The number of students with disabilities attending post-secondary education continues to increase each year. Faculty needs to be well-informed about the roles, rights, and responsibilities institutions have toward supporting students with disabilities. These roles, rights, and responsibilities are supported by several federal laws that support students with disabilities and allow them the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of a post-secondary educational experience.
Accommodations go into effect when you receive the notification through iAdvise. You are under no obligation to provide accommodations prior to that. Accommodations are not retroactive. For instance, if a student does not provide you with a letter before the midterm, fails the midterm, and then asks to retake the exam with their accommodations, you should not allow this. The ADRC will support you in this situation.
Please note that students have the choice to determine which of their approved accommodations, if any, they want to use for your course. When you receive the notice through iAdvise, we encourage you to meet with them to discuss their accommodations, which accommodations they will use, how your tests will be administered, and the structure of your course.
All course materials must be accessible, and all videos must be captioned. Documents may need to be updated for accessibility. Please contact your department or dean to determine how this will be accomplished within your department.
Confidentiality in the accommodation process must be maintained by all parties. Letters of accommodation should be filed in a safe place, and faculty should refrain from discussing students’ disabilities and necessary accommodations in the presence of fellow students or others who do not have an “educational need to know.” An "educational need to know" refers to situations where it is important for instructors or other university personnel to have information about a student's disability to provide appropriate support and accommodations.
While it is the instructor’s responsibility to ensure that the learning environment is accessible, students with disabilities must request accommodations when needed. Instructors will find it useful to include a statement on their syllabus that informs students about the steps they need to take to receive classroom accommodations through the ADRC.
All accommodated testing is facilitated by the OU Testing Center.
All course materials, including exams/quizzes should be accessible in time for them to interact with them when necessary. Accessible exams/quizzes should be delivered to the OU Testing Center prior to the students' scheduled exam.
Allow assistive technology such as audio recorders, electronic note-takers, and laptop computers to be used in the classroom. Students may provide you with an audio recording agreement.
All college students, with or without a disability, must adhere to the Student Code of Conduct. Infractions of these standards should be reported.
A faculty member has the right to discuss concerns about approved accommodations if they believe the accommodation would result in a fundamental alteration of the class.
A fundamental alteration is a change that is so significant that it alters the essential nature of the essential requirements of the course. For example, in an ENGL-1113 class, a student requests multiple-choice tests instead of writing an essay. This request would be denied because this would be a fundamental alteration of the essential requirement of writing and completing essays.
If there are questions or concerns about approved accommodations or fundamental alterations, faculty members must consult with the ADRC.
Consult with the ADRC regarding academic accommodations and compliance with legal responsibilities.
Faculty should not refuse to provide approved accommodations, ask the student to disclose his or her disability, discuss in front of the class that the student is registered with the ADRC, or request to examine the student’s documentation.
Faculty should not provide academic adjustments for a disability without a notice from the ADRC certifying that the student is qualified to receive services and identifying the nature of the accommodations. If you choose, however, to provide an academic adjustment for the student, only do so if you offer the adjustment to all students in the class.
If a student requests accommodations but has no official documentation from the ADRC, the instructor should refer the student for accommodations.
Include the following statement in your syllabus and make an announcement in class encouraging students who need accommodations to contact the ADRC:
The University of Oklahoma (OU) is committed to the goal of achieving equal educational opportunity and full educational participation for students with disabilities. If you have already established reasonable accommodations with the Accessibility and Disability Resource Center (ADRC), please log into iAdvise to request your semester accommodations as soon as possible and contact me privately, so that we have adequate time to arrange your approved academic accommodations.
If you have not yet established services through ADRC, but have a documented disability and require accommodations, please complete ADRC’s pre-registration form to begin the registration process. ADRC facilitates the interactive process that establishes reasonable accommodations for students at OU. For more information on ADRC registration procedures, please review their website. You may also contact them at (405)325-3852 or adrc@ou.edu, or visit www.ou.edu/adrc for more information.
Note: disabilities may include, but are not limited to, mental health, chronic health, physical, vision, hearing, learning and attention disabilities, pregnancy-related. ADRC can also support students experiencing temporary medical conditions.
Accommodations are used to equalize educational opportunities for students who encounter barriers due to disabilities. Students must self‐identify to the Accessibility and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) and go through the ADRC's registration process.
Instructors of record will receive memoranda of accommodations to their OU email account from iAdvise. A separate email will be received for each student requesting accommodations for your course.
