Educational Rights of College Students with Disabilities

Y

9

Student Rights; College Students; Students with Disabilities; College Faculty; Teacher Qualifications; Federal Legislation; Civil Rights Legislation; Educational Legislation; Equal Education; Teacher Role; Accessibility (for Disabled); High School Students

Pennsylvania; United States

Americans with Disabilities Act 1990; Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; Rehabilitation Act 1973

0146-3934

College education has become a prerequisite in today's globalized, knowledge based, and technology controlled economy. A college education not only benefits the individual, it also has numerous advantages for society. Research shows that college graduates are less likely to be involved with crime, more likely to be home owners, more likely to be healthy, more likely to live longer, and more likely to be financially astute. They tend to be good citizens whose contributions to society are hard to enumerate. Unlike compulsory public school education in the USA, there are no laws that mandate attendance in a college. For high school students with disabilities, the scenario is slightly different. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) mandates that high school teachers and guidance counselors help high school students with disabilities plan for postsecondary education and post-school outcomes. Consequently, unprecedented numbers of students with disabilities are arriving in colleges and universities. Unfortunately, college professors and other personnel are not always prepared to work with these students. This paper focuses on educational rights of college students with disabilities that have been granted to them by federal legislation such as the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Rehabilitation Act. It also includes short case studies of college students with disabilities.

As Provided

2021

EJ1315470