The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has recently resolved a compliance review of the Colonial School District in Delaware. The resolution agreement was announced following allegations that students with disabilities were not being provided equal access to Advanced Placement (AP) courses. The investigation found that despite years of notice about low participation rates of students with disabilities in AP courses, the district had not taken specific steps to ensure equal access to these academically rigorous courses.
To address these issues, the Colonial School District has committed to reviewing and assessing its AP course offerings for the 2023-2024 school year, developing recommendations to increase enrollment of students with disabilities in these courses, improving communication with students and parents about AP course availability, evaluating academic counseling services to ensure students with disabilities are informed about AP course options, providing training to guidance counselors and teachers on AP course eligibility requirements, and implementing a record-keeping system to accurately report data on students with disabilities participating in AP courses.
Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Catherine E. Lhamon, commended the district for its cooperation throughout the investigation and its commitment to improving access for all students to AP courses. The OCR will monitor the implementation of the agreement to ensure ongoing compliance with Section 504 and Title II. For more information, contact Kelly Powers at kepowers@gannett.com or (231) 622-2191 and follow her on X @kpowers01.
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