Georgia College Accommodations After IEP: The Shift From IDEA to ADA

The Legal Framework Changes Completely

In K-12, your child's IEP is backed by IDEA — a federal entitlement law that requires the school to identify, evaluate, and serve students with disabilities. The school initiates the process, designs the plan, and bears the cost. Colleges operate under completely different law.

Postsecondary institutions are governed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. These are civil rights laws, not entitlement laws. They prohibit discrimination and require reasonable accommodations, but they don't require colleges to identify students with disabilities, design individualized programs, or provide the same level of support an IEP mandated.

The practical shift hits hard. In high school, the school came to you. In college, the student goes to the school — or nothing happens.

What Changes and What Doesn't

The student must self-disclose. No college will search its enrollment records for students who might have disabilities. The student must contact the campus disability services or accessibility office, request accommodations, and provide documentation. If they don't, the college has no obligation to do anything.

The IEP doesn't transfer. A college is not bound by your child's high school IEP. They may accept it as supporting evidence, but the IEP itself carries no legal weight at the postsecondary level. The college's disability services office makes its own determination about what accommodations are reasonable.

The Summary of Performance becomes critical. The SOP — which the school must provide when a student graduates with a standard diploma or ages out — documents the student's academic achievement, functional performance, and specific recommendations for postsecondary accommodations. A well-written SOP gives the college disability office concrete information about what worked in high school and why.

No more modifications to curriculum. IDEA allows modifications — changing what the student is expected to learn. ADA and Section 504 only require accommodations — changing how the student accesses the same material. Extended test time, note-taking services, and accessible formats are accommodations. Reducing course requirements or substituting core classes is generally not.

No more specialized instruction. Colleges don't provide special education teachers, resource rooms, or individualized academic intervention. Tutoring and study skills support may be available through general student services, but not as a disability accommodation.

Documentation Requirements

Georgia colleges typically require current documentation of the disability — how recent varies by institution, but many want evaluations completed within the last three years. The documentation should include:

• A diagnosis from a qualified professional
• Description of how the disability affects the student in an academic setting
• History of accommodations that have been effective
• Recommended accommodations for the postsecondary environment

The high school IEP and the Summary of Performance can support the request but usually aren't sufficient on their own. Many families arrange for an updated psychological evaluation or neuropsychological assessment during the student's final year of high school, specifically for the purpose of postsecondary documentation.

An Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) completed during high school can serve this purpose if it's comprehensive enough. If the school won't fund a current evaluation and the family can't afford one privately, GVRA may fund the assessment as part of an Individualized Plan for Employment — another reason to establish a VR case before graduation.

Georgia's Inclusive Postsecondary Education (IPSE) Programs

For students with intellectual disabilities who aren't pursuing standard degree programs, Georgia offers multiple Inclusive Postsecondary Education programs at universities across the state. IPSE programs provide a structured college experience that includes auditing academic courses alongside typically developing peers, participating in campus life, and receiving employment preparation and independent living instruction.

IPSE programs accept the State-Defined Alternate Diploma and are designed for students who would benefit from the college environment even though they're not pursuing a traditional degree. GVRA can fund tuition and related costs through the Individualized Plan for Employment — but the student must have an active VR case and must apply for financial aid through the FAFSA first.

The key difference from standard college enrollment: IPSE programs provide the structured support and supervision that standard disability services offices don't. Students receive guidance on daily living, have access to peer mentors, and participate in employment-focused activities throughout the program.

Preparing During High School

The transition from IEP-based support to self-directed accommodation is a skill set, not an automatic adjustment. Build it during high school:

• The student should practice requesting their own accommodations from teachers, starting with low-stakes situations
• Self-advocacy goals in the IEP should include the student being able to describe their disability, explain what accommodations they need, and articulate why those accommodations help
• Before graduation, contact the disability services office at the target college to understand their specific documentation requirements and application timeline
• Schedule an updated evaluation during the final year if current documentation won't meet the college's requirements

The Georgia IEP Transition to Adulthood Guide covers the full IDEA-to-ADA transition with a documentation preparation checklist, a comparison of high school IEP accommodations versus what colleges typically offer, and the IPSE program application process with GVRA funding requirements.

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