Policies: Student Rights: ADA:

The Americans with Disabilities Act defines a disability as any of the following: 1) "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of the individual," 2) "a record of such impairment," or, 3) "being regarded as having such an impairment."

ADA protection for persons with disabilities entitles them to freedom from discrimination. The principle of equal opportunity is not meant to guarantee quality of results. Decisions with regard to the provision of accommodations services at Alpena Community College are based on whether or not accommodation(s) needed is/are reasonable, not on whether or not the person has a disability. Decisions are made on the basis of individualized review of disability documentation and the prescriptive recommendation(s) for accommodation contained in the documentation.

Recent and comprehensive documentation about the current functional impact of the disability in an adult learning environment is needed to determine whether reasonable accommodations can be designed and which specific accommodations can be provided. ACC does not provide testing for disabilities. It is the responsibility of the person requesting accommodation services to provide documentation. All documentation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and students may be required to submit additional documentation. It is recommended that all reports be written on the evaluating professional's letterhead, be typed or otherwise legible, dated, and signed by the professional providing the assessment. In all cases, the diagnostician must be impartial and not a family member. Specific questions regarding documentation should be discussed with the TLC staff person assigned to work with you. The following information may be used for general guidelines for documentation. Specific checklists are available in Appendix A for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Head Injury/Traumatic Brain Injury, and Learning Disability. These checklists should be used in conjunction with the general guidelines for documentation.

Guidelines for Disability Documentation

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
The report should provide information supporting a diagnosis consistent with the DSM-IV, in documenting ADHD in adults. Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) is considered a medical or clinical diagnosis. Individuals qualified to render a diagnosis for this disorder are practitioners who have been trained in the assessment of AD/HD and are experienced in assessing the needs of adult learners. Recommended practitioners may include: neurologists, psychiatrists, licensed clinical or educational psychologists, family physicians, or a combination of such professionals. Information regarding the onset, longevity, severity, and current functional impact of symptoms should be included, as well as the specifics describing how the disability has interfered with educational achievement. Individualized assessments of current cognitive processing and educational achievement are recommended. The evaluator must attach copies or summaries of the specific tests, measures, or clinical data used to establish each criterion. A specific checklist for use in the documentation of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is available in Appendix A of this publication.

Deafness, Hard of Hearing
An audiogram is required. The age of acceptable documentation is dependent upon the disabling condition, the current status of the student, and the student's request for accommodations. A summary of the assessment procedures and evaluation instruments used to make the diagnosis and a narrative summary of evaluation results should be included if appropriate. If relevant, a statement regarding the use of hearing aids should be included.

Head Injury, Traumatic Brain Injury
The report must verify the condition and describe its current functional impact. The documentation should provide information regarding the onset, longevity, severity, and current impact of symptoms, as well as specifically how the disabling condition has interfered with educational achievement. Individualized assessments of current cognitive processing and educational achievement are necessary. Recommended professional evaluators for Head Injury or Traumatic Brain Injury may include: neurologists; licensed clinical, rehabilitation, and school psychologists; neuropsychologists and psychiatrists. A specific checklist for use in the documentation of AD/HD is available in Appendix A of this publication.

Learning Disability
Documentation must address the student's current level of functioning and need for accommodations. Professionals conducting assessments, diagnosing learning disabilities, and making recommendations for accommodations relevant to the student's learning environment must have additional training and experience in the assessment of learning disabilities. The diagnosis and recommendations should be based on a comprehensive assessment battery. The report should include a diagnostic interview, assessment of aptitude, academic achievement, information processing, and a diagnosis. If the documentation is not current or if it is inadequate in scope or content, an update to the evaluation report should be requested. The update should be provided by a qualified professional and should include a rationale for ongoing services and accommodations. Recommended professionals may include clinical or educational psychologists, school psychologists, neuropsycholgists, learning disabilities specialists, and medical doctors. Per Association on Higher Education and Disabilities (AHEAD) Guidelines for the Documentation of a Learning Disability in Adolescents and Adults, all reports should be on letterhead, typed, dated, signed and otherwise legible. A specific checklist for use in the documentation of a Learning Disability is available in Appendix A of this publication.

Physical, Medical, and Mobility Impairments
(Including, but not limited to: Mobility Impairments, Multiple Sclerosis, Cerebral Palsy, Spinal Cord Injuries, Cancer, Muscular Dystrophy, Spina Bifida) Documentation for physical disabilities must be provided by a physician, including medical specialists, with experience and expertise in the area for which accommodations are being requested. Documentation should be current (the age of documentation is dependent upon the disabling condition, the current status of the student and the student's request for accommodations. It should include a summary of assessment procedures used to make the diagnosis and contain a clear statement of the medical diagnosis of the physical disability or systemic illness, as well as a description of present symptoms which meet the criteria for diagnosis. The documentation should include a statement of the functional limitations and the degree to which those limitations impact the individual in the learning context for which accommodations are being requested. Medical information relating to the student's needs, including the impact of medication on the student's ability to meet the demands of the post-secondary environment should be included in the report. The name, title and professional credentials of the evaluator, including information about license and/or certification, the area of specialization, employment, and location (state/province) in which the individual practices should be clearly stated in the documentation. Documentation serves as the foundation that legitimizes a student's request for accommodations.

Psychological and Psychiatric Disorders
Individuals qualified to render clinical diagnoses for this area are practitioners who have been trained in the assessment of mental illness, including, but not limited to: licensed psychologists, psychiatrists, certified social workers, and licensed professional counselors. The report should provide a diagnosis ( or diagnoses) including ICD or DSM IV-R code and/or Multi-axial DSM IV diagnosis (Axis I, Axis II, Axis V). It should also include the date of diagnosis and the date of the last contact with the individual, as well as the list of instruments/procedures which were used to diagnose the psychological disorder. Description of symptoms which meet the criteria for the diagnosis/diagnoses is the approximate date(s) of onset and the prognosis for therapeutic interventions (including likelihood for improvement or further deterioration and approximate timeframe should also be included). The report should address whether the individual currently poses a threat to herself/himself or to others. The report should describe what major life activity (or activities) is/are impacted by the disorder and the significance of this impact on academic activities such as exam-taking, note-taking, processing speed and ability to concentrate. The report should address the measures which were used to assess the educational impact of the psychological condition and include information relevant to the student's academic needs. Further assessment by an appropriate professional may be required if co-existing learning disabilities or other disabling conditions are present, or if documentation does not support the need for the requested accommodations.

Vision Impairment and Blindness
Opthalmologists are the primary professionals diagnosing and providing medical treatment for persons with blindness or low vision disabilities. Optometrists provide information regarding the measurement of visual acuity, as well as visual tracking and fusion difficulties, such as eye movement disorders, lazy eye, and related vision disorders. Documentation should contain a clear statement of vision-related disability with supporting numerical description. The age of acceptable documentation is dependent upon the disabling condition, the current status of the condition, and the request for accommodations. Information about present symptoms that meet the criteria for diagnosis and a summary of assessment procedures and/or evaluation instruments used to make the diagnosis (including standardized scores) should contain information relating to the status of the student's vision, (static or changing) and its impact on the academic setting. The use of corrective lenses and on-going visual therapy should be addressed, if appropriate.