DOJ Sues Nebraska School District for Discrimination of Hearing Impaired Students
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On August 15, 2024, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a Complaint and proposed Consent Decree to resolve allegations that Lincoln Public Schools (LPS) in Nebraska violates Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by denying some deaf and hard of hearing students an equal opportunity to attend their neighborhood schools or participate in the high school choice program. The Complaint alleges that until 2024, LPS applied a blanket policy requiring students believed to need American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation to attend cluster schools serving deaf and hard of hearing students. In applying this policy, LPS did not consider the individualized needs of deaf and hard of hearing students, denied them an equal opportunity to participate in neighborhood school and high school choice programs and failed to provide effective communication to some deaf and hard of hearing students. To learn more, please read the press release.
Title II of the ADA mandates that no qualified individual with a disability shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity.
Under the proposed consent decree, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, LPS has agreed to;
pay $12,000 to compensate individuals the policy harmed
end its blanket policy of requiring deaf and hard of hearing students believed to need ASL to attend a cluster school
adopt non-discrimination policies and complaint procedures
designate an ADA coordinator
train staff; and provide reports to the department during a monitoring period.