Disability Information & Definitions
To qualify for accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (1973) or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA, 1990, amended 2008), an individuals condition must meet the ADAs definition of a disability: a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
The ADA ensures that individuals with disabilities are protected from discrimination and are entitled to accommodations that help them to participate fully in college life, including academic programs.
Definition of Disability: Definition Language
Disability: Typically defined as a physical, mental, or emotional condition that substantially limits one or more major life activities. A student with a disability may experience significant barriers in performing academic tasks or engaging in campus life without accommodations or support.
Clinical Diagnosis or Disability: A diagnosis alone is insufficient for accommodations. Documentation must show how the condition substantially impairs major life activities and how it meets the definition of a disability, with detailed descriptions of current functional limitations in a college setting. Accommodations typically relate directly to these limitations, with clear rationale for each request.
Substantially Limits: The condition must impose significant restrictions on how an individual performs a major life activity compared to the general population. Determination of substantial limitation is made by qualified professionals using multiple sources of information.
Major Life Activities: Under the ADA, major life activities refer to basic tasks that are essential to daily life. These include but are not limited to: walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks.
Equal Access: The goal of equal access is not to give students with disabilities an advantage, but rather to level the playing field so that they can demonstrate their abilities and participate in academic and extracurricular activities just like other students. This doesn't mean providing the exact same resources for every student, but rather ensuring that any barriers created by the disability are removed, so the student can fully engage in academics, campus activities, and other opportunities.
Intake Meeting: The intake meeting is an interactive process in which the student will discuss with a Disability Specialist their submitted documentation and their personal experience living with a disability. The goal is to identify appropriate accommodations or auxiliary aids to address barriers caused by the disability and to ensure equal access to the students academic and college program. Students should regularly check their Whitman email for a meeting invitation so that the meeting can occur in a timely manner. Accommodations cannot be finalized without this step.
Accommodations: Accommodations or adjustments are approved on a case-by-case basis and are tailored to allow for equal access by meeting the students specific needs due to the impact of the disability. These accommodations can be approved on a provisional, temporary, or permanent basis. Reasonable accommodations are determined through information presented by the student, evaluation of access barriers in environments, and DSS staff members knowledge, and in consultation with academic course/program staff, to ensure that accommodations do not fundamentally alter academic standards or change the program or course curriculum.
Fundamentally Alter: A significant change in a program or activity that results in an alteration of its core nature or functionality. If alternate accommodations are possible, those will be offered to the student.
Otherwise Qualified: Being "otherwise qualified" to be a student at a college means that, aside from having a disability, the student meets all the academic and other general requirements needed to attend and succeed at the college. In other words, a students disability does not stop them from being able to meet the essential expectations of college life.