Disability Documentation
All students requesting reasonable accommodations must provide Disability Resources with documentation of their disability and meet with a DRC Access Consultant to discuss barriers that impact their full participation in campus courses, programs, services, and activities.
- Documentation must come from a licensed professional (unrelated to the individual being evaluated) and trained in the appropriate specialty area. There must be a good match between the credentials of the individual making the diagnosis, and the condition being reported (e.g., an orthopedic limitation might be documented by a physician, but not a licensed psychologist.) Documentation that presents any question as to authenticity will be followed up with a consultation to verify information (e.g., hand-written letters.) Documentation must be dated, on letterhead, and signed by the evaluator. Documentation on prescription pads will not be accepted.
- Documentation must include a description of the diagnostic criteria or the diagnostic tests used. This description should include the specific results of the diagnostic procedures, diagnostic tests utilized and dates administered. When relevant both summary data and specific test scores should be reported. Diagnostic methods used should be congruent with current professional diagnostic practices within the field. Informal or non-standardized evaluations should be described in enough detail that a professional colleague could understand their role and significance in the diagnostic process.
- Documentation must include both a clear diagnostic statement and information regarding the impact of the disability condition on major life activities (i.e., walking, talking, learning, working, seeing, hearing), including the impact of medications, other treatments, and concomitant side effects.
- In most cases, documentation should be less than 3 years old. However, discretion may be used in accepting documentation of conditions that are permanent or non-varying (e.g., a sensory disability). Likewise, some chronic and/or changing conditions will warrant more current documentation and/or more frequent updates.
Disability documentation is evaluated and discussed with students. It serves two primary purposes:
- to establish that a student is entitled to legal protections and if so,
- to determine accommodations necessary for access to campus course, programs, services, and activities.
A complete assessment that documents the presence of some disabilities is often quite expensive and may not be covered by insurance. Responsibility for providing this documentation to the University is borne by the student. (A list of diagnostic service providers in the Tucson community is available for individuals seeking consultation or assessment.)