Individuals with Disabilities and Professional Education Programmes: an analysis of legislation, court rulings and policy

Despite the protection provided by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, there remain barriers to inc lusion of people with disabilities in institutions of higher education and in particular in professional programmes. Focusing on the case, Ohio Civil Rights Commission v. Case Western Reserve University (1996), this paper pre sents legal actions that are helping to clarify the policies protecting peo ple with disabilities from exclusion from institutions of higher education. In particular, the paper focuses on a legal decision from the Ohio Supreme court affirming the right of Case Western Reserve's Medical School to reje ct a blind woman for admission to the medical school. By analysing this cas e using a policy analysis framework, the paper discusses the present impact and concerns for the future of these pieces of federal legislation on peop le with disabilities related to inclusion in institutions of higher educati on.