The college provides services to students with disabilities to help them gain access to academic opportunities at the college. Counselors support and assist students in meeting their personal, educational and career goals. Services include academic and career planning, career assessment services, special orientation sessions, faculty/staff/student liaisons, auxiliary aids, assistive technology, readers, writers, interpreters and a support group. Assistive technology including closed circuit televisions are available in the college libraries, Student Academic Success Centers, and in the Disability Resource Centers to assist students with visual impairments. Students with hearing impairments can take advantage of telecommunications TTY Super Print 400 phone equipment located in the Student Information Centers and the Disability Resource Centers. The TTY Super Print phone numbers are Airport Campus Information Center, 822-3401; Beltline Campus Information Center, 738-7800; Airport Campus Disability Resource 822-3021; and the Beltline Campus Disability Resource Center, 738-7164. Additional TTY phones are located in the Airport Campus Academic Center; the Beltline Student Center and the Harbison Campus Continuing Education Center.
The college requests students notify Counseling Services of any special accommodation needs at least 30 working days before the first day of class. This notification will help ensure the quality and availability of services needed. The following procedures should be followed by students with disabilities desiring instructional, testing and administrative accommodations. Submit documentation to the Disability Resource Center counselor in order to verify the disability and to aid individual educational planning. Documentation should be current within a three- to five-year period. More recent or updated documents may be requested for conditions that are likely to change in a shorter period of time such as degenerative diseases and psychological disabilities.
Acceptable documentation for non-medical conditions such as ADD/ADHD (attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), learning disabilities, and psychological disabilities should include a valid DSM-IV (diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders) diagnosis dated within 3-5 years; a summary of assessment procedures and evaluation instruments used to make the diagnosis and a summary of evaluation results, including standardized scores or percentiles; an explanation of how the disability may affect one's life skills and performance within an academic setting; medical information related to the individual's needs and the possible impact of medications; and suggested classroom and/or testing accommodations. Acceptable documentation for students with medical disabilities should include a recent diagnosis from a medical physician on letterhead; a description of present symptoms; an explanation of how the disability might affect one's life skills and performance within an academic setting; medical information relating to the individual's needs, including the impact of medication; and suggested classroom and/or testing accommodations. Please note that standardized documents forms for ADD/ADHD, learning disabilities, physical/motor disabilities, psychological disabilities, and TBI (traumatic grain injuries) are available in Counseling Services as well as the Disability Resource Center web page (www.midlandstech.edu/edu/sds/cs/csssdifo.html). There is also a link to this site available through the Counseling Services web page. These forms can be taken directly to a service provider to be completed.
After the information relating to the disability is received, the student must sign a permission slip to implement the necessary accommodation(s) and/or to release information to involved college personnel. The following procedures will then be followed:
The counselor will meet with the student concerning reasonable accommodation(s).
Appropriate strategies and suggestions for classroom and testing accommodations will be discussed and a Faculty Notification form listing needed accommodations will be given to the student to be taken to their individual faculty members.
When necessary, special nonessential course adjustments may be made through the cooperative efforts of the student, department chair, instructor and the Disability Resource Center counselor.
For assistance, contact the Counseling Services Disability Resource Center on either the Airport or Beltline campus. Special placement testing accommodations will be coordinated by the Student Assessment Office once documentation has been reviewed and approved by the Disability Resource Centers staff.
*** The submission of documentation does not necessarily guarantee accommodations. Documentation will be reviewed and accommodations will be determined based on the guidelines provided by the Association of Higher Education and Disabilities (AHEAD).