Policies: Student Rights: ADA:

The Learning Center is the designated office at ACC to coordinate accommodations for all students with identified and documented disabilities. Accommodations determinations will be made on a case-by-case basis. The accommodations determination process involves the Dean of Student Services, TLC staff, and students consists of the following:

Students with disabilities must seek assistance for accommodations specific to their disabilities from the Dean of Student Affairs/TLC staff in a timely manner, preferably prior to the start of classes, or as soon as the disability becomes known. Requests for accommodations assistance will generally be acted on within five working days.

Students must provide relevant documentation of their disability from an appropriate licensed professional source to the Dean of Student Affairs/TLC staff that gives a diagnosis of the disability and how it impacts on their participation in courses, programs, jobs, activities and facilities at ACC. Guidelines for acceptable documentation can be found in the "Disability Documentation" section of this publication. This documentation will be kept confidential and shared with college personnel on a need-to-know basis, only with the written consent of the student. All disability documentation will be maintained by the Learning Center Coordinator.

TLC personnel and the student will discuss the student's disability and how it will impact on the requirements of the student's courses. A decision on accommodations will then be made by TLC staff/Dean of Student Affairs, taking into consideration the documentation, the preferences of the student, available resources and the requirements of each class. TLC staff/Dean of Student Affairs reserves the right to consult with other faculty, staff, or outside professionals or agencies with the written consent of the student regarding essential elements and accommodations in situations that are new, complex, or sensitive.

TLC personnel will describe the process for the provision of reasonable, effective and appropriate accommodations both verbally and in writing to the student. ACC Accommodations Procedures fact sheets that define roles and responsibilities in the provision of specific accommodations services will be reviewed on an individual basis with each student receiving accommodations services. TLC staff will write a letter, if appropriate, for each of the student's instructors per consent of the student that verifies the student's disability and includes a listing of the accommodation(s) which has/have been determined to be effective, appropriate, and reasonable. The student is responsible for delivering these verification letters to faculty. TLC staff strongly encourages students to contact their instructors personally to discuss course expectations and accommodations early in the semester. Under certain circumstances ( e.g. during Summer sessions) this procedure may be modified with approval from The Learning Center Coordinator and the Dean of Student Affairs.

The responsibility for the provision of accommodations is often shared among faculty, students, and TLC staff/Dean of Student Affairs. The letter describes accommodations to which students are entitled. The letter also invites faculty to contact TLC staff if there are concerns or questions about the accommodations. If an initial accommodations decision has been found to be unworkable for legitimate reasons or another type of accommodation is found that would be more effective for a particular course, TLC staff will reconsider the accommodation decision. Instructors should not compromise essential elements of their courses or evaluation standards.

Students with disabilities are responsible for contacting TLC staff if agreed-upon accommodations are not implemented in an effective or timely way, or if they are experiencing difficulties in other facets of college life. TLC staff will work with college personnel and students to resolve disagreements or problems regarding recommended accommodations or other disability-related issues.

If students are experiencing academic difficulty, services such as tutoring, study skills assistance, test-taking skills help, and instructor reserve materials are available through TLC.

GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
Students with disabilities seeking accommodations should contact the Dean of Student Affairs. Any student denied special accommodations may appeal the decision to the ADA Grievance Committee. This appeal must be made in writing within five working days of denial of services and the student may also be required to attend a meeting in person. The ADA Grievance Committee is comprised of the Dean of Student Affairs, the Dean of Administrative Services, the director of The Learning Center, and the Student Services Department Chairperson.