Accessible classrooms and furniture

Generally, all classrooms on campus are accessible. However, occasionally due to construction or maintenance issues, you may find a classroom to be inaccessible to you. Contact your access coordinator right away to look at alternatives.

If you need an adjustable table instead of a desk, or any other accessible furniture, your access coordinator will work with Campus Facilities to arrange for furniture placement. This may take a few days, so please check out your classrooms prior to the first day of class. You will need to follow this process each semester.

Assistive technology

Assistive technology includes hardware and software designed to alleviate vision, hearing, cognitive, and mobility impairments, as well as alternate format books and classroom materials.

If you are in need of assistive technology, you must be referred by your access coordinator to Assistive Technology and Accessibility Centers (ATAC). The key to receiving services from ATAC is planning ahead. Due to the volume and complexity of this work, ATAC must receive your request three weeks in advance.

Consultation and advocacy

Access coordinators are available to meet with registered students, one on one, to discuss concerns related to their classes, instructors, or other issues that are affecting students’ academic progress.

Access coordinators are not academic advisors, but can discuss balancing your caseload to address your disability needs. They can provide self-advocacy coaching and hints on communicating with faculty and staff.

An access coordinator is available for short, 15-minute meetings without an appointment Monday through Friday between 1 and 4 p.m. You can also schedule a meeting with your access coordinator for in-depth discussions by calling the DSS office at 812-855-7578.

If you need accommodations for study abroad or graduate entrance exams, allow plenty of time to process requests.

Collegiate Life Coaching

As a participant in our Collegiate Life Coaching program, you have the option to work one-on-one with a DSS access coordinator to find ways to study and manage your time more effectively in a college environment.

Topics include:

• Scheduling and time management
• Study skills, such as notetaking and exam preparation
• Organizational skills for papers and projects
• Overcoming procrastination
• Academic goal setting

The intention of the Collegiate Life Coaching program is to help you obtain transferrable skills that allow you to function independently in the university environment.

For more information about coaching, contact your access coordinator.

Disability-related extensions

Disability-related extensions are for students who have chronic conditions that randomly flare up, causing them to miss class or deadlines. Disability-related extensions may include flexible attendance or extra time on assignment deadlines.

Once an accommodation is approved, how it is carried out in the class is a collaborative effort between you, your instructor, and DSS.

In every course, the instructor identifies and defines the essential course requirements and measures whether those requirements have been met. You will need to talk with your instructors to determine how you can meet the essential requirements of the course given your disability.

Disability Related Extension Agreement

You and your instructor will work together to complete a Disability Related Extension Agreement. Your access coordinator will approve the agreement as part of the process to discuss and understand reasonable accommodations in the event of a disability-related absence or assignment extension.

This allows you and your professor to document your conversation regarding absences extensions and the effects on other aspects of the class. More specifically, it’s meant to clarify course expectations and determine if, given your current condition, it is reasonable for you to continue with a particular course.

This accommodation is forward moving and cannot be used for missed assignments, exams, or quizzes, or past absences. DSS does not sanction  unlimited absences. You must stay in close contact with your instructor throughout the semester. Failure to follow the agreement could ultimately lead to the need to withdraw, take an incomplete, or fail the class.

FM hearing systems

Students who use hearing aids or cochlear implants may request the use of an FM system for amplification in the classroom.

The DSS office maintains a limited supply of FM systems. You must work with IU Speech and Hearing to identify the correct system. You will sign a contract to check out the equipment for the semester and return it to the office at the end of each semester.

Contact your access coordinator as soon as possible to allow time to select the appropriate device and purchase it if necessary.

Notetaking assistance

Notetaking assistance ensures that students have notes comparable to what they would take if their disability did not interfere with taking notes.

If the instructor is posting notes in Canvas, check to see if they are just a summary or more complete notes.

Volunteer notetaking

The professor will make an announcement in class for a volunteer to assist a classmate notetaking. They will not announce your name. The professor will pair you with the volunteer by sharing contact information. If the volunteer wishes to remain anonymous, the notes can be submitted to the DSS office and picked up between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Technology

You may be allowed to record lectures on a laptop or phone using Livescribe Smartpen and/or Sonocent software. This is an accommodation and thus the notes are for your personal use only and may not be shared with others. You may not use this information verbatim in a paper or presentation.

Orientation and mobility training

Orientation and mobility training is available for students who are blind when they first arrive on campus. This accommodation is also available for students who are registered for a summer program that lasts more than one week.

An O&M specialist will work with you to find your way around your residence hall and identify paths to your class and common areas on campus. O&M specialists have limited availability, so be sure to plan ahead.

Priority registration

Priority registration is available to students who:

• Are hearing or vision impaired and require advance notice to instructors
• Have mobility concerns that limit getting to class on time
• Have chronic health issues that require treatment around an inflexible schedule
• Are referred to an American Sign Language class

Priority registration is not available during freshman/transfer orientation.

If you have a hold on your account, you must remove the hold before you can take advantage of priority registration. If this is the case, you must see your academic advisor.

Priority registration for graduate students is applied on a case-by-case basis, as most graduate classes are required.

Testing accommodations

Testing accommodations include:

• A distraction reduced or private setting
• Stopping the clock for medical issues
• Text reading software
• Not using a Scantron for multiple choice exams
• Use of a simple calculator, where basic calculations are not the focus of the assessment or an essential element of the course component
• Spelling forgiveness where spelling is not the focus of the assignment or an essential element of the course component

Typically instructors provide alternate testing locations. DSS has limited space and typically only tests students with more involved accommodations, such as using text reading software, scribes, braille, and dictation software.