Instructors play a vital role in the success of students with disabilities. Disability Services strives to support instructors working with students with disabilities in the classroom.

Responsibilities of the Instructor

  • When a student give you a Letter of Accommodation, you are responsible for providing the listed accommodations.
  • Please include the following statement in your syllabus: "Fort Lewis College is committed to providing all students a liberal arts education through a personalized learning environment. If you have a documented disability which will need reasonable academic accommodations, please call Dian Jenkins, Director of Disability Services, 280 Noble Hall, (970) 247-7459, for an appointment as soon as possible."
  • It is not appropriate to harshly grade students with disabilities. The use of accommodations allows them to demonstrate their abilities, not their disabilities.
  • Refrain from discussing a student's disability and necessary accommodations in the vicinity of fellow students or others who have no educational “need to know.” Students have a right to privacy in disability-related matters and confidentiality must be maintained.
  • Some students may utilize the Testing Center as part of their academic accommodations.

Instructor Rights

  • You are not required to alter the curriculum and/or give passing grades to students who failed to demonstrate the required level of understanding or performance competency.
  • You have the right to hold students with disabilities to the same standards as students without disabilities.
  • You have the right to ask for clarification or support from Disability Services as necessary.

Academic Accommodations

Academic accommodations vary widely from student to student. Accommodations are intended to remove barriers that prevent students with disabilities from learning and from demonstrating what they have learned; they are not intended to give students with disabilities an unfair advantage.