How to Get a 504 Plan in Arizona for Your Child

To get a 504 plan in Arizona, send a written request to your school district’s Section 504 Coordinator asking the district to evaluate your child under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The district then gathers information about your child, convenes a team that includes you, and decides whether your child has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity. If the team finds your child eligible, it drafts a written plan listing the accommodations the school will provide. Parents drive this process; the law gives you the right to start it, participate in it, and challenge the outcome.

First, Confirm Your Child Is Likely Eligible

A student qualifies for a 504 plan if they have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. The federal regulation at 34 C.F.R. § 104.3 covers any physiological disorder, condition, or mental health diagnosis, including learning disabilities, ADHD, anxiety disorders, chronic illnesses like diabetes or epilepsy, and sensory impairments.¹ The condition does not have to be permanent or severe enough to require specialized instruction. It just has to meaningfully restrict your child compared to most students their age.

The list of major life activities is broader than many parents assume. The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 expanded it to include reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, eating, sleeping, standing, and bending, along with major bodily functions like the immune, neurological, digestive, respiratory, and endocrine systems.² A student with Crohn’s disease that disrupts digestion qualifies just as clearly as a student with dyslexia that disrupts reading.

One eligibility rule catches parents off guard. Schools must evaluate the impairment without factoring in medication, hearing aids, prosthetics, insulin pumps, assistive technology, or any other tool the student uses to manage the condition.² A child with ADHD who functions well on medication still qualifies based on how the ADHD limits them without it. The only exception is ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses. If a school team suggests your child does not qualify because they “seem fine” in class, this is the rule to cite.

Temporary conditions can qualify too, but only if they are severe enough to substantially limit a major life activity for an extended period. A broken leg that keeps a student from accessing parts of the building for several months may qualify. A minor sprain that heals in two weeks almost certainly will not. Congress defined a “transitory” impairment as one lasting six months or less.³ Episodic conditions like seizure disorders are evaluated based on how limiting they are when active.

Find Your District’s 504 Coordinator

Every Arizona district with 15 or more employees is required by federal regulation to designate at least one person to coordinate 504 compliance.⁴ That covers virtually every district in the state. The coordinator’s name and contact information are usually posted on the district’s website or printed in the student handbook. If you cannot find it, call the main district office and ask.

Districts also have an independent obligation to identify students who may need 504 evaluations.³ In practice, parents start most 504 requests. Waiting for the school to notice is a mistake.

Submit a Written Request

A letter or email to the 504 Coordinator is the standard way to open the process. Your request should identify your child, name the condition, describe how it affects school, and ask the school to evaluate your child under Section 504. You do not need a formal diagnosis in hand to make the request, but having one strengthens your position. Keep the letter factual and specific. “My daughter has been diagnosed with ADHD and struggles to complete timed assignments” is more useful than a general statement about difficulty in school.

Send the request by a method that creates a record. Email with a read receipt works. So does certified mail. The date the school receives your written request starts the clock on its obligation to respond, and you want proof of that date.

Gather Supporting Documentation

The stronger your documentation, the smoother the evaluation. You do not need everything on this list to start, because the school must conduct its own evaluation. But walking in with organized records makes it harder for a team to dismiss the request.

Medical records and letters from physicians, psychiatrists, or psychologists confirming the condition and its effects.
Report cards, standardized test scores, and teacher comments showing where your child struggles.
Reports from private therapists, tutors, or independent educational evaluators.
Written observations from teachers or counselors about classroom behavior, attention, or social difficulties.

If you choose to obtain a private evaluation on your own, that expense is yours. Private psychoeducational evaluations for conditions like ADHD or learning disabilities typically run between $1,200 and $2,500. The school is not obligated to follow a private evaluator’s recommendations, but it must consider the findings as part of its evaluation data.

The School’s Evaluation

Once the school receives your request, it must either begin an evaluation or provide written notice explaining why it is declining to evaluate. Federal regulations do not set a specific number of days for a 504 evaluation, unlike IDEA’s 60-day timeline. The standard is “reasonable time,” which is vague by design. If weeks pass without a response, follow up in writing and reference the date of your original request.

The evaluation does not necessarily mean new testing. Federal regulations require schools to draw on a variety of sources, including aptitude and achievement tests, teacher recommendations, the student’s physical condition, social background, and adaptive behavior. The school may review existing records, classroom work samples, and your submitted documentation and decide that information is enough. Any tests the school does administer must be validated for the purpose they are used, given by trained personnel, and designed to assess specific areas of need rather than produce a single intelligence score.⁵ The school bears the full cost. You are never required to pay for the school’s 504 evaluation.

The Eligibility and Plan Meeting

The eligibility decision must be made by a group, not a single administrator. Federal regulations require the placement decision to be made by persons knowledgeable about the child, the meaning of the evaluation data, and the available placement options.⁵ Arizona 504 teams usually include the parent, the 504 Coordinator, one or more of the student’s teachers, and a specialist such as a school psychologist or nurse who understands the condition.

At the meeting, the team reviews all available data and decides two things: whether your child has a qualifying impairment, and if so, what accommodations are needed. If the team finds your child eligible, the written plan is drafted at the meeting or shortly afterward. You have the right to participate and to suggest specific accommodations based on what you and your child’s medical providers believe will help.

What a 504 Plan Should Contain

A 504 plan is a written document listing the specific accommodations the school will provide, who is responsible for implementing each one, and where they apply. Accommodations should match your child’s actual barriers. Common examples include:

Extended time on tests, quizzes, and in-class assignments.
Preferential seating near the teacher or away from distractions.
Reduced homework volume, chunked instructions, or alternative assignment formats.
Separate testing rooms, oral exams, or breaks during long tests.
Access to audiobooks, speech-to-text software, or calculators.
Permission to carry medication, access to a nurse for blood sugar checks, or flexible bathroom breaks.
Check-in systems, daily progress reports, or modified disciplinary responses.

Every teacher who works with your child should receive a copy of the plan. Accommodations that exist only on paper help no one, and inconsistent implementation is the most common complaint parents raise after a plan is approved. If a teacher is not following the plan, put the issue in writing to the 504 Coordinator.

How a 504 Plan Differs From an IEP

Parents often confuse the two, and schools do not always explain the difference. An IEP is created under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and provides specialized instruction designed for a student’s unique learning needs. A 504 plan does not change what your child is taught. It changes the conditions under which they learn, removing barriers so they can access the same curriculum as everyone else.

IDEA requires a student to fit one of 13 specific disability categories and to need specialized instruction because of that disability.⁶ Section 504’s standard is broader. A student who performs at grade level but needs extended test time for an anxiety disorder, or a blood sugar monitoring plan for diabetes, often qualifies for a 504 plan even though they would not qualify for an IEP. Many students evaluated for special education and found ineligible under IDEA are still eligible under Section 504.

If the School Says No

A denial of eligibility is not the end of the road. Arizona districts with 15 or more employees must maintain a grievance procedure for resolving 504 disputes.⁴ Ask the 504 Coordinator for the district’s written grievance procedures. If they are not readily available, the district is already out of compliance.

You can also request an impartial due process hearing, a more formal proceeding where an independent hearing officer reviews the evidence and determines whether the school followed the law. You can bring documentation, present witnesses, and be represented by an attorney. The specifics vary by district, so request the written due process procedures before deciding whether to pursue this route.

A complaint can also go directly to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, which investigates allegations of disability discrimination in schools receiving federal funds.⁷ The complaint must ordinarily be filed within 180 days of the last discriminatory act. If you used the school’s internal grievance process first, the deadline shifts to 60 days after that process concludes.⁸ Missing these deadlines can forfeit your right to an OCR investigation, so track dates carefully.

Some parents hire a special education advocate for help navigating a denial or a hearing. Hourly rates for experienced advocates generally range from $100 to $300, with most falling between $150 and $200. An advocate cannot represent you in a legal proceeding the way an attorney can, but they can attend meetings, help organize documentation, and press the school on procedure.

Keeping the Plan Working

A 504 plan is not a one-time document. Federal regulations require periodic re-evaluations, though they do not specify an exact interval.³ Most Arizona districts conduct annual reviews at the start of each school year to decide whether accommodations are still appropriate, need adjustment, or are no longer necessary. A re-evaluation is also required before any significant change in placement.

You can request a review at any time if your child’s needs change. A new medical diagnosis, a change in medication, worsening grades, or a shift in functional abilities are all valid reasons to request an updated plan. Make the request in writing to the 504 Coordinator and include any new documentation. Keep copies of everything.

1
eCFR. 34 CFR 104.3 – Definitions
2
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. ADA Amendments Act of 2008
3
U.S. Department of Education. Frequently Asked Questions – Section 504 Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
4
eCFR. 34 CFR 104.7 – Designation of Responsible Employee and Adoption of Grievance Procedures
5
eCFR. 34 CFR 104.35 – Evaluation and Placement
6
U.S. Department of Education. About IDEA – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
7
U.S. Department of Education. File a Complaint
8
U.S. Department of Education. How to File a Discrimination Complaint with OCR