Faculty and Staff

You should inform the student that you need official notification from SDS about his or her accommodations. Faculty should not work unilaterally with students to provide accommodations, as they may not have the expertise to determine whether the student has a qualified disability and/or what is needed or required by law. If a student informs you about a disability but does not provide you with any official notification, you must promptly refer the student to SDS either by putting a referral in Starfish or sending an email to the SDS office directly. Students can also be guided to complete a Disability Self-Identification form. The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) intends for faculty to be part of the accommodation process, and that means connecting students with disabilities to the appropriate office when they mention a disability or ask for accommodations.

Mandatory academic adjustments are nonnegotiable. They are required by law and you must honor them. These are generally measures like extra time on exams or provision of sign language interpreters. However, in some instances, more discussion will be needed to determine whether a particular request is appropriate. For instance, some students may benefit from more time on assignments because of the way their disability affects them. If an academic adjustment notice includes a note like this or some other special instructions, be sure to review it. Contact SDS for more information or if you are unsure how to accommodate a student.

We cannot require instructors to change attendance requirements, but we encourage an interactive discussion to determine whether the attendance policy can be modified, and if so, to what extent. For more information on determining whether to be flexible with the attendance policy, visit the Attendance and Disability page in the Faculty and Staff portion of the SDS website. Please also feel free to contact SDS at any time with questions or concerns.

If a student requests an accommodation that could fundamentally alter an assignment or the intended learning outcomes, it may not be appropriate. For instance, if a student is taking a public speaking class and is required to give speeches in the class, it likely would be a fundamental alteration to allow a written paper in lieu of the speech. SDS will work with the instructor to determine whether an accommodation is not appropriate and attempt to devise one that is. Students should not negotiate accommodations directly with faculty, and faculty members should immediately refer students who attempt to do so to SDS.

If a student has a medical emergency, you should call 911. As non-medical personnel, faculty and staff are not expected to and should not provide treatment. For non-emergency health concerns, please contact Student Health Services at 212.229.1671.