilities-snapshot.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">data
snapshot</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">reports that 8.4
million students with disabilities accounted for 17% of the overall public school enrollment in the 2020-21 school year, the most recent school year for which the Department has civil rights data. Three percent (1.6 million) of the overall student enrollment
were students with disabilities who received educational aids and services under Section 504 only. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F;background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow">The Department’s National Center for Education Statistics<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121;background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumiBLzF3u$" title="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60"><span style="color:#0078D7">estimates</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F;background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F;background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow">that
students with disabilities accounted for 21% of undergraduates and 11% of postbaccalaureate students in the 2019-20 school year.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">The four new resources address common medical conditions that can be disabilities for purposes of Section 504: asthma, diabetes, food allergies, and gastroesophageal reflux disease
(GERD). These resources, which are applicable to all levels of education, explain when these medical conditions trigger protections under Section 504, what kind of modifications an educational institution may need to take to avoid unlawful discrimination,
and what an institution may need to do to remedy past discrimination.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">OCR also released a new CRDC data snapshot profiling educational opportunities provided to public school students with disabilities during the 2020-21 school year. It reflects
troubling differences in the experiences of students with disabilities compared to their non-disabled peers. For example, higher percentages of students with disabilities were physically restrained or secluded than students without disabilities.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">Students with disabilities were also overrepresented in disciplinary actions when compared to their total student enrollment. And students with disabilities were underrepresented
in Advanced Placement courses, gifted and talented programs, and dual enrollment or dual credit programs.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">The new resources regarding<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-asthma-202402.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumjb6q6wU$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-asthma-202402.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">asthma</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-diabetes-202402.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumhq0pAFQ$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-diabetes-202402.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">diabetes</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-food-allergies-202402.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumr3ZLdOK$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-food-allergies-202402.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">food
allergies</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">, and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-gerd-202402.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumjyegvCr$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-factsheet-gerd-202402.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">GERD</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">are
available on the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumpgvjdWD$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html"><span style="color:#0078D7">OCR
website</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">. The new<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-student-disabilities-snapshot.pdf__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguump0zyEl5$" title="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-student-disabilities-snapshot.pdf"><span style="color:#0078D7">CRDC
disability snapshot</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">, and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/civilrightsdata.ed.gov/publications__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumhwPmSYU$" title="https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/publications"><span style="color:#0078D7">other
CRDC data reports and snapshots</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">, are available on the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#212121"><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/civilrightsdata.ed.gov/__;!!KGKeukY!zFfHEBfYDgNZdJbgIJM1r80Cp7QACYzimip40m9G1R-TMnWa2z2R8MeNBwDgIadVB9THPguumuQZQvCs$" title="https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/"><span style="color:#0078D7">CRDC
website</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#221E1F">.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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