IMPORTANT: Please note that you should not delay meeting with us out of concern for not having the right paperwork. Our Accessibility Services Coordinator will discuss specific third-party documentation needs during the Welcome Meeting and steps you can take after the meeting is complete. Our priority is meeting with you, not reviewing your paperwork.
Accessibility Services utilizes a holistic and equitable approach to supporting disabled students and making accommodation determinations. One of the ways this is achieved is that we do not require documentation as a part of the SCTCC Accessibility Services Application process. In some cases, during the Welcome Meeting, Accessibility Services may request that the student provide third-party documentation so that appropriate accommodations can be identified.
Documentation is typically requested to gain third-party professional insight into the reasonableness of an accommodation. The documentation provided to Accessibility Services should clearly reflect that. Sufficient documentation may include assessments, reports, and/or letters from qualified evaluators, professionals, or institutions. Common sources of documentation are health care providers, psychologists, and diagnosticians.
Additionally, your documentation should have the following (as appropriate) on official letterhead:
- Credentials of the evaluator
- Diagnostic statement of the disability/underlying condition
- Description of current functional limitations in the college setting
- Description of the stability of the disability/underlying condition
- Any additional information that you and your provider believe would be beneficial to the accommodations process.
Documentation may be submitted by email (acc@sctcc.edu), Fax (320-308-5981), or in person (Office: 1-454, Near Door 4). Once you have sent your documentation in, please schedule a “Check In” meeting with the coordinator via Bookings.
Our documentation guidelines reflect a nationally recognized set of standards as set forth by the professional organization Association of Higher Education And Disability (AHEAD).
Home - AHEAD - Association on Higher Education And Disability
- Documentation should be current and relevant
- There are many qualified sources for documentation of your disability, however, your documentation is encouraged to have the following (as appropriate) on official letterhead:
- Credentials of the evaluator
- Diagnostic statement identifying the disability
- Description of the diagnostic methodology used
- Description of the current functional limitations
- Description of the expected progression or stability of the disability
- Description of current and past accommodations, services, and or medications
- Suggestions for accommodations, adaptive devices, assuasive services, compensatory strategies, and or collateral support services
- It is key that your documentation have your disability/underlying condition explicitly listed. In cases where the coordinator has requested additional information, please be sure that your documentation provided directly connects to the reasonableness of the accommodation in question.
- There are some documents (for example: Highschool IEPs) that do not directly list your disability but accommodation support for your disability. Please be sure to check your documentation for this before submission.
- Why can’t I use my IEP as documentation?
- You may submit your IEP as supplemental documentation/information for the coordinator in any scenario; however, IEPs tend not to list the student’s disability explicitly and they tend to list the accommodation or modification supports that the student was given to be successful in high school. Due to these reasons, IEPs cannot be accepted in situations where Accessibility Services has requested documentation to make an accommodation decision.
- Why do I need documentation for my disability?
- The short answer is you don’t need documentation to be eligible for Accessibility Services.
- To go more in depth, Accessibility Services doesn’t require documentation to apply for services. During the Welcome Meeting (learn more about the Welcome Meeting here), students work with the coordinator to create their plan. If the coordinator needs additional information to identify a disability-related barrier, they may ask for additional third-party documentation.
- For more information on the Welcome Meeting and how accommodations are determined, read the top two questions on these FAQs.
- What do I do if I can’t get sufficient documentation?
- If the coordinator requested documentation to approve you for a certain accommodation, but you are unable to obtain sufficient documentation, we recommend connecting back with the coordinator to discuss accommodation alternatives OR additional resources on campus.
- What are good examples of sufficient documentation?
- Good examples of documentation would be:
- An assessment that shows your disability/underlying condition from a qualified evaluator, professional, or intuition (such as: Healthcare Providers, Psychologists, or Diagnosticians)
- A report of your disability/underlying condition from a qualified evaluator, professional, or intuition (such as: Healthcare Providers, Psychologists, or Diagnosticians)
- A letter from a qualified evaluator, professional, or intuition (such as: Healthcare Providers, Psychologists, or Diagnosticians)
- An IEP Evaluation Report (only in certain cases, please connect with the coordinator to see if your IEP Evaluation Report would be sufficient!)
- Many more!
- Good examples of documentation would be:
- What wouldn’t be sufficient documentation?
- Insufficient documentation is something…
- that is not current or relevant
- that does not list your disability/underlying condition
- that does not have your name on it
- that is written by an unqualified source (i.e. a parent, a doctor that isn’t your own, etc.)
- Insufficient documentation is something…