Student Supports

Section 504 is a federal law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance, such as school districts. The law requires that school districts provide a free and appropriate public education to each qualified student with a disability who is in the school's jurisdiction, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability.

Students covered under Section 504 are ultimately provided the right to have their individual educational needs met as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students are met.

Eligibility

To be protected under Section 504, a student must be determined to:

• Have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; or
• Have a record of such an impairment; or
• Be regarded as having such an impairment

For more information on Section 504 or if you believe you child should receive Section 504 services, please contact the dean at your child's school.

The McKinney-Vento Act grants all homeless and highly mobile students certain rights to ensure access to a public education.

If your family is experiencing housing insecurity, Big Lake Schools will help connect you to the opportunities and resources that will help your child meet the same high academic standards expected of all students in our district. 

Homeless students live in any of the situations listed below:

• Children and youth who are sharing the housing of others due to a loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason;
• Children and youth living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of adequate alternative accommodations;
• Living in emergency or transitional shelters;
• Abandoned in hospitals;
• Living in a public or private place not designated for humans as a regular sleeping accommodation;
• Living in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar places;
• Migratory children living in any of the above circumstances.

Under the McKinney-Vento Act, children and youth in homeless situations have the right to:

• Go to school, no matter where they live or how long they have lived there
• Attend either the local school or the school of origin, if this is in their best interest; the school of origin is the school the child attended when she/he was permanently housed or the school in which the child was last enrolled
• Receive transportation to and from the school of origin
• Enroll in school immediately
• Participate fully in school activities
• Have access to the same programs and services that are available to all other students including transportation and supplemental educational services