/ Offices/ Office of Student Accessibility//New to Lewis & Clark-Prospective, Incoming, and Transfer Students

main contentProspective, Incoming, and Transfer Students

While visiting L&C, schedule an informational meeting with a staff member in the Office of Student Accessibility to learn more about accommodations and academic support. To schedule an appointment, call 503-768-7192, or email access@lclark.edu.

Our office is committed to ensuring your transition to Lewis & Clark is a smooth one by working with each student to determine appropriate and reasonable accommodations with specific limitations due to disabilities. Since college and university campuses are guided by a different legal framework from high schools, please review the summary of differences that will be helpful for you to understand before coming to campus. Our experienced and supportive staff are ready to support and work with you to receive reasonable and available accommodations.

Disability related housing deadline for incoming students is June 16, 2025

What Incoming Students Should Know

High School	College
Class schedules are arranged by school personnel	Students create their own schedules. Academic Advising is available for guidance and to help keep students on track, but students set the course schedule.
General education classes are dictated by the state and/or the district requirements.	Classes are based on a field or program of study based on the students’ desired major; requirements may vary.
Instructors are addressed as Mr./Miss/Ms./Mrs. [Last Name].	Instructors are faculty who have earned an advanced degree, such as a doctorate, and are typically addressed as Dr. [Last Name].
Class attendance is usually mandatory and monitored by the instructor.	Attendance policies vary and are set by individual faculty.
Textbooks are typically provided at little to no expense.	Textbooks are purchased by the student based on each class’s requirements, and can be expensive.
Instructors and school personnel closely watch out for the students, guiding and correcting them if necessary.	Students are expected to take responsibility for what they do and don’t do (e.g. missing class, not completing homework, etc.), as well as for the consequences of their decisions.
An academic year usually consists of two semesters (15 weeks each).	At L&C, an academic year consists of two semesters (16 weeks each).
Personal care attendants are provided by the school.	The student is responsible for finding, hiring, and paying for personal care attendants.
	Students may request non-academic accommodations in areas such as campus housing and dining. Students who are approved for an additional refrigerator or access to air conditioning in their living spaces are financially responsible for providing these appliances.

Summary: Students Are Responsible for their College Success

Lewis & Clark works with all students to ensure that they develop skills in critical thinking, leadership, and service. However, it is important to understand that upon entering higher education, students must ensure their own success versus depending on the check-ins and follow-up from teachers they are accustomed to in K-12 settings.

High School	College
Teachers may modify curriculum and/or alter pace of assignments.	Professors are not required to fundamentally alter curriculum.
Teachers often provide an daily overview of what will be covered in class.	Professors often provide a syllabus at the start of the semester, which will inform you of course objectives, assignments, and test dates that you will be responsible for tracking (and often not reminded about).
You are expected to read short assignments that are then discussed, and often re-taught, in class.	You are assigned and responsible for substantial amounts of reading and writing, which may not be directly addressed in class.
You seldom need to read anything more than once, and sometimes listening in class is enough.	You need to review class notes and text material regularly.
Teachers may remind students of incomplete assignments.	Faculty may not remind students of incomplete assignments, as it is the responsibility of the student to check with professor to see if requirements are being met.
Teachers may know students’ needs and approach students when they need assistance.	Professors are usually open and helpful, but expect students to initiate contact when assistance is needed by utilizing office hours or scheduling appointments.
Teachers are often easily accessible and available before, during, or after class.	Professors have scheduled availability, and should students need additional support, they are encouraged to utilize office hours.
Teachers often provide students with information missed during absences.	Professors expect students to get information from classmates or teaching assistants (TAs) when they miss a class. Professors generally don’t follow-up with students.
Teachers present material to help students understand what is in the textbook.	Instructors may not follow the textbook, and present lectures to enhance the topic area.
Teachers often write information on the board to be copied for notes.	The professor may lecture nonstop. When they write on the board, it is often to enhance the lecture, not summarize it.
Teachers teach knowledge and facts, leading students through the thinking process.	Professors expect students to think independently and connect seemingly unrelated information.
Teachers often take time to remind students of assignments and test dates.	Students are responsible for knowing assignments and test dates.

High School	College
Tutoring and study support may be a service provided as part of I.E.P or 504 plans.	Tutoring DOES NOT fall under disability services. Students with disabilities must seek out the same tutoring resources that are available to all students.
Student time and assignments are structured by others.	Students manage their own time and complete assignments independently.
Students may study outside of class as little as zero to two hours a week, and this may be mostly last-minute test preparation.	Students need to study at least three hours outside of class for each hour in class.

Summary: Time Management In and Outside of Class

Generally speaking for each course, a student typically should spend approximately two to three hours of study time for each hour that they spend in class. For example, if your class meets three times a week for one hour for a total of three hours, you should expect to be reading and/or doing homework for that class for six to nine hours outside of class. Please watch our study skills workshop videos before you arrive on campus.

High School	College
I.E.P. or 504 plan may include modifications to test format and/or grading.	Grading and test format changes (i.e. multiple choice vs. essay) are generally not available. Accommodations to how tests are given (extended time, separate testing locations) are available when supported by disability documentation.
Testing is frequent and covers small amounts of material.	Testing is usually infrequent and may be cumulative, covering large amounts of material.
Makeup tests are often available.	Makeup tests are seldom an option. Students are expected to take responsibility and contact their professor to request such an option, but they are not guaranteed as every professor has different policies.
Teachers often take time to remind you of assignments and due dates.	Professors expect you to read, save, and consult the course syllabus (online), which spells out exactly what is expected of you, when it is due, and how you will be graded.

High School	College
Students are identified by the school and are supported by parents and teachers.	Students must self-identify to the Office for Student Accessibility.
Primary responsibility for arranging accommodations belongs to the school.	Primary responsibility for seeking and arranging accommodations belongs to the student.
Teachers approach you if they believe you need assistance.	Professors are usually open and helpful, but most expect you to initiate contact if you need assistance.

Summary: Access Is Student Driven

Every student is 100 percent responsible in taking initiative to gain access and support for their needs. Students are in charge of all accessibility-related steps, including disclosing their academic challenges, sharing their approved accommodations with their professors (if they choose to do so), and sometimes arranging for accommodations to be utilized (such as using a campus testing center to take a quiz/test, for example).

High School	College
Parents have access to student records and can participate in the accommodations process.	Parents do not have access to student records without the student’s written consent due to FERPA.
Parent advocates for the student, with increasing involvement from the student over time.	Student advocates for self.

Summary: Students Are the Decision Makers

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is intended to ensure students the right to inspect, review, and control access to student educational records maintained by an educational institution. Under FERPA, parents cannot call or email professors or campus staff for information regarding their student. All institutions invite students and parents to develop open communication as institutions leave the responsibility of sharing a student’s success, challenges, and needs with the student.

For more information please go to the New Student Orientation webpage for parents and family “Supporting Your Student During the First Year”.

High School	College
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)	Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973	Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973
IDEA is about ensuring student success.	ADA is about access to programs and services. Success is the student’s responsibility.

Your rights in College

The student is responsible for letting the college know about their disability if they want accommodations provided. This is done through the Student Accessibility Office, where students provide documentation of their disabilities.
The Office of Student Accessibility Director and Associate Director determines if the disabilities interfere with a major life function, such as learning, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing and others. Reasonable accommodations, as determined by the Directors, must be provided for all students who have a disability which affects a major life function.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states that any institutions receiving public funds must not discriminate on the basis of a disability. Accommodations will be similar, but may not be the same as accommodations provided in high school. Accommodations cannot require faculty to fundamentally alter the nature of their course content.

Your rights in high school

Psychoeducational testing is provided through the schools. Schools are responsible for identifying and testing individuals who may qualify for specialized services or “special education.”
Multidisciplinary teams assess students and provide services. These teams are responsible for yearly Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings, reevaluations and monitoring student progress through goals and objectives.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA), eligible students must have one or more of the 13 specific disability categories. Once identified, it is required that the student will have an IEP.

High School	College
Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and/or 504 Plan	Documentation guidelines specify information needed for each category of disability.
School provides evaluation at no cost to students.	Students must get an evaluation at their own expense.
Documentation focuses on determining whether a student is eligible for services based on specific disability categories in IDEA.	Documentation must provide information on specific functional limitations, and demonstrate the need for specific accommodations.

More Information

You may schedule an appointment to set up academic accommodations once you receive your L&C ID number and .lclark.edu email account. In the meantime, here is a list of commonly requested academic accommodations. We are processing final exams during late April and the beginning of May. Appointment times may be limited until mid May.

Schedule an informational meeting with a staff member to learn more about accommodation services and academic support:

Stop by our office in Albany Quadrangle to meet with one of our staff members.
Call 503-768-7192
Email access@lclark.edu

main contentProspective, Incoming, and Transfer Students

What Incoming Students Should Know

Transitioning from High School to College

Classes

Study Management and Support

Grades and Tests

Taking Initiative and Responsibility

Parental Role

Know your rights and responsibilities for disability accessibility services

Required Documentation

More Information