An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 9 – Interactive Process: Employees and Students

b. Undue Hardship Under FEHA As with the ADA, undue hardship is also a defense under the FEHA. It is the school’s burden of proof to establish undue hardship at trial. FEHA defines an undue hardship as a significant expense or difficulty in implementing a disputed accommodation. FEHA’s undue hardship factors are similar to the ADA’s, with the following exceptions: 1591 Like the ADA, the FEHA considers: The geographic separateness, administrative, or fiscal relationship of the facility or facilities. Unlike the ADA, the FEHA does not consider: Whether the work site involved is a temporary or permanent one. D ISABLED S TUDENTS : I NTERACTIVE P ROCESS A ND D ETERMINING R EASONABLE A CCOMMODATIONS The following federal and state laws prohibit disability discrimination against current students and student applicants:  Title III of the ADA 42 U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189.  California Education Code § 48203. Section 3

 Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 701, et seq.; and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) 20 U.S.C. § 1432, et seq. (these only apply to private schools receiving federal funding).

A. A PPLICABLE S TATUTES

1. T ITLE III O F T HE ADA The ADA prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in employment (Title I) 1592 , public services (Title II) 1593 , and public accommodations (Title III). 1594 Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination in places of public accommodations against any individual with a disability that substantially limits one or more of the individual’s major life activities. 1595 Private schools that are not religious entities or are not operated by religious entities are considered to provide public accommodations under Title III of the ADA. 1596 2. C ALIFORNIA E DUCATION C ODE , S ECTION 48203 When children with special needs are denied enrollment, suspended for more than ten days, or expelled from private schools, the principal of the private school must report the exclusion or expulsion to the County Superintendent of Schools.

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 358