In order to establish eligibility for support services and/or reasonable accommodations, students must provide disability documentation from a professional licensed or certified to diagnose and treat their disability(ies).
Disability documentation related to the need for cognitively based accommodations (e.g., testing modifications, note takers) must be completed by a licensed psychologist or a licensed neuropsychologist and must include the following items completed no earlier than the student's 10th grade year:
Diagnosis and DSM code
History
Observations
Reports of psychological or neuropsychological testing in the form of either:
A complete neuropsychological report OR
A comprehensive standardized adult IQ test (we recommend the WAIS-IV) and a comprehensive test of achievement (we recommend the Woodcock-Johnson). The results and interpretation of all sub-tests must be included.
Students with a co-existing diagnosis of ADHD must also provide the results of a comprehensive attentional assessment. We recommend the Trail Making Tests (part A and B) of the Halstead-Reitan, the Paced Auditory Serial Test (PASAT), or the Test of Variabilities of Attention (TOVA).
Conclusions
Summary
Recommendations of accommodations
Additional insight related to behavioral, social, or emotional issues, or associated needs may be provided by a psychologist or a psychiatrist.
These standards of acceptable documentation are designed to insure the integrity of Services for Students with Disabilities' eligibility criteria and provide our staff with meaningful information about the strengths, weaknesses, and disability-related needs of the students who seek our assistance. They have been developed in line with the professional practices of post-secondary education. Thank for your understanding and cooperation.
B. Jean Fairbairn, Director
Andrea Snyder, Learning Disabilities Specialist
