Administrative Policies

KCTCS Policies and Procedures for Student Disabilities Services

The Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) is committed to providing educational opportunity and full participation for students and prospective students with disabilities. It is the System’s policy that no otherwise qualified person with a disability be excluded from participating in any KCTCS program or activity, be denied the benefits of any KCTCS program or activity, or otherwise be subjected to discrimination with regard to any KCTCS program or activity.

A person with a disability must be ensured access to programs, opportunities and activities at the KCTCS colleges.

Reasonable accommodations must be made to qualifying individuals in the instructional process as well as in institutional and departmental procedures. A “reasonable accommodation” is a change or adjustment within an educational program, activity or service that provides a person with a disability opportunity to participate in the educational process, so long as the accommodation does not fundamentally alter the program or place an undue burden on KCTCS.

The combined efforts of KCTCS departments, offices and personnel are required to achieve excellence in our services to people with disabilities and to administer our services in an equitable and efficient manner.

Federal law, specifically Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, establishes the foundation for educational opportunity. These regulations define a person with a disability as any person who: 1) has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities; 2) has a record of such an impairment; or 3) is regarded as having such an impairment.

Policies regarding access for persons with disabilities apply to all KCTCS colleges. Individuals seeking services should contact the appointed person or persons for disability services in the college.

A student may pursue a grievance regarding a disability as set forth in the KCTCS Code of Student Conduct student discrimination grievance procedure.

6.5.1 College Rights and Responsibilities Regarding Student Disability Services

6.5.1.1 KCTCS colleges have the right to:

1. Maintain and require academic and technical standards in their individual programs.
   
   
2. Request that the student provide relevant documentation, completed by an appropriate professional source, to verify the disability and the need for reasonable accommodation(s).
   
   
3. Discuss a student’s need for reasonable accommodations with the professional source of his/her documentation after obtaining the student’s signed consent authorizing such discussion.
   
   
4. Provide reasonable accommodation(s) to KCTCS students on a case-by-case basis.
   
   
5. Deny a request for accommodations if the documentation does not identify a specific disability, the documentation fails to verify the need for the requested services, or the documentation is not provided in a timely manner.
   
   
6. Deny an accommodation request that is inappropriate or unreasonable and would create an undue hardship on the college.

6.5.1.2 KCTCS colleges have the responsibility to:

1. Provide appropriate settings for our courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities.
   
   
2. Make available information regarding policies and procedures to students with disabilities.
   
   
3. Evaluate students on their abilities.
   
   
4. Provide reasonable and appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities upon request.
   
   
5. Provide access to distance learning courses, web-enhanced courses, and web sites, including forms and other documents made available for download through those web sites and courses.
   
   
6. Maintain appropriate confidentiality of records and communication concerning students with disabilities.

6.5.2 Student Rights and Responsibilities Regarding Student Disability Services

6.5.2.1 Every student with a documented disability has the following rights:

1. Access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities available through KCTCS colleges.
   
   
2. Access to websites and web developed forms, web enhanced courses and distance learning courses.
   
   
3. Reasonable and appropriate accommodations determined on a case-by-case basis.
   
   
4. Appropriate confidentiality of all information pertaining to his/her disability with the choice of whom to disclose his/her disability to except as required by law.
   
   
5. Access to information.

6.5.2.2 Every student with a disability has the responsibility to:

1. Meet KCTCS college and program qualifications and essential technical, academic, and institutional standards.
   
   
2. Identify him/herself to the coordinator of disability services in a timely manner as an individual with a disability when seeking an accommodation.
   
   
3. Provide documentation from an appropriate professional source that verifies the nature of the disability and functional limitations.
   
   
4. Follow specific procedures for obtaining and using reasonable and appropriate accommodations.

6.5.3 Student Disability Services Policy Guidelines

1. Each college shall have a designated coordinator for disability services. The coordinator shall have the authority to determine eligibility for services and the type and extent of the services.
   
   
2. The KCTCS catalog, college handbook, websites and all admissions-related materials shall include the name of the designated coordinator for disability services, the location within the college and the telephone number if different from the main college telephone number, and be easily located in the materials/website.
   
   
3. Students who disclose their disability and provide the documentation necessary to determine their accommodation needs shall be provided reasonable and appropriate accommodations.
   
   
4. Reasonable and appropriate accommodations and/or auxiliary aids shall be identified for each course and provided to students on a case-by-case basis in accordance with policy.
   
   
5. In cases where the severity or nature of the disability makes completion of a specific course unachievable, course substitutions may be made on a case-by-case basis. The course substitution may not constitute a substantial change or alteration to an essential component of the program.
   
   
6. Students who think that they have been discriminated against or denied an opportunity because of a disabling condition are encouraged to contact the designated coordinator for disability services promptly in an effort to resolve the problem at an informal level. Students may also choose to pursue a grievance pursuant to the KCTCS Code of Student Conduct regarding the student discrimination grievance procedure.