When two police officers found Dante Butzberger sitting in a walk-in closet at his family’s Scottsdale home, the 14-year-old refused to leave. Dyslexia and ADHD had made his time in eighth grade so miserable that not even the police could convince him to attend school. His mother, Dolores Tropiano, had called police out of frustration—and desperation. Her son hated middle school, and faculty wouldn’t provide the extra in-class help she knew he needed. Left with no other options, Butzberger’s mother contacted an attorney to force the Scottsdale Unified School District into action. It worked.

azcir.org

Shortcomings at the federal, state and school level make securing a 504 plan easier for students who attend Arizona schools that are wealthier and whiter, potentially limiting equal access to education for low-income students of color.

The teenager got the help he needed in the form of a 504 plan, a federal civil rights protection designed to give students with disabilities equal access to public education. The plans are typically for students who don’t qualify for special education but have conditions such as ADHD or anxiety that still interfere with learning. Plan benefits range from extra time on exams to less homework, and 504s can even shield students from expulsion.

“The double time on tests was the most helpful thing I ever received,” said Butzberger, now 18 years old and an incoming high school senior. “If I was rushing to do all those tests, I do not see myself being as successful as I was.”

But getting the plans in Arizona isn’t always easy, or equitable, an AZCIR analysis of state and federal election data shows. Shortcomings at the federal, state and school level make securing a 504 plan easier for students who attend schools that are wealthier and whiter. The disparity gives an advantage to families that can spend time and money advocating on their children’s behalf, while potentially limiting equal access to education for low-income students of color.