Many faculty have found it highly effective and helpful to include a syllabus statement which directs students with disabilities in need of accommodations to the Office of Accessibility Services. Please copy and paste the following statement into your syllabus:
Students who need accommodations because of a disability may contact the UVU Office of Accessibility Services (OAS), located on the Orem Campus in LC 312. To schedule an appointment or to speak with a counselor, call the OAS office at 801-863-8747. Deaf/Hard of Hearing individuals, email nicole.hemmingsen@uvu.edu or text 385-208-2677.
For employees who require ADA accommodations, please contact:
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Utah Valley University strives to create an environment of access and inclusion for all students. Many students with disabilities are already working with the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS). However, many students first disclose their disability or academic concerns to a faculty/staff member before establishing services with OAS. In the event that a student comes to you to first to share a concern about their disability or health concern, here are some ways to connect them with our office.
Making a Referral to the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS)
Students with disabilities experience functional limitations that may pose a barrier to access in the academic setting. OAS works with a wide range of students experiencing various disabilities. In addition to working with students with physical and sensory disabilities, OAS also works with students who have:
This is not an exhaustive list, but it does represent common reasons for which students seek services through OAS. Many students may not initially be aware of the services offered at OAS and will first share information about their conditions with faculty.
Please do not issue any accommodations for a student unless you have received an official Letter of Accommodation for the current semester from the Office of Accessibility Services. Please implement only those accommodations that are listed on the Letter of Accommodation from and refrain from adding additional accommodations.
If you have questions about whether OAS is an appropriate resource for a student, or you have questions about the accommodation process, you may contact our office at: 801-863-8747.
If a student is struggling in your class, don’t automatically assume that it means the student has a disability. There are many different factors that can cause a student to experience academic difficulty. If you notice that a student is struggling in your class, or the student comes to you for help but chooses not to disclose specific information, the best course of action is to engage with the student directly and simply share information about various campus resources available to them such as:
This allows the student to make the determination as to which resources may best meet their needs given their current situation. A full list of UVU resources can be found through the Office of Teaching and Learning.
Student confidentiality and right to self-disclosure
Only the student can decide to disclose their disability, or to pursue information about services available in the OAS offices. It is not appropriate to directly ask a student if they have a disability based on an assumption, ask what their diagnosis is, or to share information about a student’s disability with other members of the class. It is essential that all information obtained about a student’s disability, either through a student’s self-disclosure to you or via a Letter of Accommodation issued by OAS, be kept confidential. All information that a student shares with a faculty member is to be used specifically for arranging reasonable accommodations for the course of study, and those conversations should be held in private.
Additional Resources in Creating Accessible Classrooms or Programs
ACCESSIBILITY FOR INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS: GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR DOCUMENTS
Providing accessible instructional materials for your classes is for the benefit of all of your students as accessibility removes the barriers students may face from obtaining the information you provide as a professor. Making your instructional materials accessible allows assistive technology—such as screen-reading software—to read aloud the content for users who cannot see the content. Screen-reading software is commonly used by people with visual impairments and sometimes those with learning disabilities.
Addressing accessibility in documents you are using as instructional material can be accomplished with features and tools in Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat Professional. Though the actual implementation may differ between software applications, a number of concepts are similar, and it is therefore important to understand the technical foundation of accessibility.
Formal requests for accommodations will come to you in an official Letter of Accommodation from OAS. It will be sent to you via email to your UVU account on record. The accommodations outlined is these letters are not designed to give students with disabilities an unfair advantage, but rather to give them an equal opportunity to demonstrate mastery of course content.
Although a student may request an academic accommodation at any time with our office, the student should make the request as early as possible since accommodations are not retroactive. Some accommodations may take more time to implement than others. The student should follow established procedures to ensure that OAS has enough time to review the request and provide an appropriate accommodation.
OAS does not ask or require instructors to modify essential course requirements for the sake of the student. All students, regardless of disability, are expected to complete all the requirements of the course. If a faculty member feels that an approved accommodation would alter the essential elements of the course, it is essential that they consult with the OAS counselor named on the Letter of Accommodation to determine appropriate actions and solutions.
For students with testing accommodations outlined in their Letter of Accommodation, you may set up their exams in the Accommodative Testing Center through Register Blast. Information regarding that process may be found here: https://www.uvu.edu/testingservices/info/faculty.html.
Students receive accommodations through the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS). Accommodations are determined on a case-by-case through an interactive process between the student and the OAS counselor. The interactive process includes: OAS application completed by the student, documentation of disability, OAS Intake Meeting, and any follow-up needed to ensure reasonable accommodations have been considered.
OAS provides accommodations to students based on the functional limitations of a disability. Accommodations are approved so long as doing so does not impose an undue hardship on the university or fundamentally alter the educational program. OAS partners with the student, faculty, and appropriate campus departments to establish the accommodations needed to remove the student’s unique access barriers.
Faculty who receive an official Letter of Accommodation (LOA) from OAS are responsible to provide the listed accommodations in a timely manner. Other responsibilities include:
The OAS serves students and faculty equally. We assist students with disabilities once they are admitted to UVU by facilitating accommodations for the purpose of ensuring equal access. For faculty, we are your resource and collaborator in ensuring the academic accommodations are in place and effective. If you have questions or concerns regarding the implementation of an accommodation, OAS is here to help you. We provide a variety of resources to assist faculty, including but not limited to:
Faculty resources for working with students with disabilities
