Disability Services
Touro University Worldwide believes that every student has the capability to be successful. TUW works to ensure every qualified student with a disability have equal opportunity to pursue a higher education. The university is committed to making its facilities accessible and offering reasonable accommodations for qualifying students with disabilities as required by applicable laws.
Students with a disability who require assistance must provide appropriate documentation and request accommodations (based on disability) four to six weeks prior to their needs to allow TUW to review the request and make arrangements accordingly. Students must provide documentation from an appropriate professional verifying the presence and impact of the disability. The designated university representative reviews the documentation and determines eligibility for reasonable accommodations as permitted by applicable laws.
What is ADA?
The term “disability” is defined as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of a person’s major life activities (Section 504, Rehabilitation Act).
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and Sec 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 are civil rights guarantees for persons with disabilities in the U.S. and are designed to eliminate discrimination against qualified individuals on the basis of disability.
ADA Guidelines
In order to establish that an individual is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, documentation must be provided that indicates the disability substantially limits some major life activity, including learning.
It is the responsibility of the student to identify themselves as a disabled person and request assistance from TUW at their own expense.
Students with a documented disability who require assistance must provide appropriate documentation and request accommodations (based on disability) four to six weeks prior to their needs to allow TUW to review the request and make arrangements accordingly.
This documentation must:
- Be typed on an official letterhead signed by an evaluator qualified to make the diagnosis.
- Verify the nature and extent of the disability.
- Provide description and manner in which the disability limits major life activities relevant to the student’s participation in coursework at TUW.
- Complete educational, developmental and medical history relevant to the disability for which accommodations are requested.
- Suggest reasonable accommodations that would, in the evaluator’s professional opinion, be most appropriate and the anticipated duration of reasonable accommodations.
- Provide information on the impact of any medication and/or treatments currently being used.
These guidelines correspond with federal law and the university policies. TUW follows all appropriate and applicable federal and state laws and University policies with respect to confidentiality of a student’s disability and disability verification information.
Please send forms to the Advisor for the Program, who in turn will submit the document to Academic Affairs.
Types of Accommodations
Reasonable accommodations may include, but are not limited to:
- Note takers
- Permission to tape record lectures
- Course exam accommodations
- Sign language interpreter(s)
- Specialized advising by the Educational Advisors at TUW
Unreasonable accommodations may include, but are not limited to:
- Personal care assistance
- Personal study assistance
- Transportation to and from class
- Reduced standards for academic performance
- Exemptions from graduation requirements
- Services which fundamentally alter the nature of the programs and/or classes
Accessible Parking and Handicap Permits
TUW provides handicapped parking spaces reserved for students, staff and visitors with disabilities. If you park in one of these reserved spaces, you must display a disability parking placard issued by the California State Department of Motor Vehicles.
The parking placard must hang from the rearview mirror and be clearly readable through the vehicle window. If you park in a reserved space without the official state placard showing, you may be cited with a parking ticket.
If you are displaying a valid State of California disability parking placard and there are no reserved spaces available, you may park in any other legal parking space. That is, you may park in a faculty and staff parking lot, but you may not park in bus zones, fire lanes, driveways, etc.
Grievance Procedure
Any student who believes that he or she has been discriminated against or is dissatisfied with the result may file a formal grievant directly to the Educational Advisor without involving outside parties within 10 days of TUW’s decision.
The grievant must provide all pertinent documentation supporting the grievance.
The grievant must specifically state the reasons for grievance, and the action he or she believes should be taken to accommodate the identified disability.
The Educational Advisor will submit the document to the Provost office. The Provost will respond within 10 days to the complaint. The Provost‘s decision is final on any student grievance matter.
ADA Resources
AHEAD
Association on Higher Education and Disability
Disability.gov
Connecting the disability community to information
U.S. Department of Education
Office of Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Justice
Americans with Disabilities Act