Guidelines and Procedures for Disability Services

Albertus Magnus College students with documented disabilities can obtain reasonable accommodations by self-identifying and meeting the College's criteria for eligibility. This includes providing appropriate documentation to the Coordinator of Academic Disability Services, Deborah Frattini (Aquinas Hall, Room 314) or Andrew Foster, Vice President for Student Services (Campus Center, Room 108). Both individuals work directly with students, faculty, and staff regarding reasonable accommodations and other assistance as needed. All information concerning a disability is confidential and will be shared only with a student's permission. Disability information is kept in a separate secure location and is not included in a student's general education records. Albertus Magnus College may not release any part of the documentation without the student's informed and written consent.

It is advisable to set up a meeting as soon as a student forwards his or her documentation; often this is done by a student in the first semester before classes begin so that a file can be started. The purpose of the meeting is to review the documentation and determine the appropriate accommodations. Once the Coordinator or Vice President receives the documentation, she reviews and evaluates it. This assessment is based on the guidelines developed by the Connecticut Association on Higher Education and Disabilities:

CT AHEAD Guidelines

Eligibility for reasonable accommodations is determined on an individual case-by-case basis.

It is recommended that students who request academic accommodations should at the beginning of each semester contact the Coordinator and fill out a Faculty Contact sheet which can then be given to professors in order to arrange for the specifics of the student's accommodations. Students may disclose a disability at any time; however, it is advisable for students to disclose early in the semester so that appropriate accommodations can be made in a timely manner.

A student who requests housing accommodations or in the case of psychological disabilities, accommodations appropriate for the circumstance, should contact Vice President Foster and set up a meeting.

In some cases students who request accommodations, but are in the process of acquiring appropriate (current) documentation, may be granted provisional reasonable accommodations usually for one semester only.

Student Guide

Upon contacting and meeting with either the Coordinator of Academic Disability Services or the Vice President for Student Services, you should provide current documentation of your disability. The following information is needed:

  • A clear statement of the diagnosed disability (evidence to establish a rationale supporting the need for accommodations)
  • Documentation that is recent (current with adult-referenced norms)
  • A comprehensive educational, developmental, and medical history relevant to the disability
  • A list of names of the diagnostic tests administered and used to determine the disability as well as an analysis of the test results
  • A diagnostic summary including a description of functional limitations and how your disability will impact your participation in college courses, activities, and if applicable, the residential experience
  • Recommended accommodations that are appropriate for the disability
  • Qualifications of the evaluator along with dates of the examination and a signature of the evaluator who is qualified to make the diagnosis

Each semester, all students with disabilities who request accommodations should have received prior approval either from the Coordinator of Academic Disability Services or the Dean of Student Services, depending on the disability. Once you have a disabilities file, you should register for accommodations at the beginning of every semester. This is done by filling out a Faculty Contact sheet in the case of academic accommodations or, if applicable, a letter from Vice President Foster for physical or psychological disabilities.

The Faculty Contact sheet serves as notification for your professors of your need for specific accommodations. In college, the student is expected to advocate for his or her needs directly with a professor. It is important, however, to work first with either the Coordinator or the Vice President in obtaining reasonable accommodations.

Accommodation requests are considered based on documentation provided and available resources. Each student's situation is considered carefully to determine the type of accommodation that is recommended. “Reasonable” accommodations are those that do not fundamentally alter the nature of an academic course or an institution's policies and do not place an undue hardship on an institution. Reasonable accommodations are different from services of a personal nature, such as individual assistants or coaches, which the College does not provide but which the student may choose to employ.

Certain students with disabilities may not be able to achieve academic success in the quantitative or foreign language area without the College's allowing substitution of a specific course from its General Education curriculum. Each case is carefully considered on an individual basis before a decision is made by the Academic Dean in consult with the Coordinator of Academic Disability Services. The student should contact the Coordinator as soon as there is strong evidence (e.g., taking a course and using all resources without success) that the student is unable to fulfill the requirement. The student provides the Coordinator with documentation supporting the request. The documentation and supporting evidence are reviewed by the Coordinator and if there is evidence that indicates a substitution is warranted, the Coordinator makes a recommendation to the Dean. The student is then notified of the decision and the appropriate paper work (obtained from the Registrar's Office) is filled out.