New to the Office of Student Accessibility

Starting Spring 2025, we will be rolling out a new software system for accommodations, called Accommodate. With Accommodate, you will be able to:

• Create and log in to your account - you’ll have access to a dashboard where you can see your current accommodations!
• Make requests for changes to accommodations, and check the status of those requests
• Upload forms and documentation
• Borrow equipment
• Request accessible texts
• Send your accommodation letter to your faculty
• Book an exam time and location
• Request a set of notes
• Make appointments
• And more…

If you are interested, this short video provides a very brief introduction to Accommodate from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. The user interface is highly customizable, so Lewis & Clark’s will look and feel different, but the video gives you a general idea of the interface.

Accommodate, which is free for you to use, will make the experience of managing your accommodations much easier and more streamlined, and we are excited to roll it out.

 

Schedule an Initial Appointment.

Schedule an appointment online or if you are unable to schedule online you may call or email access@lclark.edu to schedule an appointment. 

During your initial appointment, you and an OSA Staff Member will have an interactive discussion about your own experience of disability, past use of accommodations, adaptive strategies and devices, etc. This meeting may include the review of your documentation.

Submit Your Documentation

Documentation may include educational or medical records from a qualified licensed professional (i.e. doctor, therapist, psycho-educational testing). Submitted reports and assessments created by health care providers, school psychologists, teachers, or the educational system are all appropriate forms of documentation.

Your documentation may include information from a qualified licensed professional that addresses your 1. current functioning, 2. diagnosis, and 3. recommendations for appropriate accommodations.

We look for recent documentation (dated within the last five years). If you have older, relevant documentation, submit it so we can discuss it with you. We may ask that you obtain updated testing in order to get a clear picture of your current abilities and challenges.

Your documentation may be provided before, during, or after your initial appointment. 

If you do not have documentation, we can discuss this further during your initial appointment.

Complete the OSA Intake Form after you have an L&C student id# and email with numbers (upload documentation at the bottom of this form).

Determining Reasonable Accommodations

When determining reasonable accommodations, we consider a variety of information, including our interview/meeting with you, your documentation, recommendations from other professionals, etc.

Accommodations are not active until you complete an Accommodations Agreement with OSA.

 

Depending upon your specific needs, we can set up a variety of accommodations in the classroom, and on campus in general. For a list of commonly-used accommodations, click here.

 

Your active involvement is necessary for helping us provide you with the best accommodations possible for your particular needs. Please don’t be shy about checking back with us if you ask for assistance and it doesn’t seem to be coming quickly enough.

It is also important to have frequent and open communication with your professors. They will appreciate talking with you directly about how things are going for you in class. If you would like some guidance on how to talk with your professors about your accommodations please arrange an appointment with an OSA Staff Member.

Graduate School for Education and Counseling : Graduate students with questions regarding exam accommodations can contact Associate Dean, Janet Bixby (bixby@lclark.edu).

Logistics

A set of classroom notes and notetaking can take on many forms. Associate Dean, Janet Bixby, coordinates notetaking services for graduate students. If you have any questions, please contact Associate Dean, Janet Bixby (bixby@lclark.edu)..

The Office of Student Accessibility (OSA) embraces the principles of Universal Design around notetaking. For those classes where notetaking is an integral part of learning, we encourage professors to discuss notetaking with the entire class, about what role it plays in student learning, and what good notes look like. For more information please read, “Overview of Approved Classroom Notetaking Methods”

Who qualifies?

Note taking is an important skill and an imperative part of some classes. Several disabilities related to auditory processing, graphomotor difficulties, memory, and concentration can make synchronous notetaking in class inaccessible.

Please click here to visit our “Current Students” page to send your Accommodations Letter and request other approved accommodations.