General Document Guidelines
In order to determine eligibility for Student Support Services on the basis of a self-disclosed disability and to evaluate specific needs for requested accommodations or auxiliary aids, Student Support Services will need documentation of the disability. Such documentation must include an evaluation by an appropriate professional, as well as a description of the current impact of the disability as it relates to the accommodation request. As appropriate to the disability, the documentation should include the following elements:
- A diagnostic statement identifying the disability, date of the most current diagnostic evaluation, and the date of the diagnosis if known
- A description of the diagnostic tests, methods, and/or criteria used
- A description of the current functional impact of the disability, which includes specific test results and the examiner's narrative interpretation
- Treatments, medications, or assistive devices/services currently prescribed or in use, including a description of the mediating effects and potential side effects from such treatments
- A description of the expected progression or stability of the impact of the disability over time, particularly the next five years
- If known, a history of previous accommodations and their impact as well as accommodations recommended at this time
- The credentials of the diagnosing professional if not clear from the letterhead or other forms
- The diagnosing professional cannot be a family member
- The diagnosis must be on official letterhead or agency forms
- No prescription pad diagnosis will be accepted
VWCC Policy
Virginia Western Community College and Student Support Services assumes no responsibility for the cost of medical or educational testing for the purposes of diagnosing a disability. While Student Support Services will be happy to refer clients to area agencies and other professionals, it is the responsibility of the student to arrange for professional services and to pursue necessary steps in securing all documentation of his/her disability.
Appropriate and reasonable accommodations will be determined by a qualified professional of the REACH/Student Support Services staff based upon the requests made by the student, documentation of the disability, and what is allowable under the law: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Accommodations ensure equal access to educational opportunities, but do not guarantee academic success.
It is the policy of the Virginia Community College System and Virginia Western Community College to maintain and promote equal employment and educational opportunities without regard to race, color, sex, age, religion, disability, national origin, or other non-merit factors. For further information, contact the Title IX Coordinator in Fishburn Hall, Room 018-B, at 857-6067 or the ADA/504 Coordinator, The Student Center, Room 102, at 857-7286.
