Introduction

Student Services advocates for students with disabilities by coordinating academic accommodations and services. It is important to note that while educators may do their best to ensure their courses are accessible, individual accommodations for students can still be needed.

This article includes information about Accommodation Plans; in particular, the process, student and faculty responsibilities, and suggestions on how to respond to Accommodation Plan requests. Please note that the information here is specific to the policies and procedures at St. Clair College.

Accommodations

Academic accommodations are in place in higher education to address barriers preventing equitable access to learning for students with disabilities. Ideally, academic accommodations provide opportunities for students with disabilities to fully participate in their academic experiences and feel supported to achieve their learning goals.

Accommodations are unique to individual students and are designed in consultation with Counsellors.

Accommodations consider the essential requirements of a course or program. They do not change the requirements and standards of any given program of study.

Accommodation Plans

Accommodation Plans communicate the specific accommodations that students receive.

Students and Counsellors work collaboratively to complete the individualized accommodation plan. Then, the Accommodation Plan is emailed to faculty from a noreply email account.

An Accommodation Plan is a working document and may need revision during the semester. Several factors can affect the need for more inclusions, such as the learning environment, nature of the disability, and program expectations and requirements.

Counsellors from Student Services meet with students throughout the semester and as the process is ongoing, faculty can expect to receive accommodation plans throughout the term/year.

Process

The following outlines the general process for how an Accommodation Plan is developed under the 7.4 Student Equity, Inclusion and Accessible Services policy.

1. Students contact Student Services and meet with a counsellor to discuss eligibility and the nature of their disability needs.
2. To be eligible for accommodations, students must have a disability and provide supporting medical documentation that confirms their functional limitations and requested accommodations or, in the case of students with learning disabilities, a psychoeducational assessment.
3. Counsellors assess documentation to determine disability status and eligibility for academic accommodations. Disclosure of disability diagnosis is not necessary (except a learning disability).
4. If documentation is not immediately available, interim, or temporary accommodations plans are created in good faith. This supplies students with the opportunity to obtain documentation that highlights their functional limitations or restrictions.
5. Students and Counsellors work collaboratively to complete the individualized accommodation plan.
6. The Accommodation Plan is emailed to faculty, with student consent.

Faculty Responsibilities

The accommodation plan implementation is a collaborative effort between the student, Counsellor from Student Services, and faculty.

When a faculty member receives an accommodation plan, please thoroughly examine the accommodation plan. If you suspect that an accommodation will conflict with the essential course requirements, reach out by telephone or email to the Counsellor listed on the Accommodation Plan.

Faculty should not ask for the diagnosis or why the student has accommodations. Students are entitled to have this information kept private.

Students do not have to meet with faculty to discuss their accommodation plan. The student has the right to decide if a meeting/discussion is necessary.

However, it is good practice to explicitly encourage students with Accommodation Plans to communicate with you and reach out if any issues arise. Consider including a general statement in your welcoming announcement to the course, your Syllabus, or other course communications that explains you are happy to ensure students’ needs are being met during your course of instruction. By warmly inviting students to reach out, they may be more inclined to access the necessary accommodations they need to be successful in your course. Include information about how you would like to be contacted and your office hours.

Responsibilities under the Ontario Human Rights Code

The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) notes that faculty have a duty to accommodate students with disabilities. The OHRC’s (2003) consultation report, The Opportunity to Succeed: Achieving Barrier-Free Education for Students with Disabilities, in the Roles and Responsibilities section, indicates that “the duty to accommodate rests on the educational institution as a whole.”

Collectively and individually, we all have a role:

• Faculty and staff have a duty to educate themselves about disability-related issues, to interact with students in a non-discriminatory manner, to engage in the accommodation process, and to provide accommodation to the point of undue hardship.
• Staff and faculty responsible for designing or developing new or revised facilities, services, policies, processes, courses, or curricula have a responsibility to ensure that these are designed inclusively, with the needs of persons with disabilities in mind.
• Clear and reasonable processes and guidelines for seeking accommodation should be in place at all post-secondary institutions, and these should be clearly communicated to all students.
• The process of accommodation and the outcome should be respectful of the dignity of the persons affected and should consider the importance of integration and full participation. Any planning for accessibility should recognize that persons with disabilities are important stakeholders in the process (OHRC, 2003).

Therefore, faculty have a responsibility to:

• Ensure the accommodation plan is implemented in a way that protects the students’ dignity and right to confidentiality and privacy.
• Implement and take part in the accommodation process to the point of undue hardship.
  • o Accommodate students with disabilities in a manner that is consistent with St. Clair College policies and procedures, while maintaining academic integrity and course/program standards.
  • o Communicate with Student Services if you have questions, wish to discuss alternate accommodations, or are concerned about academic integrity or course requirements. However, provide the accommodations as outlined in the Accommodation Plan while consulting with the student’s counsellor. If after consultation, the faculty wish to appeal the Accommodation Plan, they may start the Formal Faculty Academic Accommodation Appeal Process outlined in 7.4 Student Equity, Inclusion and Student Services Policy.
• Send evaluations to the Test Centre two full business days in advance, which allows staff sufficient time to implement test accommodations.
• Contact Student Services should you have any concerns that the accommodation plan is not addressing the students’ needs.
• Refer students to Student Services should they disclose a disability, or request accommodations or when you suspect a disability.
• Create or change courses to incorporate inclusive practices, such as Universal Design for Learning, designed to cater to various learners.
• Seek advice from Student Services if students are requesting accommodations for medical or disability-related reasons, but do not have an Accommodation Plan.

References

Some parts of this article were remixed from the article Responding to Letters of Accommodation by Niagara College licensed under CC BY 4.0 International.