Guest: Katherine Macfarlane, J.D., Associate Professor of Law, Syracuse University
Email: kamacfar@syr.edu
Curriculum Vitae [PDF]
Host: Barry Whaley, M.S., Director of the Southeast ADA Center, Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University
Recording Date: September 18, 2023
Archive: A Conversation with Katherine MacFarlane
Contents
- About the 504@50 Podcast Series
- About This Episode
- Featured in This Episode
- Proposed Rule to Update Section 504 Regulations on Disability Discrimination
- Disability Rights, the ADA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
About the 504@50 Podcast Series
504@50 is a special interview series created in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. In the series, we speak with leaders of the disability rights movement who advance the cause of equal rights through their tireless work.
The 504@50 Series is produced by the Southeast ADA Center, the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University and in collaboration with the Disability Inclusive Employment Policy Rehabilitation Research and Training Center. Check out the Section 504@50 website at section504at50.org/
About This Episode
Professor Macfarlane is a leading expert on civil procedure, civil rights litigation, and disability law. She has also served as the Special Counsel to the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights, working on the overhaul of regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, focusing on the regulations’ higher education provisions. Professor Macfarlane will also talk about her experiences as a child with a disability and how they shaped her life and work as a disability rights advocate, student, lawyer, author, professor, and policymaker.
Featured in This Episode
- Professor Macfarlane’s Biography
Source: Syracuse University College of Law
Link: law.syracuse.edu/deans-faculty/faculty/katherine-a-macfarlane - Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School Bill of Health Blog
Source: Harvard University
Link: blog.petrieflom.law.harvard.edu - Essays from the Bill of Health Blog
Professor Macfarlane writes for this blog.
Source: Harvard University
Link: blog.petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/author/katherine-macfarlane - Paper: Disability Without Documentation
Professor Macfarlane “challenges the assumption that requests for reasonable accommodations must be supported by medical proof of disability.”
Source: Fordham Law Review (February 7, 2021)
Link: ssrn.com/abstract=3781221 - Essays from the Ms. JD Blog
A free, online community for women in the legal profession. Professor Macfarlane was a Writer-in-Residence. Create an account to read the blog and most of the content.
Source: Ms. JD
Link: ms-jd.org/profile/KatMacfarlane - Section on Law Professors with Disabilities and Allies
Professor Macfarlane served as chair of the AALS Section on Disability Law and co-founded this affinity group for disabled law professors and allies.
Source: Association of American Law Schools (AALS)
Link: aals.org/sections/list/section-on-law-professors-with-disabilities-and-allies - Section on Disability Law
Source: Association of American Law Schools (AALS)
Link: aals.org/sections/list/disability-law - Congressional Arthritis Caucus
Works to educate Congress about how arthritis impacts communities and how to support federal and local efforts that can address this chronic disease.
Source: Arthritis Foundation
Link: arthritis.org/advocate/federal/raising-awareness-on-capitol-hill - Information on the Congressional Arthritis Caucus
Source: Creaky Joints
Link: creakyjoints.org/advocacy/the-congressional-arthritis-caucus - Disability Visibility Project
Founded by Alice Wong, a disabled activist, writer, editor, media maker, and consultant, this online community is dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture.
Link: disabilityvisibilityproject.com
Proposed Rule to Update Section 504 Regulations on Disability Discrimination
- Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: Discrimination on the Basis of Disability in Health and Human Service Programs or Activities
Date of Notice: September 14, 2023. The Public Comment period ends on November 13, 2023.
Source: Federal Register
Link: federalregister.gov/public-inspection/2023-19149/discrimination-on-the-basis-of-disability-in-health-and-human-service-programs-or-activities - Press Release: HHS Issues New Proposed Rule to Strengthen Prohibitions Against Discrimination on the Basis of a Disability in Health Care and Human Services Programs
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (September 7, 2023)
Link: hhs.gov/about/news/2023/09/07/hhs-issues-new-proposed-rule-to-strengthen-prohibitions-against-discrimination-on-basis-of-disability-in-health-care-and-human-services-programs.html - Fact Sheet: Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability Proposed Rule Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (September 7, 2023)
Link: hhs.gov/civil-rights/for-individuals/disability/section-504-rehabilitation-act-of-1973/fact-sheet/index.html
Disability Rights, the ADA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
- Section 504@50 Podcast Series | Resources
Know your legal rights and learn about the history of this important law.
Source: Southeast ADA Center
Web: section504at50.org
Resources: section504at50.org/resources - ADA Live! Podcast: Breaking Barriers for Disability Rights: Historical Reflections with Judy Heumann | Resources
Judy Heumann was known by many as the “mother of the disability rights movement.”
Source: Southeast ADA Center (Released July 6, 2022)
Podcast: adalive.org/episodes/episode-107
Resources: adalive.org/resources/episode-107-resources - Section 504@50 Podcast: A Conversation with Judy Heumann | Resources
Source: Southeast ADA Center
Podcast: section504at50.org/episodes/judy-heumann
Resources: section504at50.org/resources/judy-heumann - ADA Fact Sheets and Guidance
Information available in English, Spanish, and large print PDF formats.
Source: ADA National Network
Link: adata.org/ada-publications- Health Care and the Americans with Disabilities Act
Link: adata.org/factsheet/health-care-and-ada - Postsecondary Institutions and Students with Disabilities
Link: adata.org/factsheet/postsecondary
- Health Care and the Americans with Disabilities Act
- Disability Rights Bar Association (DRBA)
Source: Syracuse University
Link: bbi.syr.edu/projects/disability-rights-bar-association - Past and Present Disability Rights Projects at Burton Blatt institute
The Southeast ADA Center is a project of the Burton Blatt Institute.
Source: Syracuse University
Link: bbi.syr.edu/projects - National Disabled Law Student Association (NDLSA)
Link: ndlsa.org - Commission on Disability Rights
Source: American Bar Association
Link: americanbar.org/groups/diversity/disabilityrights
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Visit the Section 504@50 website at: section504at50.org/
The 504@50 Series is produced by the Southeast ADA Center, the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University, and in collaboration with the Disability Inclusive Employment Policy Rehabilitation Research and Training Center.