Provost OfficeAU AccessSearch

Facilitating Accommodations

Accommodating Students

Faculty are essential and critical to the process of implementing appropriate accommodations for their courses. The implementation of accommodations should be a collaborative process between the faculty member, the student, and the Office of Accessibility when needed. The Office of Accessibility website has provided several links to assist faculty with the accommodating of Auburn University students with disabilities. While we were not able to address every scenario faced by faculty, we included some of the most requested information about working with students with disabilities.

Course Accessibility Quick Check

Confidentiality

Information concerning a student's disability should be disclosed only to those with a legitimate "need to know." Sharing of information with other faculty and staff to facilitate a student's accommodations needs to be balanced with the student's interest while maintaining their privacy. Further disclosure should only be made with the express permission of the student or in consultation with appropriate Office of Accessibility staff. Please do not discuss a student's disability or need for accommodations in front of other students.

Example Syllabus Statement

Students who need accommodations should submit their approved accommodations through the AIM Student Portal on AU Access and follow up with the instructor about an appointment. It is important for the student to complete these steps as soon as possible; accommodations are not retroactive. Students who have not established accommodations through the Office of Accessibility but need accommodations should contact the Office of Accessibility at ACCESSIBILITY@auburn.edu or (334) 844-2096 (V/TT). The Office of Accessibility is located in Haley Center 1228.

Viewing a Student’s Accommodations

  1. Login to the AU Access.
  2. Click on AIM Faculty Portal under Academic Accommodations & Accessibility.
  3. Agree to the Confidentiality Statement.
  4. A student list will be at the bottom of the page. Click VIEW next to the student's name.
  5. The next page will show the student's list of accommodations with descriptions.
  6. If you have not communicated with the student, Click on Return to Previous Page. This will indicate that you have READ the Faculty Notification Letter.
  7. Once you have communicated (email, phone, in-person meeting, etc.) with the student about their accommodations, you can acknowledge it by clicking the Submit Acknowledgement button.
  8. You will receive an email for your records, and the student status will be marked Confirmed.

***PDF Instructions on How to Review Accommodation Requests***

Discussing Accommodations with a Student

If a student with a disability submits accommodations electronically from our office and is requesting a meeting to discuss his/her accommodations, we recommend that you meet with the student in your office or another confidential location to discuss the requested accommodations. Discuss each accommodation and establish a plan for how the accommodations will be facilitated in your class. After meeting with the student, document through our system that the meeting occurred and/or address any questions or concerns.

It is also important that faculty do not:

  • Ask the student to disclose the nature of their disability. Most disabilities are invisible and while the student has been instructed to self-advocate and clearly state their needs, they do not have to discuss the disability.
  • Deny a student’s accommodation request. If there is concern that an accommodation would fundamentally change the nature of a course, contact the Office of Accessibility immediately either by phone (334-844-2096) or email (accessibility@auburn.edu). It is important that you provide the accommodation until the concern has been resolved. An accommodation cannot be denied without due process; therefore, all cases will be reviewed individually.
  • Tell the student that he/she requested the accommodations too late in the semester. While students with disabilities are encouraged to meet with faculty during the first week of class, there are many legitimate reasons why this may not be possible. Accommodations must be provided at any point in a semester; however, they do not need to be provided retroactively.

Documenting a Meeting with a Student

  1. Login to the Faculty Portal with your AU credentials
  2. Agree to the Confidentiality Statement
  3. Click VIEW next to the student's name
  4. Once you have met with the student and discussed their accommodations, you can acknowledge the meeting by clicking the Submit Acknowledgement button.
  5. You will receive an email from accessibility@auburn.edu for your records. The student’s status will be marked Confirmed. If you would like to document your communication with OA, you can respond to the email from accessiblity@auburn.edu. The email will be added to the student's file, and you will have a copy in your sent folder.

Disputing an Accommodation

Faculty can dispute an accommodation if it is felt the accommodation would fundamentally alter the nature of the academic course. If there is a dispute regarding the appropriateness of a particular student accommodation, the concern should be raised with Office of Accessibility promptly, preferably before the semester begins or by the next business day after receiving an accommodation request. During the time that the accommodation is under review, the Office of Accessibility recommendation for accommodation should remain in effect.

Adding Instructor to Course in AIM

The AIM system only retrieves the primary instructor for a course listed in Banner. If you require assistance from an additional instructor to facilitate accommodations in your course, please refer to the provided PDF instructions below.

***PDF Instructions of How to Add an Instructor to Course***