Disability Resources for Faculty & Staff

Students who are receiving assistance from Disability Services work very closely with Learning Specialists, who act as one-on-one advisors. You will know if a student is eligible for accommodations if he/s has an accommodation plan signed by his/her Learning Specialist. Students are responsible for initiating new accommodation forms every semester.

If a student discloses to you that he or she has a disability, ask the student if they have shared this information with Disability Services. If the student has registered with Disability Services and is eligible for accommodations, the student should have a signed accommodations sheet to give to you.

If the student has not registered with Disability Services, you can let him/her know they must register with our office in order to receive accommodations. You SHOULD NOT collect any documentation from the student about his/her disability. This information should be given to Disability Services by the student.

Responsibilities

As a faculty or staff member, you will have responsibilities to work with students with disabilities. Those goals include:

• Ensuring a student receives the accommodations for which he/she is eligible according to the accommodation plan.
• Keeping all disability related information confidential.
• Speaking with Disability Services if you have any questions regarding a student’s accommodations or progress.
• Treating students with disabilities as you would the other students in your class in regards to grading procedures and discipline.

If a student is receiving all of his/her required accommodations and is still experiencing academic difficulty, please contact their Learning Specialist in Disability Services. They will work with you and the student as a team, with student success as the goal. A tutor or mentor may be brought in. 

If the student’s grade has not improved, you should do the very same thing you would do in the case of a student that does not have a disability. If the student does not satisfy the essential requirements of the course, then the student must be graded accordingly.

If you have a student that you suspect may have a disability, please complete the Request for Academic Needs Assessment form.

Disability Services provides best practice information and other support services for faculty who may be working with a disabled student, or be living with a disability of their own.

• Faculty Guide to Communicating with Disabled Students
• Working with Students on the Autism Spectrum 
• Students on the Autism Spectrum Part 1
• Autism Spectrum Students: Informational Blog
• Resources on Universal Design for Learning
• Students with ADD/ADHD
• Making online course accessible