Under Section 504, institutions are required to respond to accommodation requests by making modifications in academic requirements, as necessary, to ensure that such requirements do not discriminate or have the effect of discriminating against a student with a disability.
Information sent to students upon acceptance to the College shall include a notice that it is the responsibility of the student to contact the Support Services Coordinator (SSC) of their disability and the need to arrange for accommodations. The information provided by the student will be kept confidential and will be filed in the office of the SSC, apart from all other Lynchburg College student records. The information will be shared only with those involved in arranging for accommodations. If the student wishes to have the information shared with anyone else, such as faculty, advisors, Counselors, tutors, or parents (if the student is 18 years of age or older), the student must sign a release specifying with whom the information may be shared. A new release form must be signed each semester.
Students who request reasonable accommodations must be prepared to provide age-appropriate documentation of the disability by a qualified professional before accommodations will be officially authorized and implemented. Except under extraordinary circumstances, the disability documentation must be age-appropriate and/or current, following the guidelines recommended by the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD).
Documentation must provide the College with enough information to assist the institution in determining what difficulties the student would encounter in a normal environment of the postsecondary setting.
Although format will vary, the following information must be included in any documentation that supports a request for accommodations:
- The student’s name, the examiner’s name and credentials, and the date(s) of the examination or testing.
- Identification of the problems or reasons for referral for examination or testing.
- In cases of learning disability, a list of tests administered (name and version) must be included.
- An analysis or interpretation of the results.
- A diagnostic summary addressing the assessment process and the concerns raised in the original request for referral.
- Explanation of the impact the disability will have on the student in the higher education environment.
- Recommendations for strategies/accommodations to assist the student in becoming a successful college student.
In most cases, a high school “IEP” or “504 Plan” is not adequate because they are geared toward the secondary student, and adult norms are generally not used in the testing process. In addition, they fail to provide specific diagnoses and recommendations for learning adjustments or strategies in the postsecondary environment.