The Ross Center for Disability Services

Documentation Guidelines


Learning Disability Documentation Guidelines

Students requesting accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act or 1973 must provide documentation of a diagnosed learning disability that limits a major life activity. Documentation and recommendations must be appropriate to the postsecondary setting. The report must describe the current impact of the attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder on the student's academic performance.


Accommodations are individually determined each semester. Once the Ross Center receives documentation, it is the student’s responsibility to make an appointment with the Ross Center to discuss eligibility and receive academic accommodations that semester.

Confidentiality Statement

Ross Center for Disability Services will not release any information at any point in the disability accommodation process regarding an individual’s diagnosis or medical information without his or her informed written consent or under compulsion of legal process. Information will be released only on a “need to know” basis, except where otherwise required by law. All documentation will be stored in a secure place.

Assessment

Assessment of a learning disability must be current, valid and comprehensive. Documentation needs to be typed and include the name and credentials of the evaluator. Actual test scores and data must be provided, with clear and specific evidence of a learning disability. Assessment instruments should be selected based on their reliability and validity for use with adults. It is not acceptable to administer only one test for diagnosis. The three essential areas of assessment with possible evaluation tools follow:

 

Aptitude/Cognitive Ability

Academic Achievement

Note: The Wide Range Achievement Test-Revised is not a comprehensive measure of achievement and therefore should not be used as the only measure of achievement.

Information Processing

Instruments that measure specific areas of information processing (working memory, sequential memory, and auditory or visual perception, processing and processing speed) must be assessed.

 

*** Note that submission of documentation is not the same as the request for services. You still must complete the Service Request Form. The RCDS cannot support any accommodation requests until the documentation is complete.
 


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