Pennsylvania Education Law Lawyer & Attorney : Fox Rothschild Law Firm : Education Statutory and Regulatory Changes

Recently, a reader wrote with a question and a situation.   

“I was looking at your website, and I was unable to find the answer to this question.  Is ability grouping allowed under Pennsylvania law?  In other words, a school has four classes for each grade level, and the students are grouped into four ability levels, from high achieving to low.  I've heard conflicting answers would like your insights.”

As readers know, I cannot give specific legal advice through this Blog.  But I can give my thoughts, generally (and welcome to hear yours), about this situation, so here goes. 

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Religiously-affiliated independent schools and colleges need to take certain steps to have the protection offered by the religious exemption in the Americans With Disabilities Act, which states: “The provisions of this subchapter shall not apply to . . . religious organizations or entities controlled by religious organizations, including places of worship.” 42 U.S.C. § 12187. Whether an institution is entitled to the exemption is a factual question. A summary of factors is at the end of this entry.  

The Third Circuit “touched” on the issue of ADA’s religious exemption as applied to private schools in Doe v. Abington Friends School, 480 F.3d 252 (3d Cir. 2007). The plaintiffs claimed Abington Friends School (“AFS”) discriminated against their son, a student with disabilities (ADHD and learning disabled) attending the school. Among other things, the plaintiffs claimed AFS used improper discipline and failed to accommodate him.  

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The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, in Bates v. United Parcel Service, Inc., re-visited the issue of the business necessity defense and an employer’s safety-based qualification requirements. The court ruled that a government safety rule that does not apply directly to the job at issue but is nonetheless related to the job’s requirements can be considered when determining whether the employer’s safety requirement is proper or discriminatory. 

In this case, UPS had a rule that required all package car drivers to meet a U.S. Department of Transportation (“DOT”) hearing standard. The DOT standard, however, applied only to drivers of trucks over 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight. UPS applied the rule to all drivers, a rule that was discriminatory on its face.

A class of hearing impaired potential drivers challenged the rule. The trial court found for the plaintiffs, but the Court of Appeals, en banc, reversed and remanded for further proceedings in light of its “clarification” of the law.

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In a December 26, 2007 "Dear Colleague" letter, the U.S. Department of Education addressed "an issue involving students with disabilities seeking enrollment in challenging academic programs, such as Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate classes or programs (accelerated programs)."  The letter would be applicable to any covered entity.

Apparently, some schools refuse to allow qualified disabled students the right to participate in such programs or require the student’s to forego some other right. These actions, said the Department, "are inconsistent with Federal law, and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the U.S. Department of Education will continue to act promptly to remedy such violations where they occur."

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The case of Enright v. Springfield School District is a lesson in the important need for a quality program of training for bus drivers. The case resulted in a jury verdict upheld by the court against a school district and in favor of a seven year old student abused on a bus by older students. Liability against the school district was found because the school district did not train its driver and had policies and practices in place that made environment of the bus unsafe.

The school district owned and operated a bus that transported a 17-year old male student with emotional issues to an approved private school, a 14-year old male with learning disabilities to a private school, and a seven year old girl with Asperger’s syndrome to a private school. In short, the two boys engaged in sexualized conduct toward the girl that caused her significant trauma. Parents filed suit seeking relief via Section 1983 for violations of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans With Disabilities Act, the IDEA, and Fourteenth Amendment due process rights.

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