Office for Disability Services • At Penn State, we are committed to providing

a welcoming, encouraging, and empowering environment for students with disabilities to ensure equal access, full participation and

reasonable accommodations for their academic pursuits.

Presenter: Keith Jervis, Director

Presenter:

• Keith Jervis, M.Ed., C.R.C., L.P.C.• Masters in Counselor Education, Penn State ’84

Rehabilitation Counseling• Career: • Teacher of Students with Learning Disabilities, Landmark School.

Prides Crossing• Rehabilitation Counselor, 19 years experience in NH, NYS and PA• College/University Disability Services (Dickinson College and

Penn State) 18 years experience

A student’s experience:

Dana Robertshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMrv8GMvd18&feature=youtu.be

Setting the Disability Stage…• Nearly 1 in 5 people have a disability in the U.S. (U.S. Census

Bureau, 2010).• Students with disabilities account for about 13% of the nation’s

students in preschool through high school settings (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2013).

• Students with disabilities account for about 3.5% of all undergraduate students enrolled in college (NCES, 2010). (At PSU 3.4 % of students)

• It is difficult to ascertain true enrollment estimates of college students with disabilities due to the nature of self-reporting and collegiate standards (Rickerson et al., 2004; Sharpe et al., 2004).

• There is evidence that an increasing number of students with disabilities are entering college.

Individuals with

Disabilities Education Act

(IDEA)

Americans with Disabilities

Amended Act

Setting the Legislative Stage…

Important Distinctions.

Disability as Defined by Legislation…ADA & Section 504.

Anyone who has a

physical or mental impairment

which substantially limits

one or more

major life

activities.

Significant restriction in performing major life

activities in comparison to most people.

Functions include, but are not limited to,

seeing, hearing, walking, speaking, breathing,

performing manual tasks, learning, reading,

concentrating, thinking, & working.

ADA As Amended 2008A More Inclusive Definition of Disability.• Provides a broader interpretation of the definition of disability.• Specifically rejects Supreme Court decisions that had reduced

protections for people with disabilities.• Determining whether a person’s impairment is a disability should

not demand extensive analysis.• Prohibits the consideration of mitigating measures when

assessing whether a person has a disability.• Has increased the number of students receiving disability

support services in college.• Has changed the role of college disability service providers

from determining eligibility to direct service provision for students with disabilities.

Changes from 2009 to Present:

Americans with Disabilities Act Amended Act (ADAAA) 2008

Eligibility for Services, change in role for Disability

Services

Availability of Direct Services to Students.

The Number of Students with Disabilities at University Park

Is…Increasing.

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 20150

100200300400500600700800

198287 353 406 450 479

617693

Increase in number of students covered under ADA

can be attributed to implementation of ADA amended Act in 2008

2008 ADAA implemented 2008-15

Number Students Registered with ODS

2809 students with disabilities determined to be covered under the ADA Amended Act at all PSU campuses combined.

1418 students covered at University Park

Location ADA Coded

University Park 1418

Campuses 1391

Total 2809

ADHD / Learning Disabilities

Psychological Disability

Health Impairment

Sensory Disability (Hearing/Vision

TBI / Neurological Conditions

Autism Spectrum Disorders

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

302

150

68

12

42

15

130

28

28

22

20

7

Trend in Number of Students Identified by Disability 2009 vs. 2015

2009

2015

ADAAA & Section 504…Student Responsibilities.

• Must meet a college or university’s standard admissions requirements for all students.

• Must meet a college or university’s essential requirements for courses or programs either with or without reasonable accommodations.

• Must disclose their disabilities and initiate disability services.• Must provide documentation related to substantial functional

limitations in a major life activity to determine qualification for services.

• Must engage in self-regulated learning because they are not entitled to the same level of academic support that they may have received in high school.

College & University Disability Services…

Provision of Reasonable Accommodations.• Provide access to education by mitigating or reducing functional

impairments.• Must be supported by documentation and determined on a course-

by-course and case-by-case basis.• Should not compromise a course’s essential requirements.• Examples include:

• Extended time for exams and quizzes• Note-taking assistance• Accessible instructional media (e.g., books accessible formats, enlargement of

course materials, etc.)• Assistive technology (e.g., screen readers, text-to-speech software, Smart Pens)• ALS interpreting / Captioning in-person or remote• Priority registration• Consideration given to flexed attendance policies• Course substitutions

Academic Adjustment Letter…

A Changed Role for ODS

• With the change in ADAAA the focus for disability services has changed.• Before the Amended Act, the primary role was

the determination of eligibility.• After the Amended Act, increase in direct

services for students, less focus on documentation of a disability.

Added Services:

• Web based Kurzweil license: 1500 licenses available to students. • Kurzweil reads text aloud• Allows students to have Kurzweil Reading Software on their personal

computers. • Live Scribe Pens: audio records lectures and syncs to written notes

• 131 students are using these pens this semester (SP, 2015)• ODS Scholarships• Career Services• Transition Academy (State College Area HS and Phillipsburg/Osceola 40

students) • Summer Academy for Students Who are Blind

ODS Scholarships:

• 13 active donors• 1 endowment currently pending funds• Overall awards since inception: $1,301,913.00

Awards: Fall ‘15 to Spring ‘16

• 110 applicants;• 75 students qualified and awarded;• Awards were between $600 to $2,000 per

student;• Total: Highest in the ODS history - $96,668;

Scholarships

• Charlotte W. Newcombe Foundation: • Newcombe Scholarships for Students with Disabilities: Woodring; Polis; Perrotta Family; and

Gallagher, Wincek

• Other Scholarships: • Delta Chi Disabled Student Grant Fund• Delta Gamma Golden Anchor Award• Bobbi Coulter Rich Scholarship• William Arthur Vogely Award Fund in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences• David R. Martino Memorial Scholarship • The Charles T. and Ella Fowler Douds Scholarship • Virginia Rimer Memorial Scholarship• Jason C. and Martha Lee Stone Scholarship • Christopher Warren Barnes Endowment

Career Services: Workforce Recruitment Program, corporate partners:

Measuring Success:

• Objective Studies• Surverys:• Student Feedback Survey• Graduation Survey

Academic Performance among Students with

Disabilities: Changes in Semester GPA after

Receiving Services from the Office for Disability ServicesJen Chiu, M.Ed, CRC

Doctoral CandidateCounselor Education and Supervision

Students Had Positive Gains in GPA after Receiving Services from ODS

N= 84 (Exclude students who did not have semester GPA prior entering ODS

• Significant differences among the semesters (4-0, 5-0, 4-1, 5-1)

• Still large variations among individuals

Student Feedback Survey:

• To understand student impressions of services and

interaction with staff • 68 Responses Spring 2015• Distribution across gender and disability type

reflective of larger data set• “I believe my accommodations have helped my

academic achievement” (78% either agreed or strongly agreed)

Graduation Survey

• To capture information concerning employment out-come• 48 responses from students in their last

(spring 2015) semester• Feedback indicates need to increase

awareness of ODS Career Services.

Plans for the Future:

• Expanded Testing Center• Collaboration with faculty to produce accessible classroom and online material (see:

http://accessibility.psu.edu/)• Provide resources to incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) see:

http://enact.sonoma.edu/udl • Student to student learning concerning uses for assistive technology to

take notes, read, manage time, and study. • Student Support Group: WINGS, see: for Newstory, click here• Streamlined data management system “ELBA” to allow Disability

Specialists to focus on student interactions and Professional Development

Diversability Awareness Month, October

• Held during October for the past seven years• 16 events• Attended by over 350 students, faculty, staff

and visitors. • Complete listing of 2015 events is available at:

http://equity.psu.edu/ods/diversability/schedule

When and How to get ODS Involved…

• Contact ODS if you have any disability-related questions or are unsure where to refer a student who you believe may need academic or mental health assistance.• Call: (814) 863-1807• Walk-in: 116 Boucke Building• Visit website: http://equity.psu.edu/ods

• Including a disability statement on your syllabus, per the Academic Administrative Policies and Procedures R-5 SYLLABUS, can encourage students with disabilities to disclose their need for help.• http://equity.psu.edu/ods/faculty-handbook/syllabus-statement

• For questions frequently asked by faculty about ODS, please visit: http://equity.psu.edu/ods/faculty-handbook/faqs.

• ODS can help you support your students, mitigate the impact of disability symptoms, reduce student stressors, and promote positive outcomes.• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMrv8GMvd18&feature=youtu.be.

Physical Barriers are not as “high” as Attitudinal Barriers:

• When a student’s disability is visible, remember to ask prior to helping.

• “Awkward No More” Video:• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv1aDEFlXq8

When Hidden Disabilities become Less Hidden…Signs

of Stress in Students.• It is important to recognize the outward signs of stress in students,

including:• A sudden dramatic increase or decrease in academic efforts;• Major changes in attitude or temperament (irritability, lack of enthusiasm,

carelessness);• Withdrawal or outbursts;• Overactive or distracting behaviors (fidgeting, nervous tics, jumping from task

to task, showing difficulty in concentrating, being prone to accidents, sighing);• Complaints of fatigue and vague illnesses;• Problems sleeping;• Headaches or stomachaches;• Drug and/or alcohol use or abuse;• Increase in allergic or asthmatic attacks;• Avoidance of school or testing situations by direct refusal or convenient illness;• Loss of appetite or excessive eating; or• Antisocial or disruptive behavior.

Rubenzer, 1988 as cited in Berkowitz, n.d.

If Stress Escalates to Worrisome Behaviors…When

and How to Intervene.• When a student is visibly in distress, consider

when to intervene and who to get involved.• “Something’s Wrong with Michelle” Video:

• http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/caps/wsb/vignette_d.html • When to intervene:

• http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/caps/wsb/vignette_d.html • Who to get involved:

• http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/caps/wsb/vignette_d.html

Other Resources for Students Include…

• Center for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)• (814) 863-0395• Hours: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

• CAN HELP Crisis Hotline• (800) 643-5432• Hours: 24 hours per day, 365 days per year

• Office of Student Conduct• (814) 863-0342• Hours: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

• The Behavioral Threat Management Team• (814) 863-BTMT (2868)

Faculty Training

• Online Faculty Training• OL 1800 - To register for OL 1800, go to:

http://wcfd.psu.edu/programs/certificate_ot/ • Self-directed course with six common scenarios to effectively

meet the needs of students with disabilities. • See: Lesson 5: Handling Difficult Behavior That May or May

Not Be Related to a Disability • To register for OL 1800 Accessibility:

Go to http://psuwcfacdev.ning.com/. Click on the Courses tab and select OL 1800: Accessibility. Click the "Register Now" button.

Faculty Training: Accessibility and Universal

Design for Learning •  Accessibility and Usability at Penn State:• This site explains how to ensure Web pages and online documents

can be made usable for users with different disabilities. http://accessibility.psu.edu/

• Training Options: http://accessibility.psu.edu/training/ • Blockers, what to fix first and how, see:

http://accessibility.psu.edu/blockers/ • UDL-Universe: UDL-U supports postsecondary faculty and staff

by providing resources and examples to improve postsecondary education for all students, including those with disabilities. Go to: http://enact.sonoma.edu/udl

Office for Disability Services

Website: www.equity.psu.edu/ods

Contact: • Keith Jervis, Director• Office for Disability Services• 116 Boucke Bldg. • Phone: 814-863-1807• Email: kej11@psu.edu

Questions?