WCSU Faculty/Staff Rights and Responsibilities

WCSU Faculty and Staff have the right to:

• Hold all students to the same essential course requirements and behavior expectations.
• Request verification of a student’s eligibility for any requested accommodations. Such verification will be in the form of a letter written by AAS and delivered by AAS directly to the faculty member via email. (Note: AAS is the only office designated to review disability documentation and determine eligibility for appropriate accommodations).
• Consult with AAS regarding alternative accommodations if he/she believes the accommodation would result in a fundamental alteration of the course.
• Expect the student to initiate accommodation requests through AAS.

WCSU faculty and staff have the responsibility to:

• Identify and establish essential functions, abilities, skills, and knowledge of their courses and evaluate all students on this basis.
• Provide accommodations only to students who are registered with AAS. It is NOT your responsibility to provide accommodations to students who are not registered with AAS.
• Use a syllabus statement and class announcement to invite students to disclose their needs to AAS.
• Act immediately upon getting a student’s accommodation letter by providing the accommodation(s) or by contacting AAS (if unsure about a request).
• Work to ensure that all audio-visual materials used in class are accessible (e.g., that videos shown are captioned for students with hearing impairments, etc.).
• Treat and protect all disability-related information as confidential.

Student Rights and Responsibilities

A qualified student with a disability at WCSU has the right to:

• Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities available through WCSU.
• Reasonable and appropriate accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids and services determined on an individual case-by-case basis.
• Appropriate confidentiality of all information regarding their disability, except when disclosures are required or permitted by law.
• Information is available in alternate formats.

A student with a disability at WCSU has the responsibility to:

• Meet WCSU qualifications and maintain essential University standards and requirements for courses, programs, services, and activities.
• Abide by the University’s Code of Conduct.
• Self-identify to AccessAbility Services in a timely manner as an individual with a disability and provide documentation that meets the AAS documentation guidelines when seeking any accommodation.
• Follow AAS policies and procedures for obtaining accommodations, academic adjustments, auxiliary aids, and services.
• Follow WCSU policies and procedures as set forth by the University.
• Seek information, counsel, and assistance as necessary.

WCSU Rights and Responsibilities

WCSU has the right to:

• Establish essential functions, skills, knowledge, and standards for courses, programs, services, degree requirements, jobs, and activities, and evaluate students on this basis.
• Request and receive current documentation that supports requests for accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids and services.
• Select among equally effective and appropriate accommodations, adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids and services in consultation with students with disabilities.
• Deny a request for accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aides and services if, based on the assessment of AAS, an individual fails to provide the required documentation, the documentation does not demonstrate the need for the requested accommodation, documentation is outdated in relation to the current educational situation, and/or the requested accommodation imposes a fundamental alteration to a program, service or activity.

WCSU has the responsibility to:

• Practice non-discrimination in accordance with federal and state laws by evaluating current and prospective students without regard to their disability.
• Provide, in a timely fashion, information regarding policies and procedures to students with disabilities and assure its availability in accessible formats upon request.
• Provide reasonable and appropriate accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids and services for students with disabilities upon a timely request by a student.
• Provide courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities that are available and usable in the most integrated and appropriate settings when viewed in their entirety.
• Maintain appropriate confidentiality of records and communications, except where disclosure is authorized by the student or required by law.