Students Needing Accommodations

1. First, the student should complete an accommodations profile using our portal, HatterAccess.  In this profile, students share their personal experience with barriers in classroom, testing, on-campus living, dining, and campus environments .  Students share their strengths and challenges academically, any previous accommodations, anticipated barriers, and potential accommodations for their time at Stetson University. 
2. Next, please upload supporting documentation to the portal.  Further information regarding documentation can be found in the "Documentation Guidelines" section below.  
3. Once the accommodations profile is completed and documentation is uploaded, the final step is to schedule a Welcome Access Meeting with a staff member. During this meeting, the staff member and student will review anticipated barriers, the staff member will share information regarding ADA accommodations, and the staff member and student will collaborate on appropriate accommodations for their time at Stetson University. These meetings can be scheduled two ways. 1) upon submitting the accommodations profile, an email should be sent to your stetson email address providing a link for you to register with an ASC team member. 2) If for some reason the email does not go through or the link cannot be accessed, the student may schedule through the  "Stetson SSC" software as follows: 
4. Log into my.stetson.edu
5. Click on "Stetson SSC"
6. In the upper right-hand corner, click the blue button that says "Get Assistance."
7. On the next screen, under "What type of appointment would you like to schedule?" select "Academic Services" from the first drop-down menu. Then select "Accessibility Meeting" under the "Service" drop-down menu. 
8. Select an approximate date that you would like to meet and the system will display all available days and times for that meeting type.
9. If you would like to meet with a particular person, you can select "View individual availabilities" above where times and dates are listed.  If you do not select anyone, you will see all available meetings for all Professional Staff. ***Please note, all on-campus living accommodation meetings need to be scheduled with the Director of Accessibility Services.
10. Pick a date and time based on the availability provided. These meetings will need to be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.
11. Finally, on the "Review Appointment Details and Confirm" screen you can provide any comments and select if you would like an email and/or a text reminder of the meeting. Once you hit "Schedule," you are all set!
12. After the meeting to determine accommodations - Accessibility Services will notify the student's professors of the specific accommodations. The student is then encouraged to:
    • Set up a meeting with each professor prior to or after class, or during the professors' office hours (available through the course syllabus or department administrative assistant)
    • Discuss the specifics of the accommodations with each professor to determine ways to meet the accommodations (e.g., for students with testing accommodations, will tests be taken in the classroom, academic department or at the Accessibility Services Center?).
13. Once fully registered with Accessibility Services, students must request their accommodations each subsequent semester by logging back into the HatterAccess portal via the Accessibility Services Website in order to have professors notified of accommodations.

In determining accommodations, academic and campus access accommodations can most times be determined in the Welcome meeting. For On-Campus Living Accommodations, the process is different.  Please see the Housing Accommodations Process for more information.

New students are encouraged complete these steps immediately after committing to enroll at Stetson University.  Current students are encouraged to do this as soon as possible.  If there are any questions, the Accessibility Services Center can be reached via email at: [email protected] .

Accessibility Services uses different types of documentation to gain insight and clarity regarding the students needs.  These types include, Primary(Student Self Report), Secondary(Observations and Interactions During the Welcome Interview) and Tertiary(Information gained from external or third parties).  Third Party Documentation is required that substantiates the disability and provides specific insight into how the  disability impacts the student's access to various campus experiences (classroom, testing, on-campus living, etc.).  Accessibility Services addresses accommodations related to access.  While recommendations of accommodations are helpful and are reviewed as part of the interactive process, they are not required to be included in the documentation nor do they have to be honored by our office. When the documentation of impacts are for support to enhance success or are considered outside the scope of what is necessary for equal access, the student will be referred to other resources and or given options that may be able to address the specific need.

Examples of documentation that can be submitted include: psychoeducational or psychological evaluations, IEPS, 504 Plans, letters from doctors/providers.  Please note that we require all documentation to be on some form of letterhead and contain the signature(s) of the providers or professionals involved in the composing of it.

Do not delay completing a profile or scheduling welcome meeting with the ASC simply because you have a question or concern regarding the relevance or sufficiency of your documentation. Each ASC staff member will discuss specific third-party documentation needs during the Welcome Meeting and steps you can take after the meeting. Our priority is meeting with you. Insufficient documentation will not delay the initial meeting but may delay the consideration and possible approval of certain accommodations. 

Learn more about the full explanation of our documentation requirements.

• It is the student's responsibility to maintain contact with their professors and to follow through with the arrangements.
• Accommodations are not retroactive. The student is eligible for accommodations based on the date that they request accommodations and sign forms with Academic Success.
• Some accommodations may take several weeks to arrange. Thus, timely receipt of documentation of a disability and request for accommodations is essential.
• A student's use of accommodations is not mandatory.  The student has the right not to request accommodations or implement them within the classroom.
• Students are responsible for maintaining contact with Accessibility Services to update pertinent information, seek assistance for learning strategies or discuss accommodation issues.
• In order to ensure adequate notification of a student's faculty members and appropriate implementation of a student's accommodations, the deadline to meet and establish accommodations within a given semester is one week prior to the start of finals week. This deadline allows Accessibility Services to notify the faculty members of the approved accommodations and make any necessary arrangements regarding final exams. New accommodation requests received after the deadline may be initiated to start at the beginning of the following semester.  If a student is seeking temporary accommodations due to unforeseen medical concerns that pose barriers to a student's access during finals week, Academic Success will work to determine reasonable accommodations for the student's participation.

Stetson University does not have a separate admissions process for students with disabilities. All applicants must meet the admissions criteria as outlined in the University Catalog. Once admitted, students should contact the Accessibility Services Center (ASC) to request academic accommodations.

No. It is not required that you disclose your private medical information to the university. If students register with the Accessibility Services Center for academic accommodations, supporting documentation will be requested to ensure appropriate accommodations are put in place. The Accessibility Services Center will not disclose information about the student's disability or accommodations to other offices on campus without the student's permission. Whether or not a student is registered for accommodations may be disclosed to school officials with legitimate educational interests, but details of specific accommodations and/or private medical information will not be disclosed.

Yes. The Accessibility Services Center (ASC) recommends reasonable accommodations in accordance with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and Stetson University's academic standards to ensure equal access to the educational experience at Stetson. The ASC also works with On-Campus Living and Dining Services to meet specific housing needs and/or dietary restrictions.

No. Neither the accommodations that a student has with the University nor the student's disability are recorded in the student's transcript. The Accessibility Services Center can release a student's accommodation information to other institutions or individuals upon request.

Yes and no. The Accessibility Services Center accepts an IEP or 504 plan as a form of documentation during the registration process. However, some accommodations that students receive in high school do not translate the same way at the college level. This is often because colleges and universities provide resources to all students that do not require accommodations to access. In these instances, the staff at the Accessibility Services Center will assist students in navigating these supplemental resources.

Yes. It is not a requirement that students had accommodations in high school. The Accessibility Services Center does require that students have appropriate documentation of the student's disability that speaks to the accommodations being requested. The Accessibility Services Center can assist students in finding possible community providers for evaluation if necessary. The student will want to check with their personal insurance carrier to determine preferred providers. Any expenses incurred from the evaluation are the student's responsibility.

Stetson University does not provide evaluations for learning disabilities or other conditions which may result in the need for academic accommodations. However, we do have a list of providers in the community who students can contact to be evaluated. Any expenses incurred from an evaluation are the student's responsibility.

For students who are registered with the Accessibility Services Center, the office will notify professors of a student's accommodations each semester. Students are still encouraged to speak with their professors and take an active role in their education and accommodations. Hearing directly from the student can help the professor understand the barriers and improve the classroom experience beyond the stated accommodations. The Accessibility Services Center is always more than happy to help students who are unsure how to navigate conversations with their professors and can either coach the student in preparing to speak with their professor or be a third-party in the conversation based on the student's need.

The Accessibility Services Center (ASC) is located on the 2nd floor of the DuPont-Ball Library in the Hollis Family Student Success Center. We can also be contacted via phone at 386-822-7127 or [email protected].