Services for students with disabilities are provided to students who request them. It is a personal decision to disclose the existence of a disability and to request accommodation, and a decision not to disclose will be respected. While academic accommodations can be requested any time during a semester, please be aware that academic accommodations cannot be made retroactively and do not take effect until the student has registered with the Counseling and Career Development Center and the instructor has been provided with an accommodation letter.
Individuals must reapply for accommodations each semester they are a student at Montgomery Community College. Services are available virtually, on the phone, and in person.
WHAT IS A DISABILITY?
A disability under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act is described as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of the individual. Examples include:
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder
• Blindness/Visual Impairment
• Deaf/Hard of hearing
• Learning Disabilities
• Physical Disabilities
• Psychiatric Disabilities
• Speech and Language Disabilities
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Other disabilities that include conditions affecting one or more of the body’s systems.
HOW TO REQUEST ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS
1. Schedule an intake interview with Montgomery Community College’s Counselor to complete necessary forms.
2. Submit documentation of the special needs/accommodations/disability which will be used to evaluate requests for reasonable accommodations and/or auxiliary aids. Although helpful, an Individualized Education Program (IEP) is not sufficient for documenting a disability or receiving reasonable accommodations. Documentation must include the following:
• A diagnostic statement identifying the special need/accommodations/disability, date of the most current diagnostic evaluation, and the date of the original diagnosis.
• A description of the diagnostic tests, methods, and/or criteria used.
• A description of the current functional impact of the special needs/accommodations/disability which includes specific test results and the examiner’s narrative interpretation.
• Treatment, medications, and/or assistive devices/services currently prescribed or in use.
• A description of the expected progression or stability of the impact of the special needs/accommodations/disability over time, particularly in the next few years.
• The credentials of the diagnosing professional if not clear from the letterhead or other forms.
3. The counselor will review and evaluate the documentation which will include the impact of the documentation on the goals and standards of the academic program, course, and/or activity. The student will be notified once documentation is reviewed to determine whether it meets the established criteria, verifies the existence of a disability, and establishes how the requested accommodation will be effective. The process of determining reasonable accommodations is a collaborative effort between you, the college’s counselor, a professional providing the documentation, and the course instructor or program director, if necessary.
4. The Counseling Center will issue an accommodation letter to the student’s instructor(s) if reasonable accommodations are determined. Each semester thereafter, the student must repeat the process by submitting appropriate documentation, completing forms, and meeting with the counselor to develop appropriate accommodations.
5. Individuals may use the formal or informal process for dispute resolution, if necessary (see Student Handbook under Student Grievance/Complaint Procedure).
Montgomery Community College recognizes that disabilities include mobility, sensory, health, psychological, and learning disabilities. It is our intent to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. There are three kinds of accommodations that are not considered reasonable:
(1) It is not a reasonable accommodation if making the accommodation or allowing participation poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others;
(2) It is not a reasonable accommodation if making the accommodation means making a substantial change in an essential element of the curriculum (educational viewpoint) or a substantial alteration in the manner in which services are provided; and
(3) It is not a reasonable accommodation if it poses an undue financial or administrative burden.
