Faculty Resources

The student will give you a Letter of Approved Accommodations. If you have questions or concerns about this, please contact the ADA office at ADA@dom.edu.

Disabilities are often described as “visible or invisible.” Invisible disabilities may involve cognitive processing, psychological challenges, or medical needs. Typical non-apparent disabilities include chronic health conditions and neurodivergent diagnoses such as learning disabilities, ADHD, autism, mental health diagnoses, etc. You will know a student has a disability if they provide you with a Letter of Approved Accommodations. Faculty should refrain from asking for specific information regarding a student’s disability.

Be supportive, and remember that student disclosures should be considered confidential. If a student discloses their condition/disability and does not have a Letter of Approved Accommodations, please refer them to our department at ADA@dom.edu, to ensure the student receives the support they need on campus.

Please direct students to the ADA office so that staff and the student, together, can determine eligibility and appropriate accommodations. If the student shares that they do have approved accommodations at DU, but they don’t believe they have a Letter of Approved Accommodations, please refer the student back to the ADA office to review how to communicate accommodations to professors.

No. Faculty should not see documentation of disability or ask students for information about their diagnoses.

No, students with disabilities are held to the same academic standards as all students. However, students with disabilities may require accommodations or format modifications so that they may fully participate in the lessons, assignments, and tests. We encourage faculty to contact the ADA office if they are ever unsure of how to implement a particular accommodation or if they believe a particular accommodation may be a fundamental alteration of a course learning objective or structure of the course.

Schedule a meeting with the ADA Coordinator. Determining appropriate accommodations for each class is an interactive process that involves faculty. The Letter of Approved Accommodations should be seen as an invitation to contact the ADA office to ask your questions and receive support in determining the best approach for the student’s needs. We’ll strive to learn more about the learning objectives and structure of your class, and work with you to determine how a particular accommodation can work in your class. If we determine together that an accommodation would be a fundamental alteration of the course, we will collaborate on communication to the student.

Faculty should provide accommodations upon receipt of the Letter of Approved Accommodations, which can happen at any point in the semester. Accommodations should be implemented upon receipt of the letter, but are not retroactive. Faculty can assist students in disclosing early by inviting students’ Letters of Approved Accommodations on the first day of classes.

If you are able to meet the student’s accommodation needs independently, you can do that. Alternately, you can tell the student to complete the Exam Accommodation Request form, at least one week in advance, in order to take the exam in the Academic Success Center. If a student has an extended time accommodation, please remember that faculty must add the additional time on canvas or other online platforms, even if ADA staff are proctoring. Only you can add the time online.

Of course! Students with these accommodations need the extra time to demonstrate what they know, rather than their symptoms. This accommodation levels the playing field. Additionally, studies have shown that providing additional time to a student without a disability does not result in improved performance.

No. We can only proctor exams for students who have been approved for exam accommodations.

Many students require textbooks in an alternate format in order to have access to the information presented in the books. We ask faculty to provide this information early, because locating or converting texts into an alternate format (i.e., digital, audio or Braille), can take several weeks.

If the student is approved for this accommodation, it should be allowed for lectures. Faculty can request that students sign an acceptable use agreement, prior to recording. Students may use phones, computer/ipad software, a tape recorder, or a smart pen to record lectures. If you have questions or concerns about this accommodation, please contact us!

We recommend that faculty consult with the ADA office and communicate with students early in the semester regarding expectations for these accommodations. Depending on the learning objectives and structure of the course, these accommodations may not always be possible (labs, group assignments, etc). It is recommended that faculty and student create a written agreement at the beginning of the semester, to establish clarity and expectations about the number of absences a student could have and still meet the learning objectives of the course. It’s also helpful to address how assignments will be submitted following an absence, whether faculty can share lectures notes, etc. With regard to deadline extensions, it’s helpful to communicate to students that you would need to receive a request for an extension in advance of the deadline. You and the student should agree on a specific alternate deadline, in writing, and you should communicate clearly how missing the alternate deadline could impact their performance in the class. Again, please contact ADA@dom.edu if you have questions.

Faculty can share lecture notes or slides. If you are unable to do so, students can find a peer note-taker. Occasionally, a student may ask for assistance finding a note-taker. You can keep the student’s identity confidential and make an announcement to the class asking if anyone would be interested in sharing their notes for a $50 gift card. You can then connect the student with a volunteer, after class so the student can provide the volunteer with a Note-taker Contract. Alternatively, you can contact the ADA office for assistance finding a note-taker.