Services for
Students with Disabilities

Students who are deaf may request the use of a sign language interpreter in order to have access to course lectures and other college activities. Sign language interpreters are professionals employed by this office.  Their job is to provide access by interpreting lecture and other spoken communication into signed communication, usually American Sign Language (ASL). Interpreters maintain a professional level of distance in the classroom when interpreting. Students handle requests for signed language interpreters directly with this office and need to do so as soon as they know they will be attending DSCC.

Note: If a student is addressed by the instructor, the instructor should look directly at the student and speak in the first, not the second, person. Likewise, if a student wishes to ask a question, the interpreter will voice the student’s question or comment. It is not ethical for the interpreter to carry the student’s part of the conversation with the instructor or other students. The interpreter’s job is to interpret spoken language into sign, and to voice signed language. The signed language interpreter is not responsible for the student’s grasp of material, homework, testing arrangements, or attendance. These are the student’s responsibility.

No student can be denied access to any program based solely on his or her disability. All students must adhere to the standards of the program with necessary accommodations made according to his or her disability so long as the accommodations do not fundamentally alter the objectives of the program. When the standards are not met and the student has been given appropriate accommodations, it is reasonable that the student may be denied certification in the program.

Verification by accommodation letter for students who do not have reoccurring illnesses is adequate notification. For students who receive the accommodation for modification in attendance, a request for additional verification is appropriate for extended absences and hospitalizations.

Reasonable accommodations are adjustments in the learning environment that permit students with disabilities to compete at the college. The accommodations modify nonessential elements of College programs. Examples of “reasonable accommodation” include: extended testing times, books on tape, large print material, signed language interpreters, adaptive computer software, accessible classrooms, alternative textbook format, and note takers.

The Office of Services for Students with Disabilities coordinates and provides reasonable accommodations to qualified students with disabilities. Accommodations are individualized to address specific functional limitations resulting from a disability. There must be a logical link between the functional limitation and the accommodation.

The ADA Coordinator relies on documentation of the disability and a student interview discussing the history, functional limitations, and possible strategies when determining accommodations. Accommodations not requested by students will not be provided. Students with disabilities must perform at satisfactory levels in their academic pursuits at DSCC. If they do not request reasonable accommodations and perform poorly without them, their civil rights have not been violated. The student must then deal with the consequences of unsatisfactory academic progress.

This question is often asked of students with disabilities. The underlying assumption of the question is that fairness and equal treatment are synonymous with “the same” treatment. However, the same treatment doesn’t always measure fairly.

ADA and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act protect students with disabilities. The assumption of the law is that modifying non-essential tasks through accommodations should give the student with a disability an equal or fair chance to demonstrate their ability.

A student whose limitations in the way they learn, (i.e. a learning disability that involves eye-hand coordination or thought-processing), may need accommodations that assist with their learning. These include, but are not limited to books on tape, readers and scribes for tests, screen readers, or help with marking Scantron answer sheets. Providing these accommodations helps with effectively expressing the knowledge of the course subject.

The ADA Coordinator makes a point to give case-by-case consideration as required under the law. What one student receives does not necessarily mean that other students with similar disabilities will receive the same accommodations. The laws protect students with disabilities from being measured in an area that they cannot show their true level of abilities. Reasonable modification allows students with disabilities an equal opportunity to perform at a standard equivalent to students without a disability. While an accommodation may present an advantage to students without a disability, it is not an advantage for a student with a disability, but an equalizer.

Example:

A student whose limitations in the physical task of writing or other fine motor manipulations may be an excellent writer even though he or she cannot print or type the letters and words. Thus, the physical act of writing is a non-essential task. The student’s mastery of language and course material must not, under the law, be judged by their ability to manipulate a pencil or pen, or by use of a keyboard. Accommodating the student by providing a scribe or allowing the use of computer software to record the student’s essay responses permits the student to show whether the student can write effectively and whether he or she has acquired the information and critical skills the instructor wished to convey in the course.

You should contact your professor as soon as you realize you are not doing well and ask for suggestions as to what might help. You should always do whatever you are able to do to be successful, like going to class, studying, going to tutoring, etc. If you have done these things and are still struggling, it is very important that you contact the ADA Coordinator to assess what you can do to be successful. It is, however, your responsibility to meet the course requirements, as is true of any student enrolled at DSCC.