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Lehigh Carbon Community College

Our Commitment

Reinhardt University is committed to providing equal and integrated access for individuals with disabilities to all the academic, social, cultural, and recreational programs it offers. This commitment is consistent with legal requirements, including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and embodies the university’s historic determination to ensure the inclusion of all members of its communities. This mandate is meant to be enforced by the Academic Support Office (ASO), which was established in 1982.

two students walking through campusOur Mission

The mission of ASO is to facilitate inclusion by reducing/eliminating barriers, whether they are attitudinal, structural, programmatic or otherwise. In doing so, students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to become successful through their own efforts and not held back by artificial barriers. We strive to create partnerships among ASO, students, faculty, staff, and other university and community offices by creating awareness on disability-related issues as well as providing information and referral services.

Supporting Students

At ASO our goal is to provide services and support to ensure that students are able to access and participate in the opportunities available at the university. In keeping with this objective, students are expected and encouraged to utilize the resources of ASO to the degree they determine necessary. Although a significant degree of independence is expected of students, ASO is available to assist, should the need arise.

Students are asked to notify ASO as soon as possible to discuss disability-related concerns and needs.

Disabilities We Support:

ADD/ADHD

You must have:

  1. Diagnosis by a developmental pediatrician, neurologist, psychiatrist, licensed doctoral-level clinical or educational psychologist, or combination of such professionals
  2. Evaluation should be usually within three to five years of application for services

Evaluation should contain the following information:

  • Clear statement of DSM III, IIIR, or IV diagnosis
  • Date of diagnosis
  • Summary of procedures and instruments used
  • Summary of evaluation results
  • Medical history relating to use of medications
  • Statement of impact and limitations of academic performance
  • Recommendations for academic adjustments to compensate for the disability
  • Name, title, and appropriate licensure information.

Chronic Illness

Please provide:

  • Diagnosing physician
  • Name
  • Licensure
  • Dates of diagnosis and most recent contact
  • Diagnosis
  • Prognosis
  • Functional nature of debilitating illness
  • Clinical evidence of disability
  • Recommended accommodations

 

Hearing Impairment

You must have a diagnosis by an audiologist with an audiogram describing the scope of hearing loss:

  • Deaf
  • Hearing loss of 70 dB or greater in the better ear
  • Hard of hearing
  • Hearing loss of 35 to 69 dB in the better ear
  • Impact of hearing loss in an academic environment
  • Recent contact with a qualified professional

Learning Disability

You must have a diagnosis by a licensed school or private psychologist.

  • Name, title, and appropriate licensure
  • Evaluation usually within five years of the student’s application for assistance
  • Specific identified learning disability, including the degree of severity
  • Battery of tests including aptitude, achievement, and information processing such as:
    • WAIS-R
    • Woodcock-Johnson
    • TASK
    • TOWL-2
    • Stanford Binet
    • KAIT
  • Reference to specific academic accommodations requested

Mobility Impairment

Please provide:

  • The nature of disability
  • Type of mobility devices
    • Wheelchair
    • Walker
    • Cane
    • Braces
  • Academic environment issues
    • Distances
  • Physician’s information
    • Name
    • Licensure
    • Date of most recent contact
    • Impact in academic environment
    • History and impact of medications on learning
    • Type and severity of impairment

Visual Impairment

You must have a diagnosis describing the amount of vision loss.

  • Blindness
  • Visual acuity in both eyes of less than 20/200
  • Visual field of less than 20% despite best correction with glasses
  • Low vision
  • Visual acuity better than 20/200 but worse than 20/70 with correction
  • Documentation must include a diagnosis by a medical doctor or optometrist/ophthalmologist

Emotional/Psychological Impairment

Please provide:

  • Diagnosing physician’s credentials
  • Diagnosis
  • Prognosis
  • Functional nature of debilitating illness
  • Clinical evidence of disability
  • Recommended accommodations

Accessibility Programs

ASO Tutorial

This is a paid tutorial program in which a student works one-on-one with a paid tutor in a specific subject where the student needs more support. The paid tutors are seasoned faculty members who are proficient in working with students with learning disabilities and/or differing learning styles. They are also proficient in using special software programs, which they also incorporate into their tutorials. In addition, they are also trained academic coaches.

Academic Coaching

Academic Coaching is a collaborative program between a coach and a student which helps students develop skills, strategies, structure, support , self-reliance, self-awareness and responsibility. Coaching is an individualized process that facilitates goal clarification and academic achievement, which also stimulates and motivates students toward reaching their scholastic goals through structure, support and feedback.

B.O.L.D. – Building Opportunities for Students with Learning Disabilities Program

The B.O.L.D. program is built around the concept of universal design (UDI), which means we proactively seek to build learning opportunities and a support environment that anticipate the needs of students with leaning disabilities. The B.O.L.D program offers services that are individualized and go above and beyond standard accommodation.

If you are applying for the B.O.L.D. program, you need to provide three letters of recommendation addressing your motivation, aptitude, ability to set realistic goals, interpersonal skills and readiness for college.

S.E.A.D – Strategic Education for Student With Autism Spectrum Disorders

By participating in the S.E.A.D. program, student should be able to achieve the following:  have a smooth transition into the college atmosphere, increase awareness of strategies and skills for application in the social college atmosphere, and make connections with students and staff to maintain support throughout their college experience.

Assistive Technology

Assistive technology is computer-based software or hardware solutions that enable students with disabilities to access information and compensation for the impact of their disabilities. The Academic Support Office has a limited number of programs that can be used by students in our computer lab. Some examples of the programs are listed below.

Assistive Technology Policy

Accessibility of IT Policy

  • Jaws 12.0:  is an invaluable tool for students with visual impairments. It is a top of the line screen reader with internet capabilities, email access, and full compatibility with Microsoft products such as Office 2007.
  • Read&Write Gold: Read&Write GOLD is a customizable easy-to-use toolbar that directly integrates with familiar applications, including Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer, and Adobe Reader, allowing students to access the support tools they need from within the programs they use every day. The product highlights and reads text aloud using natural sounding voices and also includes a comprehensive set of support tools for reading, writing, studying, research, and test taking.
  • Magic 11.0: Magic® screen magnification software not only increases the size of what you see on a monitor, but Magic with Speech also speaks aloud screen contents.
  • Verbose: Text- to-speech software
  • Inspiration – Mind mapping, learning strategies

The Academic Support Office also offers textbooks and readings in alternate formats as well as training students on how to use some these software.

Free software applications for reading PDF and Word documents provided by Alternative Media Access Center (AMAC). Ask your Academic Support Advisor how to become an AMAC member.

Guidelines and Procedures

Audiovisual Captioning Policy

Housing Accommodations

Emergency Evacuation Procedure

Meal Accommodations

Flex Attendance Guidelines

Event Accessibility

Guidelines for Documenting a Disability

Pregnancy, Childbirth & Related Disabilities

Temporary Disabilities Guidelines