Sherman v. Mamaroneck Union Free School District

# Sherman v. Mamaroneck Union Free School District Summary **What Happened** A student with a disability requested to use a TI-92 calculator as an accommodation for school testing. The school district denied this request. The student's family filed a complaint, arguing the school failed to properly accommodate their child's disability under federal education law. **What the Court Decided** The appeals court ruled in favor of the school district. The court found that school administrators had properly evaluated whether the calculator was an appropriate accommodation and made a reasonable decision to deny it. The appeals court reversed the earlier court decision that had sided with the student's family. **Why This Matters for Workers** This case shows that when employers or schools deny requested accommodations for people with disabilities, courts give significant weight to the decision-maker's judgment. Workers and students seeking accommodations should understand that simply requesting an accommodation doesn't guarantee approval—organizations can refuse if they decide it's not appropriate. However, the request must be carefully reviewed and evaluated by qualified decision-makers, not dismissed arbitrarily.