• Services offered by Ohio State
• How it affects you
• What ifs
• Resources and Contact Information

The Ohio State University makes special accommodations for students with special needs through the Office of Disability Services.

The Office for Disability Services (ODS) offers a variety of services for students with documented disabilities, including learning disabilities, deaf/hard of hearing, blind/low vision, mobility limitations, attention deficit disorders (ADD/ADHD), psychiatric disorders, and medical disabilities. ODS collaborates with students having documented disabilities and instructors to provide reasonable accommodations, auxiliary aids, and support services that are individualized and based upon disability documentation, functional limitations, and a collaborative assessment of needs. Students are taught to use advocacy skills to request authorized accommodations specific to class needs and personal preference. ODS may not be able to meet all personal preference requests but does provide reasonable accommodations/auxiliary aids. One of the critical differences between high school and college is that students need to be involved in service decisions and request accommodations. Note: ODS does not provide personal assistance or equipment, i.e. homework assistance, typing, personal laptops, or personal aids.

There are five main service areas at ODS:

1. Exam Accommodations
2. Alternative Media
3. Sign Language Interpreting/Transcribing Services
4. Assistive Technology Training Center (ATTC)
5. Disability Counseling and Advocacy Services

See the ODS website for more details.

TA Responsibilities:

As a TA or instructor, there are certain things you should do:

• Make sure the syllabus has a section on “Special Accommodations.”
• An example would be:
  "Special Accommodations: All students who feel they may need accommodations because of a disability should contact the instructor privately to discuss their specific needs. Students with documented disabilities must also contact the Office of Disability Services (ODS) in 150 Pomerene Hall (phone: 292-3307) to coordinate reasonable accommodations for the course. ODS forms must be given to your instructor as early in the quarter as possible to be filled out and returned to you.”
• Let students know on the first day of class that if they feel they need special accommodations, they should get in touch with either you or the instructor or the course coordinator.
• Suggest that such students get in touch with ODS as soon as possible.
• Remember ODS is the only authorized body on campus that determines whether or not a student needs special accommodations.
• Take any ODS forms that students may bring to you to the course coordinator.
• A typical ODS form is provided at the end of this section.

Some other things to be mindful of:

• Be responsive to the needs of students with specific disabilities.
• Even if a student contacts you late in the quarter (e.g. 6th week) for special accommodations, you are to provide them, provided that the ODS forms have been filled out.
• Standards are to be the same for all students. Do NOT lower standards for students with special needs. Thus, exams, assignments, and other course work should be the same for all students.
• Students with disabilities vary considerably, even ones with the same disability.
• If you have a student with mobility, vision or hearing limitations, make sure you are aware of the emergency procedures. See the website for the Handbook for Emergency Procedures .

See “Resources and Contact Information” for more details.

• Situation A: Half an hour after the final exam has ended, a student emails you that he/she forgot to tell you that he/she has the Attention Deficit Disorder. He/she had been very recently diagnosed by the ODS and thus had been unable to get the ODS forms in time for the final exam. He/she asks if there was any way you could consider this fact when determining his/her final grade. What do you do?
  
  Solution: Once the final exam has been taken, the student has officially completed all the requirements of the course. The final exam cannot be retaken. Let the course coordinator know of the situation, and see if either you or the course coordinator can get in touch with the student’s ODS counselor. Do the counselor and student’s stories match up?



• Situation B: A student claims that she has the ODS forms, but she never brings them to you. What do you do?
  
  Solution: There’s nothing you can do in this situation. It is the student’s responsibility to bring the forms to you. Once you have them you can take them to the course coordinator to get them signed.



• Situation C: As a student, you are aware that you need special accommodations when taking tests. Are you allowed to use the facilities offered by the ODS in test taking situations?
  
  Solution: Yes, you are welcome to use the ODS facilities, if you need to do so.

See “Resources and Contact Information.”

Department of Statistics Contact:
Contact your course-coordinator.


University Contacts:

• The Ohio State University Office for Disability Services
  150 Pomerene Hall 1760 Neil Ave.
  Columbus, OH 43210-1297
  (614) 292-3307
  www.ods.ohio-state.edu



• ADA Coordinator's Office
  2054 Drake Union
  1849 Cannon Drive
  Columbus, OH 43210-1266
  (614) 292-6207
  TDD: (614) 688-8605
  FAX: (614) 688-3665
  www.ada.osu.edu



• OSU Web Accessibility Center
  102 Pomerene Hall
  1760 Neil Avenue
  Columbus, OH 43210-1297
  (614) 292-1760
  FAX: (614) 292-4190
  www.wac.ohio-state.edu

Useful websites:

• ODS website
• Syllabus statement
• Faculty handbook
• ODS policies and services for current students
• Services offered by ODS
• Contact information of ODS staff members
• Fast facts for faculty
• Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Contact the student’s disability counselor if you are uncertain what is appropriate.
Feel free to call ODS at (614) 292-3307 to discuss specific situations or need for clarification.

What a typical ODS form looks like:
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