WEBINAR - Top 10 Section 504 Mistakes

Program Description:

Asthma, diabetes, epilepsy… Is your school in compliance with the basic legal protection laws regarding students with disabilities? Are you creating Section 504 plans for all students who are entitled to Section 504 accommodations, or are you under-identifying students who are entitled to these legal protections? Lawsuits involving allegations of Section 504 violations are increasing and can be very costly for schools, yet very few schools have legally-defensible procedures and practices with regards to Section 504. In this session, Atty. Erin D. Gilsbach, an experienced speaker at the state and national levels, provides insight into common errors that schools make and practical solutions to enhance legal compliance.

As an attorney who specializes in legal professional development for schools, Atty. Gilsbach has found that public schools across the nation are making the same liability-inducing mistakes. She provides insight into what common practices get schools into legal trouble, and she offers simple, realistic solution to some of these chronic (and costly!) legal issues. In this fast-paced, easy-to-follow training, she identifies areas of much-need improvement and helps schools identify and SOLVE some of today’s most significant Section 504 legal liability issues.

• What disabilities are eligible for Section 504 protections?

• What does a legally-defensible Section 504 plan need to include?

• Who should have a copy of a student’s Section 504 plan?

• What happens when parents and schools don’t agree on accommodations?

• What types of accommodations need to be made for students with disabilities?

• How often do Section 504 plans need to be reviewed/rewritten?

• What should schools do when parents do not provide necessary medical information?

• and more!

About the Presenter:

Erin D. Gilsbach, Esq., is an experienced speaker at the state and national levels. She provides legal consulting services and a wide variety of school law training programs to school districts, charter schools, non-public schools, school leader organizations, educator associations, parent groups, and other organizations. In addition to special education issues, she specializes in legally-defensible policy and procedural development for schools, trending legal issues regarding technology and education, nursing and school health services, truancy prevention, child abuse prevention and mandated reporting, educator evaluation and discipline, and a variety of other school law topics.

After receiving a B.A. in English and Secondary Education from Grove City College and teaching public high school English for three years, she went on to receive her J.D. from Penn State's Dickinson School of Law and serve for over two years in the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Office of Chief Counsel. Voted by her peers as a SuperLawyers "Rising Star Attorney" for the past 5 years, she is the President of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) Solicitor's Association is an active member of the National School Boards Association (NSBA) Council of School Attorneys (COSA). In addition to being frequent presenter and author with a number of national organizations, including the Education Law Association (ELA), the National Business Institute (NBI), NSBA and COSA, she recently served as the legal consultant for the desk reference "Legal Issues in School Health Services."

Atty. Gilsbach is a passionate believer in the transformative power of a great education and the lasting impact that a caring educator can have on the life of a child. She is humbled to be surrounded by inspiring individuals who dedicate their lives to helping students with disabilities realize their potential and grow into confident and empowered life-long learners.