Accessibility Services

We will develop a custom accommodation plan for you that may include:

• Alternative text formats (document conversion, large print, audio)
• Alternative testing (extended time, different environment)
• Note taking support
• Recording class sessions
• Laboratory assistance

This is not an exhaustive list. Please discuss other possibilities with the Student Accessibility Coordinator.

We will develop a custom accommodation plan for you that may include:

• Emotional Support Animal
• Service Animal
• Dining accommodations
• Residential accommodations
• Parking accommodations

This is not an exhaustive list. Please discuss other possibilities with the Student Accessibility Coordinator.

Any student requiring physical access or facility accommodation should contact the Student Accessibility Coordinator as soon as possible to make a request. Some possible examples include preferential seating, accessible classrooms, elevator access, etc.

Accessible parking is available on campus. For information, see parking.

Your Title IX services begin when you notify the Title IX Coordinator, Jason Pilarski (jason.pilarski@alverno.edu) to request services.

Under Title IX, you have the right to continue your education activities regardless of pregnancy, childbirth, or pregnancy termination-related conditions. This includes school-sponsored internships, clinics, lab work, athletics and extracurricular activities.

Harassment or intimidation because of a pregnancy-related condition is sex discrimination in violation of Title IX and is illegal. Alverno’s Title IX Policy can be reviewed here: Pregnant and Parenting Policies.

Students wanting to request accommodations related to their pregnancy should contact the Student Accessibility Coordinator, who will engage in an interactive discussion with the student and other need-to-know personnel, such as the Title IX coordinator, regarding requests. 

Information about Alverno’s policy regarding animals on campus can be viewed here: Emotional Support and Service Animals

If you are a student registered for a science lab, and wish to bring your animal into the lab, it may be necessary to make arrangements to keep your animal as well as others in the lab safe. Click here to view the Alverno Service Animals In Laboratory Settings Guidelines: Alverno Service Animals In Laboratory Settings Guidelines

While it is not required, the Student Accessibility Coordinator is available to help you communicate with members of the Alverno community about your service animal. Click here for information to share with others about your animal: Service animal information and etiquette

Emotional Support Animals

Alverno College permits the presence of an emotional support animal (ESA) in the residence hall room of qualified students with disabilities. To request approval of an ESA, fill out the accommodations application via Blaze as described below. The provider documentation submitted to the Student Accessibility Coordinator must include:

• A mental health diagnosis requiring accommodation
• A description of how current symptoms impact your ability to access or enjoy living in the residence halls
• Identification and description of the species and size of the animal and a note that the provider discussed with you the appropriateness of the animal in this setting
• Description of how the animal's presence will alleviate your symptoms in this setting

Once your documentation has been reviewed and accepted, you will be contacted by the Student Accessibility Coordinator to discuss the expectations of your animal. You will also be asked to fill out and sign an agreement about those expectations.

If you have a roommate, you will need to discuss the presence of your ESA, and they will need to sign a roommate acknowledgement agreement.

You will need to provide a copy of your animal’s up-to-date vaccinations. Please collaborate with your veterinarian for what core vaccinations are expected as a minimum for your specific breed of animal.

• Mental health needs (emotional management, anxiety, depression, and some forms of neurodiversity)
• Learning needs (executive functioning, memory, attention, and some forms of neurodiversity)
• Physical needs (sensory loss or impairment, mobility needs)
• Temporary disabilities (pregnancy-related health limitations, acute injuries)

Appropriate documentation should come from a qualified professional who is unrelated to the student and licensed in the field related to the disability condition. Documentation should be presented on the provider’s professional letterhead and contain statements identifying:

• The specific diagnosed condition that relates to the need for accommodation
• A statement of the major life functions that are impaired by this condition
• The extent of the impact (moderate to severe)
• An explanation for how functioning within an academic program is impacted
• Suggestions for accommodations that may mitigate the effects of a student disability

Examples of appropriate documentation include:

• Official visit summary from a doctor/clinician that includes diagnosis
• Neuropsychological assessment
• Individual Education Plan (IEP)
• 504 Plan
• Psycho-educational evaluation or psychometric test results from general measures of aptitude and academic achievement
• Psychological evaluation (developmental or learning disorder diagnoses)
• Audiogram
• Vision screening results
• Other information from a qualified healthcare provider that can provide insight into your needs and/or provide support for any requested accommodations

The Student Accessibility Coordinator will take the recommendations into consideration and help translate them into accommodations appropriate for your needs at Alverno.

Note: External agencies who administer standardized tests as part of licensure may have different, more stringent documentation guidelines than Alverno College. Students may need to supply additional documentation for any certification or licensure test they plan to take in the future.

We will make every effort to respond to requests from incoming and current students quickly; however, accommodations can take time and coordination to provide, and there is no guarantee they can be provided with late notice. Come to us as soon as you can! We’ll be here to help.

Instructors are not required to fulfill accommodations that are not officially established through the Alverno College Student Accessibility Coordinator. In fact, they are instructed not to do so.

You should not be asked or required to share disability-related information with anyone except the Student Accessibility Coordinator. Your diagnosis is private. Think carefully before revealing it, even if you are asked.

Some students who come directly to Alverno College from high school programs may have experienced program modifications designed to assure some form of success (under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that governs K-12 public schools). It is not uncommon for students or parents to assume that these kinds of program modifications will be available in college, but IDEA does not apply to postsecondary education.

While we hope all of our students will achieve success, the laws do not require colleges to ensure success. Rather, disability accommodations in higher education are focused on access. Requests for accommodation may include modification of instructional or testing methodology, but will not include a waiver of any essential element or changes in the fundamental nature of a class or program. Students are not entitled to the accommodation they may prefer, or that might have been provided them in another educational setting. However, the College considers the requested and preferred accommodation, on a case-by-case basis, as supported by documentation.

Some differences between high school and college disability accommodations include:

• The college student is responsible for self-identifying and disclosing their own disability, which includes providing documentation of the disability to the designated office.
• The college student is an adult with privacy and confidentiality protections. College faculty and staff will not discuss academic progress with parents or legal guardians unless a release of information is signed by the student. Even then, student accessibility staff follow the best practice of including the student in conversation whenever possible.
• Rather than the school developing an individualized education plan or IEP, the student must request specific accommodations and provide supporting evidence through documentation.
• The college student must act as an independent adult to activate and obtain accommodations and structure weekly schedules.
• Changes to test format in college are rare and need to be supported by disability documentation.
• Personal services are not required to be provided by the college (i.e. personal care attendants, specialized tutoring).

The bottom line is that colleges provide a different level of support and it is the student's responsibility to ask for help and advocate for themselves.

Easy! You need to “self-identify” your disability to us and request accommodations by filling out an application via the steps above. You may have had an IEP or 504 plan in the past, or you may have recently been diagnosed with a learning or mental health disorder. Submitting this documentation to the Student Accessibility Coordinator will help us to get started.

We would be happy to meet with you to work on a plan to determine your need for accommodations and advise you on how to get the proper official documentation.

We may be able to help you to set up temporary accommodations while the college engages in an interactive process to determine whether ongoing accommodation is appropriate and, if so, which reasonable accommodations are needed.

Temporary accommodations are just that: temporary. They do not reflect a determination that ongoing accommodations will be granted and/or which reasonable accommodations are appropriate. They also do not create an obligation on the part of Alverno to continue accommodation if appropriate documentation is not provided to us officially.

Ultimately, accommodations are a collaboration between the student, Accessibility professionals, and instructors. However, students need to initiate the process and actively participate in the implementation of accommodations. This may be different than systems you experienced before (especially if you are coming to Alverno from a high school environment). We’ll explain more specifics below.

As an adult student with privacy rights,

• You must refer yourself to the Student Accessibility Coordinator for services and complete the official process as directed.
• If you want to use accommodations for a class, you must tell us to release your memo to that instructor. We cannot automatically release your private information to instructors without your specific permission.
• Once you release the memo to an instructor, it is your responsibility to set a meeting with your instructor or send an email to discuss how the accommodations will work in that specific class. Not all accommodations on your memo will apply to every class, so your involvement is required.
• Please be aware that you may not necessarily get accommodations in your preferred way (for example, your instructors are not required to allow you to retake assessments or to change course outcomes for you).

We will gladly support you and advocate for you, but you are required to take charge of your own accommodations. If you have questions or need guidance, just contact us. We’re here for you.

No. Accommodations don’t work backwards. You need to go through the process with us, release your memo to instructors who teach classes where you want to use the accommodations, and talk about the accommodations with your instructor.

However, you never need to reveal your diagnosis to anyone but the Student Accessibility Coordinator, even if someone else asks you.

Alert the Student Accessibility Coordinator as soon as possible if accommodations are not provided or do not meet your needs.

Accommodations are a collaborative effort between students, instructors and professionals in the Accessibility Office.

If you have attempted resolution of any concerns with the Student Accessibility Coordinator and still feel the situation is unresolved, you may utilize the Bias Incident Protocol.