Which students are eligible for a Section 504 Plan?

• A. A student with a disability that substantially limits one or more major life activities is eligible for a 504 plan, even if they do not require SPED
• B. Only students who qualify for free lunch
• C. Only students with hearing loss
• D. Any student who is in gifted program

Answer: (D)

Section 504 eligibility is about ensuring access for students with disabilities to participate in school activities with appropriate accommodations. A student qualifies if they have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, or they have a history of such an impairment, or are regarded as having one. Major life activities include things like learning, reading, concentrating, communicating, seeing, hearing, walking, and breathing. Importantly, eligibility does not depend on needing special education services; a student can receive a 504 Plan solely to receive accommodations that remove barriers to learning.

In this context, the description that a student with a disability that substantially limits major life activities is eligible for a 504 Plan, even if they do not require SPED, matches how 504 works. Choices based on socioeconomic criteria (like free lunch), or on being in a gifted program, do not determine 504 eligibility, and a disability like hearing loss is just one possible example among many that could qualify if it substantially limits a major life activity.