In order to fully evaluate requests for accommodations or auxiliary aids and to determine eligibility for services, The Office of Learning Support Services relies on student self-disclosure and disability documentation from appropriate professionals.

The general guidelines listed below have been developed to assist you and the professional completing the documentation in preparing the information needed to evaluate your requests.  If, after reading these guidelines, you have any questions, please contact The Office of Learning Support Services by telephone or by email.

Assessment and documentation must be completed by a professional who has undergone appropriate, comprehensive training, and has relevant experience and licensure appropriate to his/her profession.  A match between the credentials of the professional making the diagnosis and the condition being reported is expected.

Quality documentation includes a clear diagnostic statement that describes how the condition was diagnosed, provides information on the functional impact, and details the typical progression of the condition.  When appropriate, International Classification of Diseases (ICD) or Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM) codes should be included, as well as the most recent evaluation.  If the recent evaluation was not a full evaluation, indicate when the last full evaluation was completed.

Documentation must include a description of the diagnostic criteria met for the diagnosis, evaluation methods used, tests and dates of administration, as well as a clinical narrative.  When appropriate to the nature of the disability, having both summary data and specific test scores within the report is recommended.

Information on how the disability currently impacts the individual is essential in establishing a disability and possible accommodations.  Documentation should be thorough enough to demonstrate whether and how a major life activity is substantially limited by providing a clear sense of severity and variability over time and/or environmental conditions. The current relevant functioning impacts on physical, perceptual, cognitive, and behavioral abilities should be described as a clinical narrative and/or through the provision of specific results from the diagnostic procedures/assessment.   

It is helpful when documentation provides information on expected changes in the functional impact of the disability over time and context.  Information on the cyclical or episodic nature of the disability and known or suspected environmental triggers to episodes provides opportunities to anticipate and plan for varying functional impacts.  If the condition is not stable, information on interventions and recommended timelines for re-evaluation are helpful.

Taking into consideration the functional limitations associated with the condition(s) and the individual, appropriate accommodations, services, auxiliary aids, assistive aids and medication that may promote equal access to an education should be included, including their past effectiveness in minimizing the functional impacts of the disability.  The report of any significant side effects from current medication or services is helpful.  While accommodations provided in one institution do not guarantee the same accommodations at another, they provide insight in making current decisions.

      Recommendations from professionals with a history of working with the student provide valuable information.  Recommended accommodations and services should be
logically related to the functional limitations; if connections are not obvious, a clear explanation of their relationship should be presented. When recommendations go beyond the equitable and inclusive services and benefits, they may still be useful in suggesting alternative accommodations and services.