Dickinson values diverse learners, and strives to ensure that all courses, programs, services, and facilities are accessible to every student on a non-discriminatory basis. Seated in the division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the Access and Disability Services (ADS) team collaborates with students, faculty, and campus colleagues to foster equitable and inclusive practices for students with disabilities and all Dickinsonians.
ADS seeks out and promotes solutions to minimize disability-based access barriers for students; but when they exist, we facilitate reasonable individualized accommodations to ensure full inclusion for all students in our living and learning environments.
SEEKING ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THE FIRST TIME?
We're delighted to welcome students with disabilities into the ADS family! If you are in need of any type of accommodation(s) at Dickinson -- whether your needs are due to a mental health, medical, neurodevelopmental, physical,or learning disability -- please complete our Disability Disclosure and Request for Accommodations Form ASAP, and we will provide you with next steps.
Once we have the necessary documentation, you can anticipate that it may require 6 weeks for ADS to process your request, review your documentation, meet with you to discuss your potential accommodations, and ultimately determine accommodations appropriate to your situation.
For guidance regarding various types of accommodations (academic, housing, dietary, physical/mobility, chronic medical conditions, or supports for temporary impairments), click on "Accommodation Types" from the sidebar menu. For more information about the complete disclosure and academic accommodations process, see Disclosing and Documenting a Disability to Request Academic Accommodations. If you'd like to receive guidance over the phone, please email us at access@dickinson.edu with your availability and we'll schedule a time to connect.
WHAT'S IT LIKE TO DISCLOSE A DISABILITY AT DICKINSON?
Here is a short video montage of testimonials from five students with disabilities talking about using accommodations and being successful Dickinsonians. Check it out!
According to the CDC, one in four American adults has a disability, and we're here to support all students who disclose their disability(ies) to ADS. Disclosures are completely confidential and will never appear on a student's college record.
QUESTIONS? HERE'S WHO TO CONTACT REGARDING...
- General inquiries about requesting, setting up, using, or facilitating accommodations: email John Joyce at access@dickinson.edu or call (717) 245-1734.
- Note-taking accommodation or LiveScribe pen: email Erika Salter at notes@dickinson.edu
- Digital texts to be read out loud: email Erika Salter at ADStechnology@dickinson.edu
- Access Plan-related questions or issues: email John Joyce or Aimee Confer at access@dickinson.edu
- Test-taking accommodations, including proctoring: Tracie Corliss at proctoring@dickinson.edu
- Policy questions, referrals, concerns, or implementation-related challenges: Dean Marni Jones at jonesmar@dickinson.edu
OPEN HOURS at ADS: Weekdays Noon - 2 PM
ADS Staff are available to meet privately with students to address any disability / accommodation-related questions or concerns, and each weekday from noon to 2 pm, students can drop in without an appointment. Alternatively, to schedule a time to meet, email access@dickinson.edu and convey the reason you'd like to connect, along with several times when you would be available. Please also express whether you’d like to connect via phone, Zoom, or in person.
CURRENT AND RETURNING STUDENTS WITH ACCOMMODATIONS
Here's a reminder of how to set up your Access Plan through CLIQ to set up your accommodations online.
If you have been granted academic accommodations, but are not currently using them, it’s not too late to do so (provided that there’s adequate time to set up what’s necessary). Email us if you have any questions.
If you are seeking any additional accommodations, please follow our online instructions to your "Disability Disclosure and Accommodation Request" form, add any additional information or requests, and email us to let us know that you have.
FINANCIAL BARRIERS?
Whether you have a documented disability, or you'd like to be evaluated to see if you might, ADS is committed to supporting the access needs of all Dickinsonians regardless of socio-economic status. If you're experiencing a barrier to equitable access AND a financial barrier, complete this confidential "Request for Disability-Related Financial Assistance" form.
WANT TO LEARN MORE? WATCH OUR RECORDED ONLINE INFO SESSION
Accommodations and Supports Through Access & Disability Services
Have an IEP or a 504 Plan in high school?
So did about 20% of Dickinson students! Dickinson values diverse types of learners and is committed to ensuring that all students are afforded equitable access to all living and learning experiences. If you have (or you're the parent of a student with) a learning difference or a disability – including a mental health, medical, or physical impairment – that may require accommodations, this informational session explains the confidential accommodation process, shares information about how various accommodations are implemented at Dickinson and dispels some of the common myths regarding use of accommodations at Dickinson.
Frequently Requested Links:
- Academic Accommodations
- Housing Accommodations
- Dietary Accommodations
- Temporary Impairment Services
- How Accommodations Change from High School to College
- Parent Resources
- Forms and Procedures for Faculty and Staff
- Universal Design for Instruction & Learning
If you are having trouble viewing our website, adjust the web accessibility settings here.
If you have any questions about accommodations at Dickinson based on a disability or temporary impairment, please look through this website for information. If you still have remaining questions, please send them to access@dickinson.edu.
Here is Dickinson's full Policy and Procedural Statement on Accommodating Students with Disabilities.
DISABILITY-RELATED COMPLAINTS OR CONCERNS?
If you have any disability or accommodation-related grievances if you would like to appeal an accommodation determination, or if you feel you have been discriminated against on the basis of a disability, you have several options:
1. Email the ADS Dean and Executive Director Marni Jones at jonesmar@dickinson.edu, CCing access@dickinson.edu, and explain what happened or your concern (or else request a meeting to do so). Any information that you share will be kept strictly confidential.
2. If you'd like to report bias on the basis of a disability, you can file a Bias Incident Report by going to www.dickinson.edu/bias.
3. If neither of the above is preferable to you, follow the steps outlined in this Disability-Related Complaints Policy, which provides information on the process for both informal and formal complaints, grievances, or appeals.
