There are significant differences in disability services between high school and college.
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Applicable Laws
- High Schools: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (I.D.E.A.) and Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973
- Colleges and Universities: Title II of the American Disabilities Act (A.D.A.), A.D.A. Amendment Act 2008, Section 504 and F.E.R.P.A. (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
- Kenyon College: All of the information in the Colleges section is applicable with additional pieces of information below. Please see the Student Handbook for the College Privacy Policy.
Goals
- High Schools: Enable Student Success
- Colleges and Universities: Provide Equal Access
- Kenyon College: Student Accessibility and Support Services provides equal access and student success services available to all students
Required Documentation
- High School: Individual Education Plan (IEP), Section 504 plan, school provides evaluation at no cost to student and school conducts triennial evaluation
- Colleges and Universities: IEPs and 504s are not applicable. Original documentation required from licensed professional; report must include diagnosis, testing results and functional limitations. Testing must be current. Student must get evaluation at own expense. Student is not required to be re-tested after initial documentation approved.
- Kenyon College: Documentation must meet Association on higher Education and Disability (A.H.E.A.D.) standards. (click link to go to A.H.E.A.D. website). IEPs and 504s from High School may be used as additional information. Written permission from the student must be granted for Student Accessibility Support Services office to speak with documentation provider.
Parental Role
- High School: School is required to include parents in process. Parents have access to student records. Parents advocate for student.
- Colleges and Universities: College officials are precluded from including parents once student is enrolled (regardless of age). Parents do not have access to educational, disability or health related records unless student provides written consent. Students advocate for themselves.
- Kenyon College: Parents are urged to prepare their student for college by having the student self identify, ask questions and obtain information during the admission and enrollment process. Once enrolled, parents do not have access to any information about their student unless it is an emergency (or written consent has been provided).
Student Role
- High School: Student is identified and supported by parents and teachers. Implementing accommodations is school’s responsibility.
- Colleges and Universities: Student must self identify to the disabilities services (or other designated) office (even if parents contact the office first). Implementing accommodations is the student’s responsibility.
- Kenyon College: Student chooses whether or not to self identify and/or use services. Once student comes forward, the Student Accessibility and Support services Office will explain policies, procedures, and philosophy to student.
Teachers and Professionals
- High School: Modification to curriculum and/or changes to the pace of assignments may be made. (Not for college credit classes, however.) Multi-sensory approaches used. Frequent testing, and graded assignments used. Attendance taken and reported.
- Colleges and Universities: Modifications to curriculum are not required. Modifying essential components of courses and/or curriculum is not an option. Multi-sensory approaches may or may not be used. The frequency of tests and assignments varies. Attendance may or may not be taken; student is responsible for attending class.
- Kenyon College: The College is writing intensive and rarely has exams where multiple choice or Scantron or bubble sheets are used. Group work is a frequent expectation. Classroom attendance is considered an essential component of the college curriculum. Students that miss class frequently, regardless of the reason, may encounter situations where faculty will not take the late work and may fail the student for lack of participation.
Grades
- High School: Grades may be modified based on curriculum.
- Colleges and Universities: Grades reflect quality of work submitted.
- Kenyon College: Grades determined by each course instructor and are usually stated in the syllabus. As stated above, attendance and participation are often components of the grade.
Process
- Colleges and Universities: Once a student (or parent of a prospective student) discloses a disability to a faculty or staff member (excluding Health and Counseling Services), the information is to be communicated to Disability Services (or the faculty and/or staff member to contact the office.)
- Kenyon College: If the Director receives information regarding a disability from any source, the Director then tries to contact the student to let the student know of available resources.
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