The purpose of this study was threefold: to assess the knowledge of school board members pertaining to PL 94-142 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (PL 93-112), to investigate the attitude of local school board members regarding handicapped children and to ascertain the source and methodology from which school board members receive their information regarding PL 94-142 and Section 504.

Mailed survey forms were sent to local school board members selected from the subscribers list of the American School Board Journal. The survey forms consisted of a demographic section, an author-made knowledge index, an author-made attitude scale and information sources identification section.

The size of the school district which a member represents made a significant difference in both knowledge and attitude scores. No significant relationship was found between knowledge or attitude with geographic area or type of district. Significant differences were found between knowledge and reading about education of the handicapped. Attitude scores reflecting favorable attitudes toward education of the handicapped increased with the experience of due process hearings in the school district. Seventy-two percent of the respondents correctly answered ten or more of the twenty knowledge questions correctly. The mean for knowledge was 10.86. The mean score for attitude toward the education of the handicapped was 62.66 from a possible score of 100 which would be the most positive attitude toward a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment.

The author concludes that school board members are knowledgeable about the education of handicapped children under the regulations for the Education for All Handicapped Children Act and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act.

The attitude of school board members toward the education of handicapped children is neither highly positive nor is it notably negative.

The size of the school district the board members represents affected both attitude and knowledge scores. School board members from very small and very large school districts scored lower on the knowledge portion of the survey than those from medium-sized districts.

Board members from small school districts had a more negative attitude about education of handicapped children than those from larger districts.

The survey of knowledge and attitude of board members on PL 94-142 and Section 504 and the education of the handicapped has serious implications for the need of continuation of federal and state support of the rights of handicapped children to be educated at public expense in the public schools. Further, there are implications to give direction to advocates of education of handicapped children in areas of inservice and public relations.