Academic accommodations are any adjustments that provide equal academic opportunity for students with disabilities. Academic requirements the University can demonstrate are essential to the program of instruction being pursued by such student or to any directly related licensing requirement will not be regarded as discriminatory (104.44 of Section 504, American Disabilities Act).

The academic accommodation form does not relieve you from attending class, unless absences are indicated in the documentation of the disability.

For summer school programming, the time for notifying the instructor will vary.

Important Notes

Services and accommodations are authorized based on your disability and specific functional limitations. You may not receive all of the accommodations contained in these lists.

Accommodations are not retroactive. They begin only after:

More Information

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

ADHD is officially called Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and is a neurologically based medical problem. It is a developmental disability characterized by inattention, impulsivity and sometimes hyperactivity. The results can lead to lifelong problems.

Accommodations may include:

Blind/Impaired Vision

Visual impairments include disorders in the senses of vision that affect the central vision acuity, the field of vision, color perception, or binocular visual function. The American Medical Association defined legal blindness as visual acuity not exceeding 20/200 in the better eye with correction, or a limit in the field of vision that is less than a 20 degree angle (tunnel vision). Legal blindness may be caused by tumors, infections, injuries, retrolental fibroplasis, cataracts, glaucoma, diabetes, vascular impairments, or myopia. Visual disabilities vary widely. Some students may use a guide dog, others a white cane, while others may not require any mobility assistance.

Accommodations may include:

Closed Head Injury/Traumatic Brain Injury

Head injury is one of the fastest growing types of disabilities, especially, for individuals 15 to 28 years old. More than 500,000 cases are reported in hospitals each year. There is a wide range of differences in the effects of a TBI on the individual, but most cases result in some type of impairment. The functions that may be affected include: memory, cognitive/perceptual communication, speed of thinking, communication, spatial reasoning, conceptualization, psychosocial behaviors, motor abilities, sensory perception, and physical disabilities including speech impairment.

Accommodations may include:

Deaf/Impaired Hearing

More individuals in the United States have a hearing impairment than any other type of physical disability. A hearing impairment is any type or degree of auditory impairment while deafness is an inability to use hearing as a means of communication. Hearing loss may be sensorineural, involving an impairment of the auditory nerve; conductive, a defect in the auditory system that interferes with sound reaching the cochlea; or a mixed impairment, involving both sensorineural and conductive. Hearing loss is measured in decibels and may be mild, moderate, or profound. A person who is born with a hearing loss may have language deficiencies and exhibit poor vocabulary and syntax. Many students with hearing loss may use hearing aids and rely on lip reading. Others may require an interpreter.

Accommodations may include:

Orthopedic/Mobility Disorders

A variety of orthopedic/mobility-related disabilities result from congenital conditions, accidents, or progressive neuromuscular diseases. These disabilities include conditions such as spinal cord injury (paraplegia or quadriplegia), cerebral palsy, spina bifida, amputation, muscular dystrophy, cardiac conditions, cystic fibrosis, paralysis, polio/post polio, and stroke. Functional limitations and abilities vary widely even within one group of disabilities. Accommodations vary greatly and can best be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Accommodations may include:

Other Disorders: Primarily, Systemic Disorders

There are students with disabilities that originate from a systemic disorder. The degree to which these disabilities affect students in the academic setting vary widely. At times, it is not the condition itself but the medication that is required to control symptoms that impairs academic performance. Common side effects of medications include fatigue, memory loss, shortened attention span, loss of concentration, and drowsiness. In some cases, the degree of impairment may vary from time to time because of the nature of the disability or the medication. Some conditions are progressive and others may be stable.

A partial list of other disabilities:


Some accommodations may include:

Psychiatric/Psychological Disorders

Psychiatric/psychological disorders cover a wide range of disorders such as neuroses, psychoses, and personality disorders as well as dissociative disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. A great majority of those disorders are listed in the DSM-IV. The majority of these disorders are controlled using a combination of medications and therapy. Problems may also occur from the side effects of the medication. There are not many legal precedents, but it is probable based on other types of court rulings that some of the following accommodations may be considered appropriate and reasonable.

Accommodations may include:

Specific Learning Disabilities

A learning disability is a permanent neurological disorder that affects the manner in which information is received, organized, remembered, and then retrieved or expressed. Students with learning disabilities possess average to above average intelligence.

Terms associated with learning disabilities include:

Accommodations may include:

Vision Disorders: Not Acuity

Learning-related visual disabilities include, but are not limited to ocular mobility dysfunction/eye movement disorders, vergence dysfunction/inefficiency in using both eyes together, strabismus/misalignment of the eyes, amblyopia/lazy disorders, and motor integration. The functional limitation varies according to the intensity of the problem.

Accommodations may include:

Temporary Medical Condition

Some disabling conditions are temporary but may require accommodations for a limited time. Students who are recovering from surgery, injury or severe illness may be unaware of accommodations that may be reasonable for a limited time period. Encouragement to contact the Accessibility Resources and Testing Center may prevent students from dropping out of school. Documentation is also requested for temporary disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are determined based on the nature of the medical condition. (This service is not a requirement of the law but a humane consideration that might be accommodated in another program of student services.)

Some accommodations may include:

For More Information Contact

Vee Lucas
Dir, Accessibility Res/Test
Office Location: Student Academic Services (SAS), Room 177
Phone: 575.562.2280