DISABILITIES
SERVICES
The Office of ADA Services for Students
Millsaps College
Millsaps
College is committed to compliance with the American Disabilities
Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. These laws
ensure equal access to college and university programs for otherwise
qualified students with disabilities and that the College will not
discriminate in the recruitment, admission, education process, or
treatment of students. Students who have self-identified, provided
documentation of disability, and requested reasonable accommodations
are entitled to receive approved modifications of programs, appropriate
academic adjustments, or auxiliary aids that enable them to participate
in and benefit from all education programs and activities.
Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states that: “any
person who 1) has a physical or mental impairment which substantially
limits one or more major life activities, 2) has a record of such
an impairment, or 3) is regarded as having such an impairment.”
Requests
for Services
Any student wishing to receive details about services to disabled
students available at Millsaps
College should initially contact the office of Patrick
Cooper,
Director of ADA Services prior to the beginning of the upcoming
semester. Mr. Cooper will provide information about
the procedure and make suggestions based on a student’s particular
disability and academic history. This office will maintain individual
files containing ADA documentation.
Documentation
and Its Evaluation
The documentation must be no more than three years old and must
be completed by a physician if a physical disability and by a psychiatrist,
psychologist, or certified educational specialist if the disability
is psychological or a learning disability. When completed, the documentation
for student services, should be mailed to:
Mr.
Patrick Cooper, Director
ADA Services for Students
Millsaps College
1701 North State Street
Jackson, MS 39210-0001
Email: Patrick.Cooper@millsaps.edu
Within
a reasonable time of receipt of the documentation, the ADA Director
will, in conjunction with other necessary college personnel, determine
the accommodations that the College will provide. The student will
be notified of the accommodations that are recommended and must
then meet with the ADA Director to work out the logistics of providing
these accommodations. It will then be the student’s responsibility
to show this official letter to each of his/her professors and request
from them the accommodations needed.
The
Director will serve as a liaison between the disabled student
and
his/her faculty and Student Affairs through his/her college career
to ensure that his/her special needs are being addressed. He
is
also the student’s initial contact should he/she need to
have accommodations changed, to coordinate accommodations such
as readers
or individual testing, and to refer students to various offices
on campus responsible for providing academic support.
Student Rights
The following are considered basic rights ensured by Millsaps College
to all students with documented disabilities:
* Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities
and facilities offered or available through Millsaps College.
* Individualized assessment by a professional of the documentation
submitted supporting the disabling condition and anticipated effects
of that disability on functioning physically, socially, and academically
in our college community.
* The provision of reasonable, appropriate accommodations, academic
adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids as a result of the above assessment.
* Appropriate confidentiality of all information related to his/her
disability.
* To have information (where reasonable) available to him/her in
a format accessible to him/her.
Student
Responsibilities
Every student with a documented disability will be responsible for:
*
Meeting the essential qualifications and institutional standards
set by Millsaps College.
* Disclosing the disability in a timely manner to the ADA Director.
* Following the specific procedures described by the College to
obtain reasonable and appropriate accommodations, academic adjustments,
and/or auxiliary aids.
* Providing documentation from an appropriate professional source
that meets the criteria spelled out by Millsaps College.
* Obtaining accommodations or support needs other than those the
College has agreed to provide in the accommodation’s plan.
* Notifying individual faculty members of their disabilities and
accommodations by presenting his/her accommodation form to each
professor (when accommodations are needed) and requesting those
accommodations. The faculty and student will then discuss the best
way to satisfy the student’s need for accommodations.
* Making contact with individuals and offices providing additional
support on campus.
* Developing the self-advocacy skills, motivation, organizational
skills, and maturity necessary to be successful academically in
college.
* To notify the Director of any problems or changes needed in the
accommodations provided.
Faculty
Responsibilities
* Adopt teaching practices and evaluation methods which promote
equal access.
* Collaborate with the ADA Services and ADA Director for your school
to provide accommodations.
* Contact you’re the Director of ADA Services with any questions
or problems.
* Treat all matters related to students with disabilities in a confidential
manner.
* Consult with the Director of ADA Services if a disagreement between
a student and faculty member regarding an accommodation is not resolved.
* May request a written agreement before allowing the student to
tape record the lecture/class.
* Do not provide academic adjustments unless a faculty notification
form has been processed by ADA Services.
Millsaps
College strives to provide a supportive, stimulating “learning
environment which increases knowledge, deepens understanding of
faith, and inspires the development of mature citizens with the
intellectual capacities, ethical principles, and sense of responsibility
that are needed for leadership in all sectors of society.”
(From “The Millsaps Purpose”)
Please
feel free to contact the ADA Director for additional information
on services provided or accommodations typically made at Millsaps
College.
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