Student ADA Accommodations

Americans with Disabilities Act

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) a disability is defined as an impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of an individual; a record of such an impairment; or, the perception that one has such an impairment.

The University of Massachusetts Medical School is firmly committed to providing full access to individuals with disabilities. In so doing, UMMS intends to fully comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, Diversity and Equal Opportunity Office guidelines, and Human Resources policies. Policies and procedures are in place to ensure that disabled applicants, students, staff, faculty, visitors, volunteers, and vendors do not experience discrimination in any way. The Diversity and Equal Opportunity Office, working in conjunction with the Department of Human Resources and the School Services Office, develops policies, procedures and training programs to ensure UMMS complies with all applicable federal and state regulations relating to individuals with disabilities. In addition, the Council on Equal Opportunity and Diversity evaluates policies regarding employees with disabilities, assesses adherence to these policies and makes recommendations for improvement to the Chancellor.

The Medical School, the Graduate School of Nursing, and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences consider all applicants who meet the admissions requirements, and will make every effort to provide reasonable accommodations.  It is the UMMS policy to comply with all the provisions of Chapter 15 1 C, Section 2B of the Massachusetts General Laws, as well as with all other applicable federal and state laws. Students who avail themselves of the provisions of this section will not be treated with prejudice or adversity. The School Services Office, working in collaboration with the Diversity and Equal Opportunity Office, shall coordinate all student disability issues for the schools.

Deborah Harmon Hines, PhD, serves as the ADA Student Coordinator.   All inquires should go directly to Dr. Hines at < deborah-harmon.hines@umassmed.edu > or 508-856-2444.  Once admitted, the student is responsible for notifying the Student ADA Coordinator of their disability, requesting academic accommodations in writing and providing appropriate documentation of the disability.  A student may request accommodations at any time prior to or during matriculation.   All requests for accommodations are reviewed and acted on by the Academic Accommodations Committee (below) which meets five times a year.  It is always the student’s choice whether or not to accept any recommended accommodation. 

Confidentiality is a strict practice of the Academic Accommodations Committee.  None of the ADA information goes into a student’s academic file.

Academic Accommodations Committee

After receiving and reviewing all requests for accommodations, the Academic Accommodations Committee (AAC) designs, implements and monitors individual accommodation plans for students with disabilities in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.  The AAC is comprised of faculty or staff representatives from the three schools, the Assistant Dean for Academic Achievement, the UMMS Learning Specialist and a representative from Graduate Medical Education. Other specialists are called in The AAC is chaired by Dr. Hines and staffed by Michael Baker.  Students requesting accommodations will receive responses to their requests in writing.

Appeals

Appeals to decisions made by the AAC go to the Deans of the respective schools. The appeals should be made in writing.  If a student feels a further hearing is needed, the next level of appeal is to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Equal Opportunity.  This appeal should also be done in writing.

Guidelines for Disability Documentation

These guidelines are designed to assist your clinician in preparing documentation of your disability to help determine the appropriate accommodation. Please forward documentation that meets these guidelines to the School Services Office.

  • Documentation must be provided by a clinician qualified to diagnose in the appropriate area of specialization.
  • Documentation must be on letterhead, typed, dated, and have an original signature.
  • Documentation is based on a current evaluation (usually within three years) and historical documents.
  • Documentation must include:
  1. A description of the functional limitations resulting from the disability.
  2. A description of current treatments and assistive devices and technologies with estimated effectiveness in ameliorating the impact of the disability.
  3. Clear support of the direct link to and need for the requested accommodation(s).

Guidelines for a Learning Disability Documentation  

You must submit documentation of a diagnosis of a learning disability.

Recommended psycho-educational evaluations include:

  1. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale (WAIS-R or WISC-R), including sub-scale scores.
  2. Standardized achievement tests:
    • Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-educational Battery
    • Stanford Achievement Test
    • California Achievement Test
    • Metropolitan Achievement Test
    • Iowa Test of Basic Skills
    • SPA Achievement Series

Additionally, you must document a history of this condition( K-12 IEP's, college accommodations, etc.)

 

 

 

 

Application Request Form