Gordon College

DISABILITY SERVICES

Who is eligible?

In accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, Gordon College offers accommodations to students with documented physical, psychological, and/or cognitive disabilities. The college will adhere to all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations as required to give equal educational opportunities to qualified disabled individuals.

What is a disability?

An individual with a disability is defined as any person who:

  • has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities (including walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, caring for oneself, or performing manual tasks).
  • has a record of such an impairment; or
  • is regarded as having such an impairment.

What is meant by "is regarded as having such an impairment" in the definition of disability?

For example, a person with a facial disfigurement may not have an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, but others may regard him or her as having one due to how he or she appears.

Isn't "disability" and "handicap" the same thing?

A "disability" is a condition caused by accident, trauma, genetics or disease that may limit a person's mobility, hearing, vision, speech, or mental function. A person may have more than one disability.

A "handicap" is a physical or attitudinal constraint imposed upon a person; for example, stairs, narrow doorways, and curbs are handicaps imposed upon people with disabilities who use wheelchairs.

What is a reasonable accommodation?

A reasonable accommodation is a modification or adjustment to a course, program, service, job, activity, or facility that enables a qualified individual with a disability to have an equal opportunity to attain the same level of performance or to enjoy equal benefits and privileges as are available to an individual without a disability.

What are the procedures for obtaining Accommodations?

All students, regardless of type of disability, must request accommodations in writing, signed by the student and addressed to the ADA Coordinator of Gordon College. This letter should detail the student's disability, the functional limitations of the disability, and the accommodations the student would like to request.

Learning Disabilities:

  1. A letter of request for accommodations signed by the student and addressed to the ADA Coordinator.
  2. The student must provide documentation of the disability in a timely manner, in accordance with the Policies and Criteria of the University System of Georgia. Documentation must be current, within three years of the request for accommodation.
  3. The student must provide a release of information and give Gordon College permission to send any outside documentation to Georgia State University's Regents Center for Learning Disorders for review.

Psychiatric Disabilities:

  1. A letter of request for accommodations signed by the student and addressed to the ADA Coordinator.
  2. Documentation must include a medical or clinical diagnosis of a psychiatric disability based on DSM-IV criteria and a rationale for the diagnosis.
  3. The evaluation must be performed by an appropriate professional: a psychiatrist, a clinical psychologist, or a clinical social worker. The evaluator's name, title, and professional credentials and affiliation should be provided.
  4. The documentation should include the following:
    • Information regarding the severity of the disability and the specific academic functions affected by the disability and/or medication (e.g., ability to concentrate, ability to attend class regularly, ability to interact in small/large groups);
    • Recommendations for and compliance to prescriptive treatment, including medication;
    • Recommendations for academic accommodations based on specific features/symptoms of disability.
  5. Documentation must reflect the current array of features/symptoms and level of functioning; if the documentation does not, students may be required to submit updated information and/or documentation.

Physical, Sensory or Systemic Disabilities:

  1. A letter of request for accommodation signed by the student and addressed to the ADA Coordinator.
  2. Documentation must include a medical diagnosis.
  3. Diagnosis and evaluation should be made by a medical doctor or appropriate specialist licensed in the specific field of disability. The evaluator's name, title, and professional credentials and affiliations should be provided.
  4. Documentation should include the following:
    • Stability of the disability (Is the disability stable, progressive, fluctuating?);
    • Information regarding the specific academic functions affected by and the severity of the disability (e.g., ability to concentrate, ability to attend class regularly);
    • Recommendations for academic accommodations based on specific features/symptoms of disability (e.g. assistive technology/equipment).
  5. Recency of the documentation is dependent on the nature/stability of the disability.
  6. Documentation must reflect the current array of symptoms/features and level of functioning; if the documentation does not, students may be required to submit up-dated information and/or documentation.

The Americans with Disabilities Act, the Board of Regents, and Gordon College policy state that academic accommodations are not provided until the student has provided adequate documentation of a disability. The Regents Center for Learning Disorders (RCLD) at Georgia State University determines whether documentation is adequate and what academic accommodations are appropriate. Gordon College's policy is to provide academic accommodations promptly upon receiving confirmation from the RCLD at Georgia State University that the student is eligible.

Once the student's documentation file is complete, and accommodations have been granted, it shall be the student's responsibility to provide the ADA Coordinator with a copy of the student's academic schedule at the beginning of each semester. The ADA Coordinator will provide the student with the ADA Accommodations memo to notify the student's instructors of any necessary accommodations. If any problems or concerns regarding the provision of accommodations occur, the student must inform the Office of Disability Services, prior to the next meeting time for that specific class. This allows us to address concerns in a timely manner.

The determination of reasonable accommodations considers the following:

  • The barriers resulting from the interaction between the disability and the campus environment;
  • The array of accommodations that might remove the barriers;
  • Whether or not the student has access to the course, program, service, job, activity, or facility without accommodations; and
  • The essential elements of the course, program, service, job, activity, or facility are not compromised by the accommodations.
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Won't providing accommodations on examinations give an unfair advantage to a student with a disability?

"Accommodations don't make things easier, just possible; in the same way eyeglasses do not improve the strength of the eyes, they just make it possible for the individual to see better. Accommodations are interventions that allow the learner to indicate what they know. Without the accommodations, the learner may not be able to overcome certain barriers" (Samuels, M. 1992 - Asking the Right Questions. The Learning Centre. Calgary)

Accommodations are designed to lesson the effects of the disability and are required to provide fair and accurate testing to measure knowledge or expertise in the subject. The purpose for such academic accommodations is to adjust for the effect of the student's disability, not to dilute academic requirements. The evaluation and assigning of grades should have the same standards for all students, including students with disabilities.

What does a faculty member do when a student discloses a disability?

Ask for the ADA Accommodation memo from the Office of Disability Services. This letter describes the accommodations that faculty need to provide. During an office hour or at another convenient time, discuss the letter and the accommodations with the student. Students MUST present an ADA Accommodation memo from Office of Disability Services to receive accommodations. If the student does not have an ADA Accommodation memo he or she should be referred to the Office of Disability Services to request services.

Discuss any questions about recommended accommodations first with the student, then, if necessary, with the ADA Coordinator.

What if a student doesn't tell an instructor about a disability until late in the semester?

Students have a responsibility to give instructors and the Office of Disability Services adequate time to arrange accommodations. Students are encouraged to identify early in the semester. Instructors can help by announcing in class and in the syllabus an invitation for students to identify themselves early in the semester: "Any student who may need an accommodation due to a disability, please make an appointment to see me during my office hours. A memo from the Office of Disability Services authorizing your accommodations will be needed."

Once a student has identified to the instructor and requests disability-related accommodations authorized by the Office of Disability Services, the College has a legal responsibility to make reasonable attempts to accommodate the need, even late in the semester. There is no responsibility to provide accommodations prior to identification; for example, allowing the student to re-take exams with extended time.

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What if an instructor suspects that a student has a disability?

Talk with the student about your concerns regarding his or her performance. If the concern seems disability-related, ask if he or she has ever received assistance for a disability. If it seems appropriate, refer the student to the Office of Disability Services to apply for services. Whether to self-identify to the Office of Disability Services is the decision of the student; however, to receive accommodations, disclosure to Office of Disability Services with proper documentation is required.

Student's Rights

Students with disabilities at Gordon College have the right to:

  • Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities offered by the College.
  • Equal opportunity to work, to learn, and to receive accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services.
  • Confidentiality of information regarding their disability as applicable laws allow; information available in accessible formats.

Student's Responsibilities

Students with disabilities at Gordon College have the responsibility to:

  • Meet qualifications and maintain essential institutional standards for the programs, courses, services, jobs, activities, and facilities;
  • Identify to the Office of Disability Services as having a disability in order to receive accommodations and to seek information, counsel and assistance as necessary;
  • Provide documentation to the Office of Disability Services from a qualified professional about how their disability limits participation in courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities;
  • Follow published procedures for obtaining reasonable accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids services.
  • Inform faculty of accommodation needs in sufficient time to plan and coordinate the accommodations.
  • Inform the Office of Disability Services, in a timely manner, of problems or concerns regarding the provision of accommodations.

College Rights:

Gordon College has the right to:

  • Identify and establish essential functions, abilities, skills, knowledge, and standards for courses, programs, courses, services, jobs, activities, and facilities and to evaluate faculty, staff, and students on this basis;
  • Request and receive, through the Office of Disability Services, current documentation from a qualified professional that supports requests for accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services.
  • Deny a request for accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services if the documentation does not demonstrate that the request is warranted, or if the individual fails to provide appropriate documentation;
  • Select among equally effective accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services;
  • Refuse to provide accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services that impose a fundamental alteration on a program or activity of the College;
  • Enforce College rules, policies, and regulations for all students equally.

College Responsibilities:

Gordon College has the responsibility to:

  • Accommodate the known limitations of an otherwise qualified student with a disability;
  • Ensure that programs, courses, services, activities, and facilities, when viewed in their entirety, are available and usable in the most integrated and appropriate settings;
  • Evaluate students on their abilities, not their disabilities;
  • Provide or arrange accommodations, academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids and services for students with disabilities in courses, programs, courses, services, activities, and facilities;
  • To maintain appropriate confidentiality of records and communication, except where permitted or required by law;
  • To maintain academic standards by providing accommodations without compromising the content, quality, or level of instruction.
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