Making a Smooth Move from High School into College Services
SUSIE SCHAINOST, VP EDUCATION
Students with disabilities new to their college journey will find college level disability support services are different from high-school level services where a team of parents / guardians, educators and representatives speak together and plan for the student’s unique situation and needs.
In college, disability service providers expect students to speak for themselves – which means students must instigate their disability conversation, if they choose to self-disclose, in order to acquire and utilize reasonable accommodations.
With college level disability services, students with disabilities:
· Initiate disability services by meeting to discuss disability and accommodations, talk to professors, attend appointments, and self-advocate across campus.
· Need to plan ahead to meet with instructors, ask for accommodations, and schedule time for extra help (which can be challenging because college classes meet less frequently than high school classes.)
· Are expected to learn and show understanding of information more quickly than in high school. At the start of each semester, all students receive a syllabus for each class outlining expectations. Students with disabilities can utilize accommodations to support learning all the required material. Professors often will not change course material but will provide students with reasonable accommodations, which include things such as audio recordings of class discussions, reading an electronic version of a textbook, answering test questions orally instead of in writing, or having more time to finish a test or quiz.
College students with disabilities are able to find help through their campus disability service provider. For students with disabilities enrolled at the City University of New York (CUNY), help for their college journey is available through CUNY LEADS (Linking Employment , Academics, and Disability Services)and the Office of Accessibility Services. The Job Accommodations Network (https://askjan.org/) is also a great resource to learn more about reasonable accommodations.
There is a special excitement in the air at the start of a new school year — with so many unknowns and even more possibilities ahead. Coming back after two years of COVID, students may feel the need for extra reassurance. It is encouraging to know that the inclusive community nurtured by CUNY LEADS and the Office of Accessibility Services is there to uniquely support students with disabilities along their educational journey.
In college, disability service providers expect students to speak for themselves – which means students must instigate their disability conversation, if they choose to self-disclose, in order to acquire and utilize reasonable accommodations.
With college level disability services, students with disabilities:
· Initiate disability services by meeting to discuss disability and accommodations, talk to professors, attend appointments, and self-advocate across campus.
· Need to plan ahead to meet with instructors, ask for accommodations, and schedule time for extra help (which can be challenging because college classes meet less frequently than high school classes.)
· Are expected to learn and show understanding of information more quickly than in high school. At the start of each semester, all students receive a syllabus for each class outlining expectations. Students with disabilities can utilize accommodations to support learning all the required material. Professors often will not change course material but will provide students with reasonable accommodations, which include things such as audio recordings of class discussions, reading an electronic version of a textbook, answering test questions orally instead of in writing, or having more time to finish a test or quiz.
College students with disabilities are able to find help through their campus disability service provider. For students with disabilities enrolled at the City University of New York (CUNY), help for their college journey is available through CUNY LEADS (Linking Employment , Academics, and Disability Services)and the Office of Accessibility Services. The Job Accommodations Network (https://askjan.org/) is also a great resource to learn more about reasonable accommodations.
There is a special excitement in the air at the start of a new school year — with so many unknowns and even more possibilities ahead. Coming back after two years of COVID, students may feel the need for extra reassurance. It is encouraging to know that the inclusive community nurtured by CUNY LEADS and the Office of Accessibility Services is there to uniquely support students with disabilities along their educational journey.
