Disability, Accessibility, and Accommodation

Procedure Administrator: Chief Officer for Diversity and Inclusion

Authority: Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101- 12213; Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq. The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination

Effective Date: May 25, 2021

Index Cross-References: Policy I-67 Disability, Accessibility, and Reasonable Accommodations; Procedure 6921 Building Evacuation

Procedure File Number: 6950

Approved By: Dr. Harvey Kesselman, President

I.      DEFINITIONS

Accessibility: A facility, path of travel, website, or publication that is readily usable by individuals with disabilities. Accessibility also means that individuals with disabilities can acquire independently the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services within the same timeframe, as individuals without disabilities, with substantially equivalent ease of use.

Individual with a Disability: A student, employee or visitor who has physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a history or record of such an impairment, or is perceived by others as having such an impairment.

Reasonable Accommodation: Any modification or adjustment to a job, the work environment, or academic programs that will enable a qualified applicant, employee, or student with a disability to participate in the application process, to perform essential job functions, or to perform in an academic program. An accommodation is not reasonable if it would result in an undue burden on the University or fundamentally alter the position held by the employee or fundamentally alter the academic course or program requirements in which the student is enrolled.

II.      STUDENTS

A.   Academic Accommodations

Any student with a documented disability and/or a temporary impairment is eligible to receive reasonable accommodations to perform in an academic program from Stockton’s Learning Access Program (LAP). Additional information regarding eligibility, application, documentation, testing, etc. can be found on the Learning Access Program website.

B.   Housing Accommodations

To qualify for reasonable accommodations in the University’s housing assignment process, a student must be registered with the LAP and have a licensed medical provider complete a Housing Accommodation Request form that is located under Forms and Information on the LAP website. In addition, students must submit the required documentation prior to the housing assignment deadline to be eligible for review by the Housing Review Committee. The committee meets on a bi-monthly basis to review requests and if applicable determine reasonable accommodations that meet students’ needs.

C.   Program Requirements

In addition to University policies and procedures, students should consult with the Program Chair in their major to determine if there are any field-specific considerations that may affect reasonable accommodations (i.e., if such accommodation would fundamentally alter the program standards of the academic program or course of study). It is the responsibility of LAP to facilitate the interactive process to determine if an accommodation is a fundamental alteration of the program standards. Typically, a student would meet with LAP and the LAP would develop an accommodation plan. If there were any accommodations that could possibly alter the program standards, the LAP would then schedule a meeting with the Program Chair.

The LAP letter of accommodation states that a faculty member should contact LAP if they believe that any of the accommodations fundamentally alter their course.

III.      EMPLOYEES AND APPLICANTS

A.   Requesting Accommodations

An applicant for employment, who needs a reasonable accommodation should contact the Office of Human Resources. Any employee with a disability who is requesting a reasonable accommodation, can contact the Office of Human Resources or the ADA/504 Coordinator directly and shall complete a Reasonable Accommodation Request Form and provide the ADA/504 Coordinator with permission to contact the individual’s medical provider for information necessary to evaluate the request for a reasonable accommodation. Each accommodation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and reviewed on a periodic basis.

Information and guidance on requests for accommodation and required documentation can be found on the University’s Reasonable Accommodation Process webpage.

Employees with temporary impairments that meet the definition of disability can request accommodations by providing medical documentation to the Office of Human Resources that will inform the ADA-504 Coordinator of the employee’s request for accommodation under the ADA. Each temporary accommodation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and will be reviewed on a periodic basis.

IV.      EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS:

A.   Emergency preparedness information can be found in Procedure 6921 Building Evacuation.

V.      FACILITIES AND ACCESSIBLE PARKING

A.   Parking

Information regarding parking accessibility can be found on the University’s Parking & Transportation website.

B.   Access on Campus:

If a guest or visitor is on campus and is unable to access a physical location, they should contact Campus Police at 609-652-4390.

VI.      TECHNOLOGY ACCESSIBILITY

A.   Website Content

University Relations and Marketing (URM) maintains the CMS (content management system) and templates for stockton.edu. In addition, URM maintains the Accessibility Statement affirming that the website endeavors to conform to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 to make web content more accessible for people with disabilities.

URM also assists individuals with website content, development and any other inquiries. For questions concerning stockton.edu, contact URM at 609-626-3600 or universityrelations@stockton.edu.

B.   Accessibility Services

Information Technology Services (ITS) provides accessibility services in many areas including the following major functional areas: Academic Computing, Administrative Computing, End-User Training and Support, Communications and Networking, and Systems Administration and Operation. For questions concerning ITS services, contact the ITS Help Desk.

C.   Library Databases

Richard E. Bjork Library’s three central databases providers, EBSCO, Gale, and ProQuest are compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and/or W3C WAI WCAG 2.0. These vendors also provide information about accessibility features on the homepages of the databases they offer, including Ebook Central from ProQuest. For all other vendor databases to which the library subscribes, please look for information regarding accessibility on the landing page of those resources. The Library only procures digital video that includes closed captioning. For more information on ADA accessibility in the Library, please visit the list of ADA Compliant Databases under “A-Z Databases” on the library website or call 609-652-4346.

D.   The Center for Teaching and Learning Design

The Center for Teaching and Learning Design offers expertise in course design and the use of digital resources to promote inclusive student success. For questions concerning course design and the use of digital resources in teaching, contact 609-626-3828 or ctld@stockton.edu.

E.   LAP Accessibility Toolbox

LAP Accessibility Toolbox provides a list of programs and applications that may be helpful for students struggling with reading, writing, note taking, and time management. For questions concerning the accessibility toolbox, contact 609-652-4988 or lap@stockton.edu.

VII.      ACCESSIBILITY and ACCOMMODATION QUESTIONS

Accessibility questions should be directed to the ADA-504 Coordinator, 609-652-4695, dandi@stockton.edu.

VIII.      Complaints of Discrimination

Discrimination based on disability is prohibited. Complaints regarding failure to provide reasonable accommodation and accessibility, as well as other discrimination complaints based on disability, should be made to the Chief Officer for EEO and Compliance in the Office for Equal Opportunity and Institutional Compliance, L-214, 609-626-5582, ide@stockton.edu.

IX.      Prohibition against Retaliation

Retaliation against applicants, employees and students who request accommodations under this Procedure is prohibited.

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