Students seeking disability services at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown need to provide the Academic Support Center with appropriate documentation of a disability in order to receive accommodations. Documentation must be current (typically, based on evaluations and assessments conducted within the past three years) and should be based on a comprehensive evaluation performed by an appropriate professional (physician, psychologist, psychiatrist, or other disability-services professional). In general, documentation should include the following:
- a specific diagnosis of a disability
- a description of how the disability may affect the student’s performance in an academic community
- specific recommendations regarding academic accommodations and/or modifications to the academic environment
Specific academic accommodations will be determined by the Academic Support Center and will be based on the student’s documentation and the ASC’s interview with the student. Once accommodations have been determined, the student is responsible for notifying his/her instructors that he/she requires academic accommodations based on a disability, and the student is responsible for requesting each accommodation in a timely manner. Sample accommodations include extended time for in-class examinations, permission to tape record lectures, and the use of auxiliary aids in class or during an exam.
On request, the ASC will provide students, faculty and staff with a copy of our grievance procedure for appealing the ASC’s decisions regarding disability services.