Law and Rights
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995
Have you ever felt that you or the student in your life were treated differently by a school due to race, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, or age? You could be experiencing illegal discrimination.
For example, has your child been excluded from activities, such as a class trip, based on disability-related conduct (e.g. hyperactivity, seizures, hearing impairment, behavior, etc.)? Have students who were different races been treated differently in the exact same situation for no apparent reason? Have staff made some form of slur against you or your child based on race or national origin? Were you removed from a college program in part due to your age? Believe it or not, improper discriminatory conduct occurs even today.
If you experienced discrimination, or what you believe was discrimination, within the last 180 days, you can file a complaint with the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR). This is a great agency which, if they accept your complaint, will step in, investigate, and hopefully help to resolve the problem.
Here is where you need to go if you wish to file the complaint yourself: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html
Here is some information from the U.S. Department of Education which is relevant to filing a discrimination complaint:http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaints-how.html and
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/qa-complaints.html
If you are beyond 180 days, you may still be able to file, but will have to justify the lateness of the filing to OCR.
More parents might want to consider filing if they cannot get anywhere internally with their district. As you have to show the discrimination in your initial complaint for OCR to step in, oftentimes attorneys may be involved to make the case. You can also file on your own,. There is no charge to file the complaint with OCR.
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Law and Rights
Do You Want To File A Discrimination Complaint Against Your School?
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995
For example, has your child been excluded from activities, such as a class trip, based on disability-related conduct (e.g. hyperactivity, seizures, hearing impairment, behavior, etc.)? Have students who were different races been treated differently in the exact same situation for no apparent reason? Have staff made some form of slur against you or your child based on race or national origin? Were you removed from a college program in part due to your age? Believe it or not, improper discriminatory conduct occurs even today.
If you experienced discrimination, or what you believe was discrimination, within the last 180 days, you can file a complaint with the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR). This is a great agency which, if they accept your complaint, will step in, investigate, and hopefully help to resolve the problem.
Here is where you need to go if you wish to file the complaint yourself: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html
Here is some information from the U.S. Department of Education which is relevant to filing a discrimination complaint:http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaints-how.html and
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/qa-complaints.html
If you are beyond 180 days, you may still be able to file, but will have to justify the lateness of the filing to OCR.
More parents might want to consider filing if they cannot get anywhere internally with their district. As you have to show the discrimination in your initial complaint for OCR to step in, oftentimes attorneys may be involved to make the case. You can also file on your own,. There is no charge to file the complaint with OCR.
Best,
Michelle Ball
Education Law Attorney
LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL
717 K Street, Suite 228
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-444-9064
Fax: 916-444-1209
Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/
Education Law Attorney
LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL
717 K Street, Suite 228
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-444-9064
Fax: 916-444-1209
Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/
Blog: http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/michelleaball
Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page [http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/]. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.! This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship.
- When In Doubt Go To The School District
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Are you frustrated that your school's Principal or Vice Principal are not listening nor acting adequately on your school complaints? Are you being given a blank stare when...
- Five Steps To Take To Get Disability Accommodations In College
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Once a student transitions from high school to college, their world changes. If they were a special education student with an IEP (Individualized Education Program) in their...
- Pervasive Anti-semitism Alleged At Two University Of California College Campuses
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 According to the "Institute for Jewish and Community Research" (IJCR) the University of California has gotten hit with a lawsuit and an investigation by the United States Department...
- Do You Have A Complaint About School Personnel Or Teachers? Follow Through And File A Complaint
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 As the focus of my practice is solely to assist and resolve issues for students, I frequently hear complaints about teacher misconduct, school administrator failures, school personnel...
- A Great Due Process Hearing Reference For California Special Education Parents
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Parents of special education students who may have a dispute over services or placement for their kids must be aware of their right to file a request for a Due Process hearing, which...