SASC and Faculty: A Collaborative Effort

The Student Accessibility Support Center (SASC) assists students and employees with disabilities in accessing the many resources of the University. Individuals with visual, mobility and hearing impairment as well as those with hidden disabilities such as chronic medical conditions, psychological, and learning disabilities are invited to make use of the services and equipment available. Individuals with permanent or temporary disabilities are also encouraged to consult with the SASC.

• SASC Responsibilities

  The SASC staff is here to support student and faculty interactions. 
  Stony Brook policy appoints the SASC as the designated office to evaluate documentation and notify faculty regarding accommodations.

  "An institution of higher education actually protects faculty members from unwarranted and dysfunctional pressures by designating a particular office as the place where documentation about disabilities is filed and where the institution's experience is concentrated for accommodation design and development." - Oklahoma Community College

  Faculty members are protected by compliance with the accommodations recommended by the SASC office and are encouraged to consult with the SASC staff regarding the appropriateness of accommodations within the curriculum. Students requesting accommodations should always be referrer to the SASC.

• Student Responsibilities
  Students are responsible for registering and providing documentation to the SASC in order to receive accommodations. Students receive instruction from the SASC office that encourages them to meet with their faculty and discuss their needs. Unlike high school, college students need to self-advocate. This means they must be able to communicate their needs and discuss with faculty how accommodations will be administered. Students must follow the SASC procedure for testing accommodations. Students are responsible for making all testing arrangements with both the SASC and the faculty.
• Faculty Responsibilities

  Stony Brook University faculty are responsible for providing accessible educational oppertunities in their classes. This responsibility includes:

  • Implementing reasonable accommodations in a timely manner
  • Maintaining confidentiality
  • Knowing the essential components of your course
    • Consider alternate instructional and evaluation formats if some tools are not accessible
    • Always recommend, rather than require using web-based tools that might not be accessible
  • Maintaining the rigor and the fundamental nature of course content
  • Requiring students to demonstrate knowledge of essential course content
  • Determining the equivalent substitutions for course components when barriers occur
  • Including an ADA Statement in the course syllabus

  Faculty may not: 

  • Deny an approved accommodation
  • Share information about a student's accommodation with other students
  • Ask a student to identify their disability
  • Require students to submit accommodation letters by a specific deadline at the beginning of the semester

Academic Accommodations 

Students who receive accommodations through the SASC have provided documentation of the nature and limitations of their disability. The disabilities of individuals registering with the SASC range from permanent medical conditions, limited mobility, loss of vision, and deafness or hearing loss, to learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder, acquired brain injuries or strokes, psychiatric disabilities.

• Attendance Policy
  A student's disability may have an impact on attendance in class. When the SASC is provided documentation that supports a student's need for flexibility in attendance, faculty will be notified at the student's request. The SASC can not waive attendance requirements. Only the professor can determine when excessive absences are preventing the student from meeting the academic standards of the class. Students are instructed to remain in close contact with the professor and to negotiate making up missed assignments etc. with the professor after each disability-related absence. Students are expected to attend and participate in class as part of the essential curriculum, and while some flexibility is requested, it is at the discretion of the professor.
• Extended Time for Assignments
  The student's disability may impact on the completion of some assignments in a timely manner. The student has been instructed to negotiate with the faculty regarding deadlines and the impact of late assignments on meeting the academic requirements of the class. The student is aware that it is the professor who determines when late assignments prevent the student from meeting the academic standards of the class.
• Testing and Classroom Accommodations

  Testing accommodations are provided when there is a disability-related need for them. Faculty are not expected to lower their academic standards using accommodations available, students should be able to demonstrate their knowledge without the need for alternative tests or different evaluation/grading standards.

  The SASC accommodation letters state the appropriate testing accommodations, depending upon the nature of the course-work and the disability-related needs of the student.

  • Extended time. The request for extended time is one of the most common accommodations for all disability groups. The most frequent accommodation is time and one half, although rarely double time is requested. Unlimited time is not recommended unless this option is available to all students.
  • Accessible testing site and accessible seating. Students who may need front row seating include those who can not walk up or down steps, have difficulty maneuvering through a row of seats, have vision or hearing impairments, or have disabilities that affect their ability to remain focused on visual or auditory lecture material.
  • Use of a reader. Reading printed material, including exams, person-to-person or on cassette tape.
  • Scribe services. Physically writing/typing the student's answers, verbatim, or filling out a scantron answer sheet according to the student's instructions.
  • Converted format. This may include large print, Braille, or audio-taped exam material.
  • Computer access. Many students can independently complete essay exams on computers. Some may need technology such as print enlargement, speech output, speech recognition or a spell-check program, available through the SASC by advance arrangement.
  • Quiet /separate testing environment. Some students require a low distraction environment; others may need to verbalize the questions or their responses. Still other students may have physical needs to change position, or stand inside the test room to relieve pressure on an injured area. All students should have testing environments comparable to those of their classmates - i.e. testing space free from frequent interruptions, with proper writing surface, seating and lighting.
• Testing Arrangements NOT Recommended by the SASC
  Sometimes questions arise about the use of other arrangements as appropriate testing accommodations.

  We DO NOT recommend:

  • Unlimited time for taking tests. The SASC does not recommend this unless the instructor provides this option for all students in the class. This option is usually not necessary or practical.
  • Clarification of test questions. The SASC does not view clarification of test questions (e.g. the instructor or proctor giving the student a definition or explaining the meaning of a phrase or question) as a disability accommodation . Students with disabilities should be held to the same standards as other students when it comes to expectations about understanding course content, exam questions, etc. If students without disabilities are allowed to receive clarification of questions they have, however, students with disabilities should receive a similar allowance, whether taking the exam with the class or in a private testing site.
  • Testing in an unsuitable environment. When a request for special location is made students should not be asked to take a test behind a screen or blackboard or in the hall outside the room or a noisy office as this will not provide the student with a distraction reduced environment. Students must be monitored and have the ability to ask questions if that is allowed in the classroom.