Frequently Asked Questions From Jo Anne Simon, Esq.

Q. Are the policies and procedures for meeting the access needs of students with disabilities the same in college as in high school?

A. No. The primary law which applies to K-12 is different from the laws which apply to colleges. While some of the same laws (Section 504 and the ADA) apply in K-12, the application of those laws is very different. The primary law governing K-12 is IDEA, which has very strict administrative and due process standards. While these IDEA standards are not required by Section504 or the ADA, they are deferred to and enforced in the K-12 setting. They are not in the postsecondary setting. 

In addition, the schools have different obligations under the IDEA than they do under Section504 or the ADA. For example, K-12 schools have an obligation to identify students with disabilities. No such requirement exists in postsecondary education. The responsibility for identification rests with the student, not the college. 

Q. How do the laws differ? 

A. The IDEA is a statute which provides that states must provide a free appropriate public education to disabled students, just like they must provide a free public education to non disabled students, or the school system may lose its federal funding. The IDEA insures appropriate education. Section504 and the ADA , on the other hand are civil rights statutes, insuring an equal opportunity to avail oneself of the benefits and services offered by the post secondary institution. Sometimes these are very different things. 

Q. How do students go about getting services in college? 

A. First, the student must identify him/herself to the appropriate office on campus. This office may be called Disabled Student Services (DSS), or something like that. It should be identified in the Student Handbook as well as the College Catalogue as the place students with disabilities should contact in order to receive reasonable accommodations. Many colleges will send a letter to all of the students it admits letting them know the name and phone number of the office to contact for further information regarding services for disabled students. 

The student will be asked to supply the DSS office with documentation of their disability and will be asked to meet with a staff member to arrange for appropriate accommodations. The sooner the student takes care of this the better. It will avoid delays in receiving services and make the adjustment to campus life much easier. 

Q. Does the student make up their own IEP? What role do the parents have? 

A. In college, there is no IEP. Services are provided as needed and on an individual basis, but the specific services may vary depending on what courses the student takes in a given semester. For example, a student may need a different type of accommodation in a science lab course than in an English literature. The concept of individualization is the same, but no magic piece of paper governs what the student may receive. 

College students are considered adults under the law and parents have no established role to play. Many students and parents have a difficult time adjusting to this, and many colleges are sensitive to this issue. But colleges however, do not need to include the parent and most actively discourage the parents from becoming overly involved in the details of their child's college educational program. 

Q. Isn't the IEP sufficient documentation of a disability? After all, you can't get an IEP without a disability. 

A. An IEP is just what it stands for: Individualized Education Program. While it is based on the existence of a disability requiring special education, it is not in and of itself documentation of disability. As we all know, IEPs are subjects of the vicissitudes of the IEP planning process, and many times contain information which is not relevant or helpful to a postsecondary environment as well as information which is inaccurate. 

However, before an IEP is developed, a school psychologist, a speech & language therapist, etc. may all have evaluated the child and/or the child may have received an independent evaluation from a qualified professional outside the school system. The reports generated by these people are documentation of disability. These would be appropriate to supply to the DSS office. 

Providing an IEP to the DSS office can be helpful, however, it enables the DSS staff to see what types of accommodations the student has used in the past, but does not insure that the same program of accommodations will be provided. In fact many of the services provided in high school are either not available or unnecessary at the college level. An IEP which contains a clear statement of the student's disability, a description of how the disability impacts the student's major life activities and suggests reasonable accommodations can be very helpful. IEPs however, rarely contain this type of information and most secondary school personnel are unaware of the usefulness of including this type of information.

Q. Why can't the student expect the same accommodations in college? 

A. The main reason is that the laws provide for different types of services, and secondarily, college is not high school. The student may need different things in college than in high school. For example, in K-12, certain related services must be provided by school systems under the IDEA. Examples of related services are: speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, counseling, etc. In addition, various educational settings, like resource rooms are required. None of this is required in college. If a student needs speech therapy, for example, he or she must arrange this on their own. Counseling centers are available in most campuses, but they do not necessarily have counselors trained in disability issues. 

Colleges must provide reasonable accommodations which the ADA regulations call Academic Adjustments and Auxiliary Aids and Services. The student cannot be charged for these services. Examples of these services are note takers, sign language interpreters, extended time for test-taking, large print or braille, etc. Tutoring, for example, is not considered a reasonable accommodation. If a college offers tutoring to all students, it must make that program accessible for students with disabilities, but it need not provide a program of specialized tutoring for students with learning disabilities. Many colleges have specialized tutoring available for an additional fee, but they are not required to have such programs. The availability of such a program might well be a factor in a student's decision to attend a particular college. 

Q. Do colleges have special admissions standards for learning disabled student or other students with disabilities? 

A. No. Colleges are not permitted to ask whether an applicant has a disability, nor are they permitted to make admissions decisions only on the basis of one criteria such as SAT scores. If, however, a student wishes to disclose that s/he has a disability and that the disability has had an impact on his/her record, s/he may do so. Many students who feel that their academic record is not truly reflective of their abilities might include disability related information with their application. Many colleges will take such information into consideration. Be aware that just because a student has disclosed a disability in the admissions process, does not mean that the Disabled Students Services office will have also receive information. Students who disclose during the admissions process should also be careful to disclose again to the DSS office upon admission to the college. 

Q. Can a college force a disabled student to take a placement test? 

A. Yes. Disabled students are not exempt from taking placement tests provided that all other entering students take those same tests. Disabled students should speak with the appropriate college personnel and make sure that they receive appropriate testing accommodations for these tests. This is an area of concern for many students with learning disabilities and a number of colleges are modifying their testing mechanisms to more appropriately assess the knowledge of students with disabilities, so that the placement testing does not evaluate the impact of the disability, but rather the actual skills intended to be tested. 

Q. Can students receive academic adjustments for Associates degrees or certificate programs or only for bachelors degrees? 

A. Institutions of higher education must provide reasonable accommodations to any student whom they accept. This includes community colleges with open enrollments and degree and non degree programs, as well as graduate and professional programs.

Copyright 1998. Reproduction permitted only with the express consent of the author, Jo Anne Simon, Esq., 356 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201