For Faculty

The Office of Student Accessibility Services is a resource for faculty as well! If you have questions about an academic accommodation, have a student who may need accommodations, or have another concern, we are a great place to begin! 

Feel free to contact accessibility@iwu.edu or Jasmine Howe with any questions or concerns you may have. 

Proctoring Services

Student Accessibility Services has space and proctoring staff available for students eligible for testing accommodations both in Holmes Hall and in CNS.  After the student requests and discusses their testing accommodations with their professor, the professor must submit the proctoring form to schedule the test(s)/quiz(zes). Please submit forms at least 2 business days before the exam is to be proctored.  We understand that deadlines can also sneak up on faculty. If you miss the deadline for submitting the form, email us! We still may have room to accommodate your student's exam. You can attach exams to this form or send them via e-mail  to accessiblity@iwu.edu. Once the form is received and processed, the student and professor will receive a confirmation email with the scheduling details. 

Submit a Proctoring Request

Flexible Deadlines and Flexible Attendance Guidance

Students may have an accommodation for flexible deadlines or flexible attendance to support conditions with cyclical or periodic flares of symptoms that cause limitations to clear thinking or mobility or where treatment and hospitalization may be required. 

This accommodation is not a "blanket" extension and should be used by students only in instances related to their disability/substantial limitation. If a certain number of late assignments or absences are permitted in the class syllabus, the maximum number of extensions for a student with a flexible accommodation should be higher than that number. However, the amount that is reasonable will vary from course to course. For more specifics about the accommodation, see the following forms:

Academic Accommodations vs. Academic Courtesy Arrangements

Occasionally, professors may be asked to make a courtesy arrangement with a student for something that seems like an accommodation (such as extended time on testing, use of a reader, modified attendance, etc.).  Unlike accommodations, arrangements are class specific, can be taken away at any time, and are not required under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act or by the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

These are not accommodations based on the current documentation from the student, but the student may be starting the interactive process to get an accommodation, waiting on appointment to get necessary testing for documentation, or may have a short-term need. Even if a request is made for an academic arrangement, professors do not have to grant approval if the request is something that would fundamentally alter the class or not promote equity in learning. 

Common Academic Courtesy Arrangements include: 

  • allowing a student to remotely join class or receive lecture recordings
  • allowing a student to submit an assignment late
  • allowing a student additional time on an exam

Professors should create courtesy arrangements with students without the input of the Office of Student Accessibility Services. Please refer to these arrangements as courtesy arrangements and not academic accommodations.

Accessible Formats

Students may have an accommodation for accessible text formats due to a print, learning, or vision disability. If you have a student in your class with this accommodation, you will be notified at the beginning of the term. You may be contacted by Student Accessibility Services about making sure your documents are accessible; if they are not, we will help you make all of them accessible. Here are some quick guidelines on making common class materials more accessible: 

  • Do not used scanned image PDFs in your class content. You can check this by trying to select text within the PDF. If the entire page highlights, it is not accessible and is an image. Instead, use a web page or word document. If you have an inaccessible PDF for a class, please let us know! We'll help you get it remediated. 
  • Many common content products have accessibility guides and checks built in that can catch spots where content is inaccessible: 
  • If you will be using a lot of charts, tables, or other graphics, please let us know. We'll help you get things set up appropriately. 
  • Consider using open source textbooks when possible. These books are designed with accessibility in mind. 

 

Notetaking Accommodations

Students may have a notetaking accommodation for a physical, learning, auditory, or visual disability. Students have the option of the following things when approved for a notetaking accommodation: 

  • Recording class lectures
  • Using an Echo SmartPen or other form of technology (like a tablet) to record lectures in sync with their notes
  • Taking notes on a computer instead of handwriting

You may be asked to provide copies of powerpoints/handouts in advance; if you think this would not be appropriate for you class, please contact us.

If you have issues with a student using a particular method in your class, please let us know. We can help communicate this to students and come up with alternative supports.