Transcript Students - Creighton University

Students With
Disabilities
Access, Design & Advocacy
Introduction
• Agenda for presentation
• Introduction & Background
• Key Principles of ADA
• What the ADA does not do…
• Strategies for effective use of ADA
• Make it work for you…
Myth or Fact?
Faculty members do not need to
have access to students’ diagnostic
information in order to determine
reasonable accommodations.
If a student mentions he or she has
a disability, the faculty member is
responsible for arranging appropriate
accommodations.
When field trips are held in locations
that are difficult to access, it is best
to excuse students with physical
disabilities.
CU Students with Disabilities
Disability Type
Total Students
Learning
68
ADHD
40
Vision
7
Hearing Loss/Deaf
4
Mobility
15
Psychiatric
18
Medical
19
Multiple
15
Total
168
ADA: What do you
need to know?
• Stands for “Americans with Disabilities Act”
• Three key titles:
• Title I: Employment
• Title II: State and local government (does
not apply to federal government)
• Title III: Places of public accommodations
What You Need to Know…
• Nondiscrimination statute:
generally people cannot
discriminate on basis of
disability
• Requires equitable access to
opportunities and benefits
enjoyed by people who do not
have a disability
• Only law that requires an
affirmative action on part of
others: Reasonable
Accommodations.
What you need to
know…
Definition of Disability
A person has a disability if he or she
has a physical or mental impairment
that substantially limits one or more
of the major life activities (walking,
standing, seeing, speaking, hearing,
breathing, taking care of oneself,
learning).
Systemic
Mobility
LD/ADHD
Types of
Disabilities
Sensory
Psychiatric
Acquired
Brain
Injury
"It was difficult for me to complete this
survey because my disabilities are
hidden. Most people don't know
anything is wrong, since they can't
see anything wrong".
See Curriculum Transformation And Disability (CTAD), a grant partnership between General College and
Disability Services that was funded by U.S. Department of Education (Project #P333A990015) to provide
strategies for universal instructional design to faculty.
Issues with Hidden
Disabilities
•
•
•
•
•
“Passing”
May not belong in either world
Erratic nature of disability
Need to “prove” disability
Decision to disclose
Note: People with psychiatric disabilities are the
fastest growing group, the least understood, and
the least willing to disclose.
Hidden Disabilities and
Reasons Why It Is Difficult
to Disclose
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Fear of social stigma
Fear of being isolated
Privacy issues
Public image
Fear of students/faculty finding out
Fear of the unknown
Not knowing what to request for an
accommodation!
He’s looking good,
But………………
Common Thoughts by
Students with Hidden
Disabilities
• I look fine. No one would believe that I go home
and crash everyday.
• Will my professor believe me?
• Will other students think that I’m using this as an
excuse?
• I was doing pretty well last month. Will people be
confused that I didn’t need an accommodation
before but now I do?
• I’m getting a fresh start in college, I’ll try to
dispense with accommodations and see what
happens.
Why would an
student with a
hidden disability
choose to disclose
the disability?
Unlike High School…
Universities are obligated to make an
accommodation only to the known limitations
of an otherwise qualified individual with a
disability.
Disability/Education Laws
IDEA
Section 504
ADA
Elementary/
Secondary
Postsecondary
Postsecondary/
General Public
Public schools must
provide services to
students with
disabilities
Universities that
receive federal
funds must be
accessible
Public services
must be accessible
regardless of
federal funds
School must identify
students and provide
services
People are
responsible for
disclosure and
requesting services
People are
responsible for
disclosure and
requesting services
See Curriculum Transformation And Disability (CTAD), a grant partnership between General College and Disability Services
that was funded by U.S. Department of Education (Project #P333A990015) to provide strategies for universal instructional
design to faculty.
What You Need to Know…
Reasonable Accommodations
A reasonable accommodation is a
modification or adjustment to a course,
program, service, job, facility or activity that
enables a qualified person with a disability to
have an equal opportunity.
Institutions are obligated to make reasonable
accommodations only to known limitations of
an otherwise qualified individual.
Unreasonable
Modifications
• Those that would fundamentally alter
demonstrable academic or technical
standards or essential functions of a job.
• Those that substantially alter the nature of
the benefit received from the course,
program or service, or the essential
functions of a job.
• Those that present an undue hardship.
• Those that pose a risk to self or others.
Mandated Services
•
•
•
•
Taped texts
Notetakers
Testing accommodation
Access to learning opportunities and
materials in the classroom
• Sign language interpreters
Non Mandated Services
(Enhanced)
•
•
•
•
•
Tutoring
Counseling
Learning Strategies Help
Career Counseling
Access to Professionals with LD
Expertise
Appropriate Academic
Accommodations/Modifications
• Course substitutions
• Extensions of time limits for degree
completion
• Modifying the manner in which courses
are conducted
• Modifications to course examinations
• Adapting classroom and laboratory
equipment
Unreasonable Modifications
• Those that would fundamentally alter
demonstrable academic or technical
standards
• Those that substantially alter the nature
of the benefit received from the course,
program or service
• Those that present an undue hardship
• Those that pose a risk to self or others
Academic Modification
Requires Balance Between
College’s right
to maintain
academic and
technical
standards
integral to its
mission.
Rights of
students
with
disabilities
to equal
access.
Determining
Accommodations
Student
Interactive
Process
Disability
Services
Provider
Faculty/Staff
Reasonable Accommodations
Bridges Gap between Disability
and Essential Functions
Ensure Equal Access to Opportunity or
Benefit
Must be Effective
(not the “best”)
What You Need to Know…
Filing Complaints
The timeline for filing complaints is
short…
• Generally, you have 6 months or
120 days from the time of the last
incident to file a complaint
• Document, document, document.
Write down your story as it is
happening.
• Be prepared for the times when it
matters the most that you have the
information you need.
Remember other
remedies…
• Many states have very good disability antidiscrimination statutes. You can file with or get
information from state departments responsible for
enforcement.
• The University’s Office of Equal Opportunity can be
a resource
• Check with the University’s resources for dispute
resolution.
What the ADA does
NOT do…
• Help with disclosure process
• Provide “prescriptions” for
accommodations
• Assure positive response to disclosure
Strategies for
Effective Use of ADA
• Educate
• Communicate
• Use Allies…don’t always go at it
alone
• Carrot vs. Stick approach - be
intentional
Creating Access in the
Future
Universal Design: Why?
• Demonstrates how benefits accrue to others,
making it easier to find allies and advocates
• Creates accessible environments for people who
may not qualify under the law
• Creates a more supportive environment for
everyone, particularly people with disabilities.
Use Your College Experience
to Prepare for Your Career(s)
• Practice asking for accommodations and
disclosing
• Use opportunity to learn how to disclose, what works
and doesn’t work (esp. with different types of people)
• Use opportunity to experiment with different types of
accommodations
Organize Activities & Build Awareness
Develop Leadership and Community Building Skills
• Advocate for Awareness (especially about hidden
disabilities)
• Advocate for Access (compliance)
• Advocate for Universal Design (sustainable change)
• Identify Allies to develop and implement ideas and
build support