Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that makes it easier for disabled students to require schools to accommodate their needs. The court ruled that students don’t need to show that their school acted with “bad faith or gross misjudgment” to obtain relief for discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. In response, Casey Doherty, policy analyst for the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:
This ruling will help protect disabled students’ access to education and ensure that they are not left behind. It allows students to enforce civil rights protections in schools without facing unfair standards that would make it unduly difficult to win lawsuits. This is often the only way that disabled students can protect their rights to receive special education services.
For more information or to speak to an expert, contact Julia Cusick at [email protected].