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Faculty Guide for disAbility Services 09-10
A Reference Guide for Faculty and Staff
This resource guide is designed to help faculty and staff provide reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. It also contains references to obtain information concerning various disabilities, as well as, specific teaching techniques useful in accommodating these disabilities.
DISABILITY SERVICES PROGRAM:
The purpose of the program is to provide reasonable accommodations and facilitate access to all services and programs offered at Amarillo College. Other essential elements of the disAbility program are to: increase awareness of persons with disabilities, provide training to faculty and staff, maintain compliance with federal law, and educate students in the least restrictive environment.
The offices are located in the Student Service Center on the Washington Street Campus. Services include, but are not limited to, advising, professional tutoring, and use of specialized equipment, classroom accommodations, and testing accommodations. Services are available on all Amarillo College campuses through coordination of personnel on each specific campus.
DISABILITY AND THE LAW:
Amarillo College is governed by the following laws and provisions in order to service students with disabilities: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2009, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 2000, and the Amarillo College Mission Statement.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states that “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability … shall solely, by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act http://www.ada.gov states that “No qualified individual with a disability shall by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” The ADA defines disability as “a person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities.” These include; learning, working, eating, performing manual tasks, carrying, lifting, walking, standing, seeing, breathing, hearing, talking, and caring for oneself.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 2000 “Requires that federal procurement of electronic and information technology after August 2000 must be accessible to federal employees who have disabilities and to members of the public with disabilities who need to use that technology....….Section 508 also applies to web sites that are produced for government agencies.”
The ADAAA of 2009 is the civil rights law initially passed by Congress in 1990 (ADA) and protects individuals with disabilities from discrimination in the workplace, as well as school and other settings. The ADA was amended in 2008 and became effective January 1, 2009. As the courts have defined the ADA over the past ten years the ‘definition’ of disability seemed to become narrower. The general intent of the amendments act focuses on broadening this definition to bring it back in line with the general intent of the ADA.http://www.ncld.org/on...ments-act-adaaa
The mission statement of Amarillo College which emphasizes the provision of services to a diverse population confirms our commitment to serving all persons.
Amarillo College Mission Statement
“Amarillo College, a public community college, is dedicated to providing educational, cultural and community services and resources to enhance the quality of life for the diverse population in the service area.”
SERVICES:
Student Responsibilities:
To receive services –
Referral - The student must self disclose the disability
Documentation - The student must provide appropriate documentation of the disability. This must be from a certifying professional qualified to make the diagnosis. Documentation/and or testing is preferred to have been completed within the last five years, but may be accepted prior to that date if obtaining such is an undue burden to the student.
Accommodation - After careful review of the documentation, disAbility Services and the student jointly develop an Accommodation Plan. This plan outlines all specific classroom and testing accommodations for that student. The student is responsible for obtaining the plan from disAbility Services, securing faculty signatures for each class in which he is requesting accommodations, and returning the plan to disAbility Services. The faculty member will be sent a copy of the plan for their records. Part-time faculty will be contacted through the department chair.
Faculty Responsibilities:
Referral – May refer a student by suggesting they met with this department to see if there is help they may be able to receive. Don’t accuse them of having a disability, but suggest they might benefit from some of our services.
Documentation – If a student is referred, but does not have appropriate documentation it may be necessary for disAbility Services to refer him to DARS, a psychologist, or the WT graduate program for testing purposes.
Accommodation –The faculty member should review the accommodations plan, sign the plan indicating approval of the accommodations listed, and return the plan to the student for further processing. Accommodations should be reasonable, not alter the fundamental nature of the course or program, and not pose a threat to the health and safety of others. The faculty member does have the right to evaluate the accommodation request in relationship to their curriculum and should contact disability Services with any questions or concerns.
The faculty member does not have the right to refuse to provide required accommodations, ask the student to disclose their disability, or request to examine student records pertaining to the disability.
Syllabi:
All class syllabi should contain a statement advising students of the disAbility Services Office.
The statement in the syllabi should read as follows: “Any student who, because of a disabling condition, may require some special arrangements in order to meet course requirements should contact disAbility Services (Student Service Center room 119, phone 371-5436) as soon as possible.”
Grievances:
A student who feels they are not receiving the accommodation requested should be referred to disAbility Services. The grievance procedures outlined in the Student Rights and Responsibilities manual will be maintained.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS in the CLASSROOM:
Accommodations are unique to each student with a disability. They may include, but are not limited to, the following:
1) Preferential seating
2) Sign Language (ASL) interpreters
3) Note taking assistance
4) Alternative testing procedures
5) Textbooks on tape
6) Extended test time
Note: Furniture and equipment placed in classrooms/labs is for use by the disAbility Services Student. Do not allow other students/faculty to remove or rearrange this item from the designated area.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS for TESTING:
Special testing services may include, but are not limited to, the following:
1) Alternative test site
2) Extended test time
3) Taped tests
4) Answers recorded by scribe
Testing Procedures:
Students must arrange an appropriate test date with the faculty member and disAbility Services. The faculty member should send the test to the Testing Center on the Washington St. Campus at least one working day before the test date and plan to pick up the completed test from the Testing Center. All tests must have a completed Testing Services form attached in order to be released from the Testing Center. (If it is inconvenient to come to the Testing Center on the Washington Street Campus please contact our testing assistant, Tammy Conner, 371-5390, to make other arrangements for test delivery.)
Testing accommodations apply to any test given to the student unless otherwise outlined on the accommodation form. Therefore, pop quizzes, skill drills, etc. would usually also be considered a test and subject to the same accommodation guidelines as major exams. A student needing this accommodation often needs more time on the exam. To avoid this student missing valuable lecture material it may be most appropriate to schedule these quizzes at the end of a class period.
The student is NOT expected to miss your class because he is testing with disAbility Services. It is the student’s responsibility to know when they are available to test without interfering with their classes.
GENERAL ADVISING:
Students with disabilities will generally be advised by disAbility Services initially. They will be referred to faculty advisors as well. Any concerns in advising a student with a disability should be directed to the disAbility Services Coordinator.
DISABILITY SERVICES STAFF:
Brenda Rossnagel, Coordinator, 371-5436
Tyler Grisham, Advisor, Learning Specialist, English/ Reading, 371-5917
Paul Fenstermaker, Learning Specialist, Math, 371-5919
Tammy Conner, Testing Assistant, 371-5390
Danette White, Administrative Clerk, 345-5639
SPECIAL PROJECTS
Disability Issues: The disAbility Services Department plans to distribute timely information through email throughout the year. These articles will be titled Disability Issues and will offer information regarding issues and policies related to the college and students with disabilities.
LITE: The Living Independently Through Education program is a scholarship program developed to raise scholarship funds for students with disabilities to attend Amarillo College.
STSU Class: One section of this class is being offered for disAbility Services advisees. It will address career options, study skills, general college resources, Web access, learning styles, and offer other opportunities for students to enhance their college experience.
REFERENCES:
Information on specific disability groups:
Blindness/Visual Impairment, Resource- American Council of the Blind www.acb.org/
Blind Resource Center www.nyise.org/blind.htm
Cerebral Palsy, Resource: United Cerebral Palsy Association Inc. www.ucpa.org/
Deafness/Hearing Impairment, Resource – Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf www.agbell.org/
League for the hard of Hearing www.lhh.org/
Seizure Disorder, Resource – Epilepsy Foundation of America www.efa.org/ Orthopedic/Mobility Impaired, Resources -The Arthritis Foundation- www.arthritis.org/
Muscular Dystrophy Association www.mda.org
Multiple Sclerosis Association of America www.msaa.com/,
National Multiple Sclerosis Society www.nmss.org/
National Spinal Cord Injury Association www.spinalcord.org/
Specific Learning Disability, Resource – LD Resources www.ldresources.com/
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Resource – Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, CHADD www.chadd.org/
Speech/Language Disorder, Resource – National Center for Stuttering- www.stuttering.com/
National Depressive/Manic Depressive Association www.ndmda.org/
Tourette Syndrome, Resource – Tourette Syndrome Association, Inc. www.tsa-usa.org/
Traumatic Brain Injury, Resource – Brain Injury Association Help Line www.biausa.org/
Teaching Technique References:
Attention Deficit Disorder: www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/add.html
Behavior Disorders: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...s/behavior.html
Communication Disorders: http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/comm.html
Hearing Impairments: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...is/hearing.html
Vision Impairments: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...dis/vision.html
Learning Disabilities: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...s/learning.html
Intellectual Impairments: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...idis/intel.html
Motor/Orthopedic Impairments: http://www.as.wvu.edu/...idis/motor.html
Psychological Disabilities: