Disability Services Office

Welcome to the Disability Services Office at Central Alabama Community College. We look forward to assisting you in your college journey. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (as amended) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504)(as amended) prohibits discrimination against any qualified person with a disability regardless of the disability. It is the policy of Central Alabama Community College that no qualified person with a disability shall be subjected to discrimination because of the disability under any program or activity conducted or sponsored by the College. Central Alabama Community College seeks to provide accessible, affordable, quality education; promote economic growth; and enhance the quality of life in its service area and beyond. Moreover, the college strives to foster a welcoming environment to all of its students and works in good faith to meet the needs of our students.

Application Process and ADA Coordinators

Disclosure of a disability is voluntary. However, if a student with a disability has a need related to his/her condition and would like to request reasonable accommodations; he/she must contact the ADA Coordinator to schedule an appointment to complete a Request for Services Application/Intake form to inform the official of his/her needs. The student must provide reasonable notice of the need for accommodations to the ADA Coordinator on the campus where he/she is enrolled. The ADA Coordinator for the Alexander City campus and the Pratt’s Mill Center is Tiffanie Character, whose office is located on the Alexander City campus on the first floor of the Admin Building ( phone: 256-215- 4269, e-mail: tcharacter@cacc.edu). The ADA Coordinator for the Childersburg campus and Talladega Center is Leslie Mitchell, whose office is located in Building A on the Childersburg campus (phone: 256-378- 2003, e-mail: lmitchell@cacc.edu ).

Disability Documentation

Before most accommodations can be made, the student must present documentation of his/her disability. The documentation must be dated within the last three years. If the disability is of a physical nature, the documentation must come from the appropriate medical doctor. If the student has a learning disability, the evaluation should include test results and a statement of the disability from an appropriate mental health professional, testing agency or medical physician. It is the student’s responsibility to provide documentation of his/her disability. The student is responsible for any cost related to obtaining the appropriate documentation to support his/her need for reasonable accommodations.

Reasonable Accommodations

In providing reasonable accommodations, an educational institution is not required to waive or modify program requirements or lower academic standards that are reasonable and nondiscriminatory. Once the student presents the proper documentation to the ADA Coordinator and is certified to receive reasonable accommodations, the ADA Coordinator will complete a Disability Certification form, which lists the reasonable accommodations to be provided. After registering for classes each semester, the student will schedule a meeting with the ADA Coordinator. The Disability Certification form will be reviewed, and the ADA Coordinator will complete a Reasonable Accommodation form for each class to give to the student. It will be the responsibility of the student to present these forms to his/her instructors, preferably within the first week of class, so that accommodations may be provided as early as possible. Reasonable accommodations are not retroactive, thus it is important that students meet with the ADA Coordinator and provide documentation of any disabilities as soon as possible.

Steps to Receiving Reasonable Accommodations

In order to receive accommodations at the College, students should follow the procedures listed below.

  1. The student must schedule an appointment to meet with the ADA Coordinator on the campus where he/she is registered to discuss his/her need for reasonable accommodations.
  2. During the appointment, the student will complete the Request for Services Application/Intake form.
  3. During (or after) the appointment, the student must provide proper documentation of his/her disability to the ADA Coordinator. Please see the documentation criteria as listed in the section titled Criteria for Disability Documentation.
  4. After being certified to receive reasonable accommodations at the College, the ADA Coordinator will complete a Disability Certification form which lists the reasonable accommodations to be provided.
  5. At the beginning of each term of enrollment, the student must schedule a meeting with the ADA Coordinator. The Coordinator will review the Disability Certification form and complete Reasonable Accommodation form(s) for the student to present to his/her instructors.
  6. The student should present the Reasonable Accommodation form(s) to the instructor(s) during the first week of class. After the instructor signs the form, the student must return the form to the ADA Coordinator who will copy the form and provide a copy to the instructor.
  7. Steps 5 and 6 will be repeated for each new term of enrollment with Central Alabama Community College.

If a student has a concern regarding reasonable accommodations and services received at the College, the student should contact the ADA Coordinator on the campus where the student is enrolled in classes.

Criteria for Disability Documentation

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504)(as amended) and the Americans with Disability Act of 1990 (as amended) state that qualified students with disabilities who meet the technical and academic standards for colleges, universities, and institutions may be entitled to reasonable accommodations. A person with a disability is defined by the ADA as an individual who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities (such as caring for oneself, talking, seeing, hearing, reading, thinking and learning); a record of such an impairment; or is regarded as having such an impairment. Central Alabama Community College does NOT provide disability documentation for students. It is the student’s responsibility to provide appropriate documentation and to request accommodations. Appropriate documentation is defined as that which meets the following criteria: Health Condition, Mobility, Hearing, Speech, or Visual Impairment A letter or report from treating physician, orthopedic specialist, audiologist, speech pathologist, or ophthalmologist (as appropriate), including:

  1. Clearly stated diagnosis ruling out alternative explanations and diagnosis;
  2. Defined levels of functioning and any limitations;
  3. Current treatment and medication;
  4. Current letter/report (within the past twelve months), dated, and signed by the treating physician or specialist.

Psychological Disorder A letter or report from mental health professional (psychologist, neuropsychologist, licensed professional counselor), which includes:

  1. Clearly stated diagnosis (DSM-V criteria)ruling out alternative explanations and diagnosis;
  2. Defined levels of functioning and any limitations;
  3. Supporting Documentation (i.e. test data, history, observations, etc.);
  4. Current treatment and medication;
  5. Current letter/report (within the past twelve months), dated, and signed by the individual who completed the assessment.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) A comprehensive evaluation report by rehabilitation counselor, speech-language pathologist orthopedic specialist, and/or neuropsychologist (or other specialist as appropriate), including:

  1. Assessment of cognitive abilities, including processing speed and memory;
  2. Analysis of educational achievement skills and limitations (reading comprehension, written language, spelling, and mathematical abilities);
  3. Defined levels of functioning and limitations in all affected areas (communication, vision, hearing, mobility, psychological, seizures, etc.);
  4. Current treatment and medication;
  5. Current letter/report (post-rehabilitation and within the past twelve months), dated, and signed by the treating physician or specialist.

Learning Disability A comprehensive evaluation report from a clinical psychologist, psychiatrist, neuropsychologist, school psychologist, learning disability specialist, or diagnostician, including:

  1. Clear statement of presenting problem; diagnostic interview;
  2. Educational history documenting the impact of the learning disabilities;
  3. Alternative explanations and diagnosis ruled out;
  4. Relevant test data with standard scores are provided to support conclusions, including at least: (a) WAISR; (b) Woodcock-Johnson Pyschoeducational Battery-Revised to substantiate any processing problems including Written Language (and Spelling), Reading, Comprehension, and Math (Calculation and Reasoning), and © Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive Processing Battery to substantiate any processing problems;
  5. Clearly stated diagnosis of a learning disability based upon DSM-V criteria and supported by more than one subtest score;
  6. Defined levels of functioning and any limitations, supported by evaluation data;
  7. Current report (within three years of enrollment date), dated, and signed. Note: High School IEP, 504 Plan, and/or a letter from physician or other professional will not be sufficient to document a learning disability. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD)

A comprehensive evaluation report from a physician, psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, neurologist, or neuropsychologist, including:

  1. Clear statement of presenting problem; diagnostic interview;
  2. Evidence of early and current impairment in at least at two different environments (comprehensive history);
  3. Alternative explanations and diagnoses ruled out;
  4. Relevant test data with standard scores are provide to support conclusions, including at least : (a) WAISR or WAIS III(b) Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery- Revised, including Written Language (and Spelling), Reading Comprehension, Math, (Calculation and Reasoning), and © Behavioral Assessment Instruments for ADHD normed on adults; (d) Tests of Variables of Attention (TOVA);
  5. Clearly stated diagnosis of ADHD based upon DSM-V criteria and supported by more than one score;
  6. Defined Levels of functioning and any limitations, supported by evaluation data;
  7. Current report (within three years of enrollment date), dated, and signed. Note: High School IEP’s, 504 Plans, and/or a letters from a physician or other professional are not sufficient to document AD/HD. Medications cannot be used to imply a diagnosis.

Resources

A recent report from the National Center for Education Statistics states that over 2.5 million college students, around 11%, live with a disability. As part of our effort to support students in their pursuit of a rewarding and successful college experience, we at BestColleges.com have compiled a collection of resources for students with disabilities.

The collection http://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/#disability includes information for:

Each guide includes an outline of student rights, strategies for success, a listing of assistive technologies, and a curated list of scholarships. Please take a look at the collection of guides for students with disabilities http://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/#disability BestColleges.com partners with HigherEducation.com to provide students with direct connections to schools and programs suiting their educational goals.