Eligibility

The provision of disability services in post-secondary education is mandated by two major federal laws: Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and as amended in 2009, and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act, 1973.

The Americans with Disabilities Act defines a person with a disability as: “Any person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such an impairment; or is regarded as having such an impairment.” The Americans with Disabilities Act as amended in 2009 adds “Major Bodily Functions” to “Major Life Activities” in the definition of a person with a disability.

The Americans with Disabilities Act specifically requires that: “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability shall, solely by reason of his/her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity of a public entity.” An otherwise qualified individual is defined as being an person who: “Meets the academic and technical standards requisite to admission or participation with or without reasonable modifications to rules, policies or practices; removal of architectural, communication or transportation barriers; or provision of auxiliary aids and services.”

Accommodations are intended to prevent discrimination against students with disabilities by providing equal access to all of the educational programs, co-curricular activities, and services of a post-secondary institution. Accommodations must be effective (producing the intended or expected effect), but they must not be preferential, and they may not discriminate against non-disabled students.