What Are Your Rights?
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (amended 1977) prohibits discrimination on the basis
of disability. Section 504 specifically refers to all colleges and universities and
mandates that they be free from discrimination in recruitment, admissions and treatment
of students. The college must also make reasonable accommodations in the academic
program to ensure maximum participation by all students with handicapping conditions.
The term "handicapping conditions" includes such conditions as speech, hearing, visual
and orthopedic impairments, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple
sclerosis, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, mental retardation, emotional illness,
and specific learning disabilities such as perceptual handicaps, dyslexia, minimal
brain dysfunction and developmental aphasia. A person who is addicted to drugs but
is not actively using drugs is considered a person with a disability and is protected
by law. Physical or mental impairments do not constitute a handicap, however, unless
they are severe enough to substantially limit one or more of the major life functions.
A copy of the law can be obtained in its entirety from the Section 504 Compliance
Officer, the College Associate Dean for Educational Resources, (631) 548-3707.
Under Section 504, the student who has a disability is assured of an equitable chance
to compete in college. The post-secondary institution's responsibility is to provide
accommodations that will enable students with disabilities to take part in the typical
activities and services that are open to its students. These accommodations do not
ensure success, nor do they take the form of privileges. Accommodations are implemented
so that a person's academic prerogative is not impeded by barriers which have been
either consciously or unconsciously presented to the person as a result of his or
her disability.
If a student with a disability feels that his or her rights have been violated, and
the situation cannot be resolved between the parties involved, several avenues of
recourse are available on campus. First, the student's disability services counselor
and/or the Dean of Student Services should be contacted for an in-depth discussion
of the situation. If the situation can still not be resolved and it is felt that the
student's rights have been violated, established grievance procedures should be followed
to investigate and/or remedy the problem. For information about this procedure, students
should contact the Section 504 Compliance Officer (i.e., the College Associate Dean
for Educational Resources).
For further information, see:
- Anti Discriminatory Policy and Grievance Procedure
-
(available at Disability Services Offices located on each campus)
