Disability Accommodation Procedures

The University will provide reasonable accommodations to facilitate students with disabilities access to and participation in University programs, events, classes, and administrative activities. The accommodation process generally has four steps: (1) the student requests specific accommodations; (2) the student submits appropriate supporting documentation; (3) review of the request and documentation by the Student Disability Services Committee; (4) issuance of a decision by the Student Disability Services Committee.

Requesting Accommodations

Students with disabilities who would like to request an accommodation to facilitate access to and participation in University programs, events, classes, and administrative activities should submit their request to the Student Disability Services Coordinator, who is responsible for overseeing the University’s compliance with the ADA and Section 504.

Accommodation requests relating to courses, programs of study, student housing, and dining should be submitted to the Student Disability Services Coordinator through the Student Disability Services online portal, which can be found on online at udallas.edu/ada-request.

All other accommodation requests, as well as any questions related to accommodations, should be submitted to the ADA Office at ada@udallas.edu.

Submitting Supporting Documentation

In order to qualify for a reasonable accommodation based on disability, a student must submit appropriate documentation of the student’s disability and related functional limitations for which he or she is requesting accommodation(s). It is the student’s responsibility to initiate contact with the Student Disability Services Coordinator and to submit appropriate documentation in a timely manner.

The University provides guidelines in order to assist students and their medical or other properly credentialed professionals to submit the appropriate documentation required before an accommodation based on disability is granted. For more information about documentation, as well as specific guidelines and verification forms, see the Student Disability Services documentation page: Documenting a Disability

In general terms, the University evaluates supporting documentation based on the following factors:

• Does the submitted documentation provide a clear diagnostic statement that describes how the student’s condition was diagnosed, information about the functional impact of the diagnosis, and suggestions of appropriate accommodations provided by a licensed or otherwise properly credentialed professional who has undergone appropriate and comprehensive training, has relevant experience, and has no personal relationship with the individual being evaluated?
• Are all documentation materials and evaluations personally typed and signed by the professional? Diagnoses written on prescription pads, handwritten, or stamped with a signature will not be accepted.
• Is the documentation current? Common sense and discretion will be used in accepting older documentation of conditions that are permanent or non-varying. Generally speaking, however, there should be appropriate documentation that is not older than three years. Also, in some cases, the documentation may need to be more recent. The ADA/Section 504 Coordinator will notify a student if updated or more recent documentation is needed in order to establish currency.

When a student provides documentation of his or her disability, the Student Disability Services Coordinator will make a copy of the documentation and will return the original back to the student if requested. Students may also scan the documentation and email or fax a copy to the Student Disability Services Coordinator.

Reviewing Accommodation Requests

Once the request is made and the supporting documentation is provided, the Student Disability Services Coordinator will submit the request and documentation to the University of Dallas Student Disability Services Committee for review. The Committee will determine if the student has a qualifying condition under the ADA/Section 504. The Student Disability Services Coordinator will notify the student of the Committee’s decision in a timely manner, generally within one to two (1-2) weeks after the request and documentation is submitted to the Committee. In some cases, the Student Disability Services Coordinator may request additional documentation from the student.

Request for any and all accommodations based on disability will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis with approval based on two factors:

• Is the accommodation requested appropriate? A diagnosis of a disorder/condition/syndrome in and of itself does not automatically qualify an individual for accommodations.
• Is the accommodation requested reasonable? Accommodations are designed to allow the student to meet the same essential elements of his or her selected course or program that are required of all students, with or without a disability.

Letters of Accommodation

If the Student Disability Services Committee authorizes a specific accommodation, the student will be provided with a letter of accommodation that serves to demonstrate the student’s right to receive reasonable accommodations in accordance with the ADA and Section 504, as well as the specific accommodations that the Committee has authorized/recommended. The student will also receive a letter from the Student Disability Services Coordinator that provides additional instructions to the student regarding the accommodation and its implementation.

Accommodations for Academic Courses

Accommodations for an academic course are intended to provide reasonable accommodations so that the student can participate in the educational opportunities offered by the University. Accommodations may not alter the essential or fundamental instruction being pursued in the course. Because the essential or fundamental instruction being pursued in a course or section of a course may vary, it is important to involve the professor in a discussion of the precise accommodations that should be implemented. Accommodations for academic courses are not granted for longer than the current academic year without a new request.

Conferring with the Professor

A student who has received a letter of accommodation with authorized/recommended accommodations for academic courses should meet with each of his or her professors to discuss the implementation of reasonable accommodations in the specific academic course.

Agreed Accommodations

If the student and professor are able to agree on reasonable accommodations, they should both sign the letter of accommodation, noting any alterations to the accommodations recommended in the letter.

The student then has the responsibility of returning the agreed letter of accommodation, or a copy, to the ADA/Section 504 Coordinator in a timely manner. Failure to timely return an approved letter of accommodation may result in delay in the implementation of approved accommodations.

The accommodations agreed upon by the student and professor generally should be implemented within one (1) week of the signing of the letter of accommodation. Accommodations are not retroactive.

Lack of Agreement regarding Accommodations

In some cases, a student and professor may disagree regarding the implementation of reasonable accommodations in a specific course.

The student should notify the Student Disability Services Coordinator as soon as possible if the student and professor are not able to come to an agreement regarding the reasonable accommodations. The Student Disability Services Coordinator will attempt to negotiate a resolution of the disagreement.

If the Student Disability Services Coordinator is unable to negotiate a resolution to the disagreement between the student and professor, or more than two (2) weeks have passed since the student notified the Student Disability Services Coordinator of the disagreement and no resolution has been reached, the student may appeal to the Dean (or designee) who oversees the course in question. The appeal request should be submitted in writing to the Student Disability Services Coordinator. The decision of the Dean (or designee) on the student’s appeal is final.

Accommodations for a Program of Study

Like accommodations for an academic course, accommodations in regard to a program of study are intended to provide reasonable accommodations so that the student can participate in the educational opportunities offered by the University. Accommodations may not alter the essential or fundamental instruction being pursued in the program of study. If the Student Disability Services Committee authorizes a student’s request for an accommodation relating to the student’s program of study, the letter of accommodation must be submitted to the Dean (or designee) of the student’s program of study. The Dean (or designee) will review the Committee’s recommendation and will issue his or her decision on what, if any, accommodations in regard to the program of study are reasonable. The student has the responsibility of returning the approved letter of accommodation, or a copy of it, to the Student Disability Services Coordinator in a timely manner. Failure to timely return an approved letter of accommodation may result in delay in the implementation of approved accommodations.

Accommodations Requiring Substitution of Courses

Accommodations that would require a substitution of courses that are ordinarily required (e.g., foreign language courses) are reviewed by the Chair of the applicable Department(s) and the Chair makes recommendations of substitute courses, if any, before the letter of accommodation is submitted to the Dean or designee of the student’s program of study.

The student has the responsibility of providing the letter of accommodation to the Chair for his or her review. In a timely manner, the Chair of the applicable Department(s) will identify recommended substitutions to the Dean or designee, or else an explanation for why substitutions cannot be recommended.

Appeals 

If the student is dissatisfied with the decision of the Dean (or designee) on the request for accommodation for a program of study, the student may appeal that decision to the Provost (or designee). The decision of the Provost (or designee) is final.

Accommodations Relating to Housing or Dining

If the Student Disability Services Committee authorizes accommodations relating to housing or dining, the student must submit his or her letter of accommodation to the Dean of Students (or designee). Accommodations relating to housing and dining are not granted for longer than the current academic year without a new request.

Accommodations Relating to Dietary Restrictions

The University’s food service provider, Aramark, is generally able to accommodate disability-based dietary restrictions. Aramark also works to accommodate other non-disability-based dietary restrictions for students. If a student is authorized to receive an accommodation based on dietary restrictions, Aramark must review the specific accommodations prior to submission of the letter of accommodation to the Dean of Students (or designee).

The student has the responsibility of providing the letter of accommodation to Aramark for its review. In a timely manner, Aramark’s representative will explain to the Dean of Students (or designee) how it will implement the authorized accommodations, or else certify that Aramark will be unable to meet the dietary restrictions authorized for the student.

Additional Information

The ADA process is interactive and ongoing; the Student Disability Coordinator engages the student if additional information is requested. A disability, in itself, is not an automatic qualification for ADA Accommodation, and from time to time, you may be asked to provide additional documentation.