Faculty Rights & Responsibilities

Faculty and staff have the right to:

• Hold all students to the same essential course requirements and grading standards.
• Request verification of a student's eligibility for any requested accommodations. Such verification will be in the form of a letter written by DSS and delivered by the student directly to you. (Note: DSS is the only office designated to review disability documentation and determine eligibility for appropriate accommodations. Faculty should not view this documentation)
• Consult with DSS staff regarding alternative accommodations.
• Expect all students to observe academic standards and code of conduct as outlined in the course syllabus and University policies.
• Expect the student to initiate accommodation requests.
• Request that exams be administered in a secure and monitored environment.

Faculty and staff have the following responsibilities:

• Identify and establish essential functions, abilities, skills, and knowledge of their courses and evaluate students on this basis. Students with disabilities should meet the same course essential functions as their peers.
• Provide accommodations only to students who are registered with DSS. It is NOT your responsibility to provide accommodations to students who aren’t registered with DSS.
• Use a syllabus statement and class announcements to invite students to disclose their needs.
• Act immediately upon getting a student's request for accommodations by providing the service or by contacting DSS (if unsure about 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.)
• Consider incorporating principles of Universal Design for Learning in your teaching.
• Treat and protect all disability-related information as confidential medical information. For example, keep printed items, LOAs or emails regarding student disability-related information in a protected location.
• Clearly communicate your testing procedures with the student and with the Testing Services Center (TSC) or DSS office by completing an Exam Administration form upon request.
• Consult with students with disabilities and DSS in providing appropriate accommodations.

NOTE: Faculty do NOT have the right to ask students if they have a disability. For those students registered with DSS, faculty do NOT have the right to ask about the nature of the disability. If students choose to disclose their disability, this information should be treated confidentially.