Recent Legal Decisions
Reprinted by permission from Leslie Bethea, M.S. and Anne R. Thompson, Ph.D. Project PAACS, Mississippi State University.
Provision of accommodations
Students are not required to assume the responsibility for securing a necessary accommodation. The university is required to provide reasonable accommodations for a student's known disability so that the student has an equal opportunity to participate in the courses, activities, or programs. The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) ruled that a university may not charge students for necessary accommodations.
Expense of accommodations
Providing an auxiliary aid or incurring an expense to ensure access would not constitute undue hardship to the university. In determining what constitutes an undue hardship, the OCR views the entire financial resources of the university rather than any single department or college.
Accessible classrooms
A classroom's location must be changed to provide accessibility for a student with a mobility impairment. The university does not need to make every classroom accessible, but must provide for the participation of students with disabilities when "viewed in its entirety."
Extended time
Extended time is a reasonable accommodation for a student whose documentation specifically calls for that accommodation. The university is required to ensure that the student is provided additional time to complete tests and/or course work in order to provide an equal opportunity for that student.
Altered form of the exam
The form of an exam must be altered if the testing procedure puts a student with a disability at a disadvantage based on the student's documented disability. There may be an exception when the purpose of the test is to measure a particular skill.
Documentation of need for accommodation
The university may refuse to grant a student's request for an accommodation which is not specifically recommended in the student's documentation.
Handouts in alternate format
If a student with a visual impairment is enrolled in a class, the instructor must provide all handouts in the alternate format requested by the student. In addition, all handouts must be made available to students on the same day they are distributed to nondisabled students.
Reserve material in the library
The instructor must make course material on reserve in the library available in alternate formats for students with visual impairments enrolled in the course.
Confidentiality of diagnostic information
Faculty/staff do not have the right to access diagnostic information regarding a student's disability. Faculty/staff need only know the accommodations that are necessary to guarantee an equal opportunity for the student.
Personal liability
An individual faculty member who fails to provide an accommodation to a student with a documented disability may be held personally liable.
Academic freedom
Academic freedom does not permit instructors to decide if they will provide special aids and services for students in their classes who have documented disabilities.
Testing accommodations
Accommodations for testing such as readers, scribes, or the use of adaptive equipment must be provided for a student with a documented disability.
Personal services and aids
The university is not required to provide personal services such as attendant care or personal aids such as wheelchairs or eyeglasses.
Accessible programs
The university must operate its programs in the most integrated setting appropriate.
Preadmission
Preadmission inquiries as to whether a person has a disability are not permissible.
Accommodations for ACT/SAT tests
Scholarships based on ACT/SAT scores must allow for accommodations for students with documented disabilities.
Admissions criteria
The university may not use as sole criteria for admission or rejection a test that has been shown to be discriminatory for persons with disabilities.
Job announcement postings
Postings for job announcements must be readily accessible to students with visual impairments.
Identification of 504 coordinator
The name of the Section 504 coordinator must be identified in recruiting materials such as application forms and school bulletins.
Housing options
A student with a disability is entitled to have more than one housing option presented if options exist for nondisabled students.
Student may file grievance
A student with a disability may not only file a claim with the U. S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, but may also file a complaint with HUD (Housing for Urban Development).
Housing room assignments
A student with a disability who needs attendant care is not automatically assigned to a single room.
Off-campus housing
If the institution provides assistance to nondisabled students for off-campus housing, then the institution must provide options to students with disabilities for accessible off-campus housing.
Weight training
University must provide comparable opportunities for weight training to students with disabilities.
Career counseling
Career counselors are prohibited from counseling a student with a disability into more restrictive career paths than are recommended to nondisabled students with similar abilities and interests.
