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Accessibility at Potomac State College of WVU
At Potomac State College, our mission is to help all of our
students discover their own greatness. As part of the College's
student-centered outlook, we are dedicated to helping you achieve your
academic potential-regardless of any physical, learning, psychological,
psychiatric, or other documented disabilities.
Reasonable accommodations are provided for PSC students who have
temporary or permanent disabilities and are based on the documented
needs of each individual. As part of the President's Office for Social
Justice, the Office of Disability Services takes your needs seriously.
Everyone on campus, from your professors to our counselors, van and bus drivers, and administrators, will do their best to help you get a great
education.
For all potential students, acceptance to PSC is based on meeting the
current admission criteria, with the same standards applied to every
applicant, regardless of a disability. To apply, phone 800-262-7332 or
304-788-6820, or visit our web site at www.potomacstatecollege.edu. If
you have a question about disability services, please call the Office of Disability Services at 304-788-6936 or 304-293-6700 (TDD 304-293-7740) or send an e-mail to access2@mail.wvu.edu.
Once you have been accepted to PSC, please contact the Office of
Disability Services as soon as possible so that your specific
requirements can be met. It is important to plan for accommodations
ahead of time. You must submit appropriate documentation that meets
College policy and criteria. Please submit a cover letter that
explains your needs along with your documentation. Plan to meet with a
Disability Services counselor, who will work with you to set up a
program of accommodations. If Disability Services is not contacted in a
timely manner, it may be impossible to provide assistance at the last
minute.
At the beginning of each semester, you must contact Disability Services
to make arrangements. Please notify us immediately if you encounter
any difficulty with your accommodations. All information provided about
your condition is confidential and is stored separately from your other
records. Information is not released without your prior consent or an
appropriate court order.
What We Do
Students with documented disabilities are entitled to receive
accommodations, based upon documented significant functional
limitations. Accommodations are tailored to the individual rather than
the disability, so students with the same disabilities may vary greatly
in the kind of assistance required. A partial list of available services
is given below.
Possible Accommodations
* Suggestions for class scheduling
* Enlarged reading materials
* Informing faculty of a student's needs, as requested by the student
* Priority preregistration
* Physical classroom accommodations
* Classroom relocation
* Accessible transportation for class-related activities
* Temporary accessible parking
* Verifying documentation for housing accommodations
* Sign language interpreters and/or auxiliary aids
* Consulting/referrals to rehabilitation services agencies
* Referrals for arrangements for specific dietary needs
* Referrals for speech and hearing evaluations
* Referrals to counseling and psychological services
* Referrals to PSC Student Health Services
* Referrals to the Career Services Center
* Referrals for diagnostic evaluations
* Referrals to Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D)
* Referrals to Student Support Services
* Referrals for access to assistive technology in academic computing labs
Documentation
Students are responsible for providing appropriate documentation of
their disabilities, which usually comes from a physician, psychologist,
or other licensed professional. The documentation must clearly state a
current diagnosis and specific functional limitations, and provide test
data that substantiates a "significant impairment" in functioning.
Specific information for the documentation of learning disabilities,
attention deficit hyperactivity disorders, psychological/psychiatric
disorders, physical/medical disorders, traumatic brain injury, housing,
vision, and deafness is available upon request.
Students without documentation who are experiencing learning problems
may meet with a Disability Services counselor to discuss possible
academic assistance and how to obtain the necessary documentation.
Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders, and Psychological/Psychiatric Disorders
It is very important that students with learning disabilities,
attention deficit hyperactivity disorders, and psychological or
psychiatric disorders contact the Office of Disability Services as soon
as possible upon admission to the College. In order to receive
disability-related accommodations, appropriate documentation must be
provided for review in order to determine eligibility. This
documentation must include a psychoeducational evaluation administered and reported by a licensed psychologist. The report must document a specific disability and significant functional limitations based upon documented test scores. Additionally, the report must be current,
indicating present functional limitations. Although there are no
separate classes or programs for students with disabilities, support
services are available.
Students' Rights and Responsibilities
Rights
* Information in accessible formats
* Confidentiality-information about a student's disability will not
be disclosed without the written authorization of the student unless
required by law or a need-to-know basis
* An equal opportunity to learn
* Reasonable and appropriate accommodations and services
determined on an individual basis
Responsibilities
* Compliance with the PSC Code of Student Conduct
* Timely registration with Disability Services, with appropriate
documentation
* Adherence to policies and procedures
* Following specific procedures for obtaining reasonable and
appropriate accommodations
PSC's Responsibilities
* To establish and identify standards for courses, programs,
services, activities, and facilities and to evaluate students by these
standards
* To define reasonable accommodation or service and choose equally
effective accommodation and services
* To establish guidelines and criteria required for the documentation
of specific disabilities
* To select among equally effective and appropriate accommodations
and/or auxiliary aids in consultation with the student
* To respect the privacy of students
* To provide students with reasonable and appropriate accommodations
and services
* To provide courses, services, programs, facilities, and activities
that are reasonably available and usable
* To provide information to students in accessible formats
Defining Disabled
To meet the adult criteria of a disability pursuant to federal law, you
must provide documentation of how the significant impairment
"substantially" limits your functioning. A significant impairment is
defined as "below-average functioning."
If you have received accommodations in a public school system, an
individual education plan (IEP) or 504 plan is not documentation of a
disability for the purposes of acquiring college-level accommodations.
At the college/university level, the standards of documentation are
different, and accommodations may be different. Additional documentation
may be necessary.
Confidentiality
Communication with faculty members, parents, or other service providers
occurs only with the student's written permission.
Whatever the situation, and whatever level of assistance is needed, we
hope that you will take advantage of the services offered at PSC.
Working together, we can enrich your college experience and help you
create a great future.
Office of Disability Services
Potomac State College of WVU
Mary F. Shipper Library
Keyser, WV 26726
304-788-6936 * 304-293-6700 * TDD: 304-293-7740 * fax: 304-293-3861
access2@mail.wvu.edu
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