Office for Civil Rights Letters of Findings at American Community Colleges: Supporting Students with Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to identify the frequency and outcomes of Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act Office for Civil Rights rulings as a result of complaints initiated by students with disabilities against community colleges from 2016-2018. The secondary purpose of this study was to analyze corresponding Office for Civil Rights Letters of Findings to provide guidance. The research questions that guided this study included: Research Question 1: What is the frequency of Office for Civil Rights Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act complaints including case issue, location, disability type, and year filed by students with disabilities against community colleges for the years 2016-2018? Research Question 2: Are the outcomes of Office for Civil Rights Letters of Findings dependent upon the independent variables: case issue, location, disability type, or year? Research Question 3: What themes can be noted in the Office for Civil Rights Letters of Findings? This study utilized Office for Civil Rights case issue summary data and accessed Letters of Findings via the U.S. Department of Education, OCR’s official database. The outcomes of this study revealed that among the 3 years, the highest reported cases were in 2017. The study also revealed that there was a statistically significant association between outcomes for case issue and outcomes for year. The qualitative analysis of Letters of Findings revealed the emergence of 5 themes: blanket policy, accommodations, undue burden, procedure, and accessible technology. The implications of this study provide guidance that includes common issues affecting students with disabilities at community colleges