Responsibility for Accommodation Determination

Students with disabilities are guaranteed the right to equal access under the law. The acknowledgment that a student is a person with a disability does not automatically guarantee the provision of accommodations. If the documentation indicates that the disability substantially limits a major life activity, it establishes that this is a person with a disability. It does not establish that the individual has a need for, or a right to, accommodation.

The coordinator/counselor for the Office of Student Disability Services is assigned the responsibility of determining eligibility for services. This determination is made after careful review of documentation provided by the student. (Policy III outlines these guidelines for documentation.) If it is determined that eligibility exists, the coordinator/counselor will decide what is reasonable and appropriate.

Accommodations, assistive technology, and/or support services will specifically address these functional limitations of the disability which adversely affect equal educational opportunity.

The coordinator/counselor can deny a request for accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or assistive technology and support services if the documentation demonstrates that the request is not warranted, or if the individual fails to provide adequate documentation.

A request for accommodation can be refused as unreasonable if it imposes a fundamental alteration to a program or activity of the college.