Families who rely on service animals to help a child with a disability navigate school will now have clearer rules in the Tumwater School District.

The board's revised Policy 2030 formally distinguishes service animals from therapy and emotional support animals and, for the first time, recognizes miniature horses alongside dogs.

What changed

The previous policy did not explicitly address the difference between a service animal, a therapy animal, and an emotional support animal.

Under federal law, only service animals, individually trained to perform a specific task for a person with a disability, carry guaranteed access rights in public schools. Therapy and emotional support animals do not.

The revised policy draws that line. It also adds miniature horses as a recognized category of service animal, consistent with federal ADA regulations adopted in 2010 that created a separate provision for miniature horses trained to perform tasks for people with disabilities. Under those rules, miniature horses typically stand 24 to 34 inches tall and weigh 70 to 100 pounds.

Burgmeier told the board the update also codifies what staff can and cannot ask when someone brings an animal onto district property.

"It goes back to our ability to just make sure that the animal has been trained to do a task for the individual and we are able to ask about the task and the training if this animal has been trained, but not in regards to the disability itself," Burgmeier said at the July 23 meeting.

Under the ADA, schools may ask only two questions: whether the animal is required because of a disability, and what task it has been trained to perform. They may not inquire about the nature of the disability.

Who is covered

The policy applies to students, employees, parents, and community members with disabilities who need to bring a service animal into district buildings or onto district grounds.

Burgmeier wrote in his memorandum that service animals "may be necessary accommodations that enable individuals with disabilities to participate in educational programs and activities."

Washington state law separately prohibits discrimination in public schools based on the use of a trained service animal.

What's next

The district has not announced an effective date for the revised policy or a timeline for staff training. Board meeting materials, including the full text of the revised policy once posted, are available on the Tumwater School District website.