Students Rights and Responsibilities
What are a Student's Rights?
Any student who has a disability has the right to reasonable accommodation of that disability in order to provide them with the same opportunity for success available to students who do not have a disability.
Under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (and amendments) "No otherwise qualified person with a disability in the United States...shall, solely by reason of...disability, be denied the benefits of, be excluded participation in, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance."
Students with disabilities at Loyola Marymount University have the right to:
- Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities available throughout the University
- Reasonable and appropriate accommodations, academic adjustments, and/or auxiliary aids determined on an individualized basis
- Appropriate confidentiality in regard to their disability. Any information regarding specific diagnosis or medication will be released only with the written permission of the student. Students may choose to disclose that information to faculty if they wish
- Information reasonably available in accessible formats
If a student should feel that they have been discriminated against because of a disability, they should review the LMU Appeal and Complaint Resolution Procedure for Students with Disabilities form to determine how to go about bringing it to the attention of the University.
What are a student's responsibilities?
Students with disabilities are protected by privacy and confidentiality policies. Thus, no accommodations will be arranged or requested unless the student 1) requests accommodation services, and 2) provides the necessary verifying documentation. Once all the documentation has been provided, the DSS Office will review the student's file and inform the student in writing of the outcome of the review.
To request accommodations at LMU, students must:
Once a student has been approved for accommodations, they must:
- Download and complete the top line of the Reasonable Accommodation form. One form must be completed for each class that the student will need accommodations for
- Meet with the DSS staff during the first two weeks of each new semester to review accommodations. At this time the DSS staff member will complete the rest of the Reasonable Accommodation Form for the student to submit to their faculty
- Meet with their professors – have them sign the Reasonable Accommodation form, give them the yellow copy and return the white copy to the DSS Office. When giving the Reasonable Accommodation form to their professors, students are encouraged to discuss their disability and how it affects their learning
- Maintain the academic and institutional standards required of all LMU students
- Attend all classes. Accommodations do not take the place of attending class
- Plan their week for study time and homework preparation. It is recommended that students schedule three (3) hours of homework for each hour spent in class
- Contact other agencies for services for which they may be eligible (Social Security, Vocational Rehabilitation, etc.)
- If needed, arrange for personal attendants.Personal attendants may be paid for by an agency or by the student (colleges and universities are not required under ADA to provide personal attendants, tutors or personal items such as hearing aids, prostheses, individually designed and fitted special extensions or wands for computer or other resource operation)