Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

 

As an instructor, you have the closest immediate contact with students who have disabilities and the university relies upon you to be sensitive to those who indicate that they have special needs as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In some cases these students will have already identified their need for accommodation to the SDS Director, and some accommodation may have already been arranged. In other cases the student may request that you make some accommodation. Should you receive such a request the best response on your part is to ask the student to tell you exactly what kind of help he/she will need. Inquire if the student has contact Student Disability Services at CMU’s main campus. In this context there are no predetermined accommodations since people with disabilities have unique needs. Therefore, the specific accommodation will be arranged by the Director of Student Disability Services if necessary, and the instructor will be notified if applicable. No student should be forced into an accommodation. 

 

Confidentiality of all disability information is essential. At no time should the class be informed that a student has a disability, except at the student’s express request. All disability information which the student gives to the instructor is to be used specifically for arranging reasonable accommodations for her/his course of study. 

 

Based on university policy, CMU’s Off-Campus Programs expects a student with a disability to be responsible for making the nature of her/his disability and need for accommodation known to the university. Specifically, CMU’s off-Campus Programs as a unit within the university invites and encourages this communication through statements in such documents as the Off-Campus Programs Bulletin, admission applications, marketing materials and all syllabi through the Syllabus Build Tool. 

 

The following statement is automatically included on all syllabi in the SBT: 

 

CMU provides individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations to participate in educational programs, activities and services.  Students with disabilities requiring accommodations to participate in class activities or meet course requirements should contact Susie Rood, Director of Student Disability Services at (800) 950-1144, extension 3018 or email her at rood1se@cmich.edu, at least 4 weeks prior to registering for class.  Student may find additional information and forms at http://www.cmich.edu/Student_Disability_Services.htm.  Note to faculty:  CMU Administration will notify you if applicable; otherwise, the student will provide a “Notification Letter to the Instructor” outlining the accommodations the student is approved to receive.

 

The following guidelines are meant to make the process of reasonably accommodating a student’s need efficient and effective. 

 

  1. The student must contact CMU’s Student Disability Services office to inform them of the need for accommodation. The student may also submit their request at https://netconnect.cmich.edu/disabilityservices/
  2. The Director of Student Disability Services will evaluate the student’s request to determine if he/she is eligible to receive an accommodation and if the accommodation requested is reasonable and appropriate given the disability which has been documented by a certified professional.
  3. If the accommodation is granted, the Director of Student Disability Services will provide the student with a “Notification Letter to Instructor” letter which outlines the approved accommodations. The student must request an accommodation for each course. Granted accommodations for one course may not be applicable for another course.
  4. The Center will assist the Director of Student Disability Services and the student in making the arrangements for the approved accommodations.

 

 

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