Chapter 6A-19, F.A.C., implements Section 1000.05, F.S., which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap against a student or employee in the state system of public education, as defined in Section 1000.05(1), F.S. The following definitions shall apply:

1. (1) Activity. Any organized academic, vocational, athletic, co-curricular or extracurricular pursuit, undertaking or assignment conducted under the authority or direction of an institution within the state system of public education.
2. (2) Admission. Selection for part-time, full-time, special, associate, transfer, exchange or any other enrollment, participation or matriculation, in or at, an education program or activity conducted under the authority or direction of an institution within the state system of public education.
3. (3) Department. Florida Department of Education.

4. (4) Discrimination.

   1. (a) Discrimination shall include:

      1. Limiting, segregating or classifying students, employees, applicants for admission, or applicants for employment, in such a way as to deprive individuals of educational or employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect individuals because of their race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap;

      2. Denying educational or employment opportunities to individuals because of their race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap;

      3. Providing unequal educational or employment opportunities to individuals because of their race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap;

      4. Providing unnecessarily separate educational programs or activities for individuals because of their race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap;

      5. Entering into contractual or other arrangements which utilize criteria or administrative methods which have the effect of subjecting individuals to discrimination or which otherwise adversely affect individuals because of their race, sex, national origin, marital status or handicap;

      6. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of any admission or employment action, that adversely affects a qualified handicapped person as a student, employee, applicant for admission, applicant for employment, a group of students, or a group of employees based on their handicap;

      7. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of any admission or employment action concerning the potential or actual marital status of a student, employee or applicant for admission or employment that adversely affects a student, employee, applicant for admission, applicant for employment, a group of students or a group of employees on the basis of potential or actual marital status, or on the basis of head of household or principal wage earner status; however, reasonable practices prohibiting nepotism shall not constitute marital status discrimination;

      8. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of any admission or employment action, that adversely affects a student, employee, applicant for admission, applicant for employment, a group of students, or a group of employees based on ancestry or place of birth or of cultural, or linguistic characteristics of a national origin group;

      9. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of an admission action, that adversely affects a student, or applicant for admission, belonging to a national origin minority group, unnecessarily based on limited-English-language skills;

      10. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of any admission or employment action, that adversely affects a student, employee, applicant for admission, applicant for employment, a group of students, or a group of employees based on their race/ethnic category;

      11. The application of any policy or procedure, or taking of any admission or employment action, that adversely affects a student, employee, applicant for admission, applicant for employment, a group of students, or a group of employees based on their gender.

   2. (b) Any policy or procedure, or any admission or employment action, which can be shown to be predictive of, or significantly correlated with, essential elements of work behavior or program participation shall not constitute discrimination. See subsections 6A-19.002(2) and 6A-19.009(8), F.A.C.
   3. (c) Efforts or measures developed by institutions to correct patterns of segregation, patterns of nonparticipation or underrepresentation among a race, sex, marital status, national origin or handicap group shall not constitute discrimination. Quotas, however, shall not be used.
5. (5) Disproportionate Enrollment. The actual enrollment of students of a particular race, sex, national origin or handicap differs from the appropriate pool of potential students, as determined by the governing board, by race, sex, national origin or handicap by more than two standard deviations.

6. (6) Handicapped Person. Any person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities; has a record of such an impairment; or is regarded as having such an impairment.

   1. (a) Physical or mental impairment.

      1. Any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological; musculoskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory, including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive, digestive, genito-urinary; hemic and lymphatic; skin; and endocrine; or

      2. Any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities.

   2. (b) Major life activities. Functions such as caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working.
   3. (c) Has a record of such an impairment. Has a history of, or has been incorrectly classified as having, a mental or physical impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

   4. (d) Is regarded as having an impairment.

      1. Has a physical or mental impairment that does not substantially limit major life activities but that is treated by an institution as constituting such a limitation;

      2. Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities only as a result of the attitudes of others and, therefore, is treated by an institution as having such an impairment.

7. (7) Institution. An individual school, as defined in Section 1000.05(4), F.S., or the school district, as the context may require; a community college; a university or any other state-supported entity primarily of an educational nature, e.g., the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind.
8. (8) Minority. Any individual belonging to one of the following race/ethnic categories: Black, Not of Hispanic Origin; Hispanic; Asian or Pacific Islander; American Indian or Alaska Native.
9. (9) Office of Equity and Access. The Department of Education work unit, otherwise known as the Office of Equity and Access, specifically designated to administer the Department’s implementation activities as defined in Section 1000.05(6), F.S., except to the extent those duties may be delegated by the Commissioner of Education to the Chancellor of the State University System pursuant to Section 1000.05, F.S.

10. (10) Qualified Handicapped Person.

    1. (a) With respect to employment, a handicapped person who, with reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the job in question;
    2. (b) With respect to public preschool, elementary, secondary or adult programs, services and activities, a handicapped person of an age during which nonhandicapped persons are provided services, or of any age during which it is mandatory under federal or Florida law to provide services to handicapped persons;
    3. (c) With respect to postsecondary programs, services and activities, a handicapped person who meets the academic and nonacademic admissions criteria requisite to participation.

11. (11) Race/Ethnic Categories. A person may be included in the race/ethnic group to which he or she appears to belong, identifies with, or is regarded in the community as belonging. No person shall be included in more than one race/ethnic group. The race/ethnic categories to be used are:

    1. (a) White, Not of Hispanic Origin – All persons having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, North Africa or the Middle East.
    2. (b) Black, Not of Hispanic Origin – All persons having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.
    3. (c) Hispanic – All persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.
    4. (d) Asian or Pacific Islander – All persons having origins in any of the original people of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands.
    5. (e) American Indian or Alaska Native – All persons having origins in any of the original peoples of North America, and who maintain cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition.
12. (12) Reasonable Accommodation. Changes in the work environment which allow a qualified handicapped employee to perform the essential tasks of the job if making those changes does not impose an undue hardship on the operation of the institution. Reasonable accommodation may include: making facilities used by employees readily accessible to and usable by handicapped persons, job structuring, part-time or modified work schedules, acquisition or modification of equipment or devices, the provision of readers or interpreters, and other similar actions. In determining whether an accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of an institution’s program, factors to be considered include: the overall size of the institution with respect to number of employees, number and type of facilities, and size of budget; the type of operation, including the composition and structure of the workforce; and the nature and cost of the accommodation needed.
13. (13) Selection Criteria. Any measure, combination of measures, or procedure used as a basis for any decision on eligibility for admission, for participation in programs, services or activities, or for employment and promotion. Selection criteria include the full range of assessment techniques including course grades; performance tests; paper and pencil tests; training programs; probationary periods; physical, education and work experience requirements; formal or informal interviews; evaluation by prior teachers or employers; and scored or unscored applications.
14. (14) Student. Any person who is enrolled in any instructional program or activity conducted under the authority or direction of an institution which is a part of the state system of public education.

Rulemaking Authority 1000.05(5), 1001.02 FS. Law Implemented 1000.05, 1001.02(1) FS. History–New 4-17-85, Formerly 6A-19.01.