Exploring Family Experiences With Section 504 Plans for Their Autistic Children.
Section 504 plans for autistic students can work when school staff are supportive, but many families still face refusal of accommodations.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The authors talked with families who have autistic children with Section 504 plans.
They asked parents to describe how easy or hard it was to get the plan, and how well the school followed it.
The study used open-ended questions so families could tell their full story.
What they found
Parents gave mixed reviews. When teachers were helpful, the plan worked and the child did better.
Other parents met refusal. Staff said the child did not need the listed help, so the plan sat unused.
These highs and lows happened in the same districts, showing the teacher matters more than the paper.
How this fits with other research
Horgan et al. (2023) let autistic students speak. They also said one helpful teacher changes everything, matching the parent view here.
Hoyle et al. (2022) counted parent needs. Half of the help parents wanted never arrived, echoing the refusal stories in this paper.
Alsulami et al. (2024) surveyed Saudi parents. They feared teachers were not ready, a worry that lines up with U.S. staff pushing back against 504 plans.
Together the four studies paint the same picture: family and student success hinges on staff attitude, not just policy on paper.
Why it matters
You can write the best 504 accommodations, but they die on the vine if the teacher sees them as optional. Use these findings to prep staff before the plan starts. Offer a quick training, share why each item helps, and check in weekly. One cooperative teacher turns parent stress into parent praise.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Although access to inclusive education should be available for all students with disabilities, the extant literature has focused mainly on access to Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) without addressing access to Sect. 504 of the American Rehabilitation Act. Over 1.38 million students are served by Sect. 504 in public schools, yet little is known about their experiences. Specifically, little is known about the experiences of families of autistic students with Sect. 504; given the heterogeneity of autism, it is likely that many autistic students qualify for Sect. 504 (and not IEPs). The purpose of the study was to explore the experiences of families of children with autism with access to Sect. 504 in school settings. Altogether, 23 families participated in individual interviews about their initial experiences accessing Sect. 504, their input into the Sect. 504 plan, and the implementation of the Sect. 504 plan. Some families reported positive experiences with Sect. 504. When positive experiences occurred, it was largely due to having supportive school professionals. Unfortunately, most participants reported negative experiences with access to Sect. 504 including the school being unwilling to provide accommodations. Implications for future research include the need to develop and test interventions to improve supports under Sect. 504.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025 · doi:10.1177/0022466913489733