VCOM College Catalog and Student Handbook

1. Section 504 Request for Eligibility Form – This form is completed in full by the student and can be obtained from the Center for Institutional, Faculty, and Student Success. 2. Documentation of the Disability, Functional Limitation, and Recommended Accommodations - Because disabilities change over time, medical, psychiatric, or educational testing must be no more than three years old. Also, because the provision of reasonable accommodations is based upon an assessment of the disability on current medical school academic programs, recent documentation and appropriate evaluations are required. Obtaining proper documentation is the student’s responsibility and all evaluations will be at the student’s expense. A written note on a prescription pad or doctor’s notes are not considered adequate evaluation or documentation of a disability and do not substantiate a request for accommodations. • The diagnosis must be made by a specialist with appropriate professional credentials for the area of the disability and with experience in that disability. • Documentation must state clearly state the physical or intellectual disorder as diagnosed with reference to the current edition of The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD) and/or Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). • Documentation must describe the comprehensive testing and techniques used to arrive at the diagnosis. Specific testing requirements depend on the student’s disability and need for accommodations. Students with learning disorders, ADHD, and many other impairments must include a full psychoeducational assessment that includes intelligence and achievement testing, in addition to specialized tests tailored to their area of disability. Students with physical or medical disorders will be asked to provide documentation from a recent medical evaluation. o Tests used to diagnose learning disorders or ADHD/ADD should be:  Comprehensive cognitive and academic assessments  Individually administered  Nationally normed  Administered under standardized conditions  Both timed and untimed/standard time measures, if extended time on exams is requested • Documentation must provide clear and specific evidence of the presence of a disability. The diagnosis should be in direct language and avoid such terms as “suggests” or “is indicative of.” If a disability is not present, that should be clearly stated in the report. However, conclusive statements without supporting information is not helpful or adequate. The full evaluation report must be submitted, be legible and be received directly from the evaluator. The report should include the following: o A summary of the assessment procedures and evaluation instruments used to make the diagnosis; o A narrative summary of the evaluation results; o Test results with subtest scores (standard or scaled scores); and o Testing norms. • Documentation must explain how the disability impacts the student’s daily functioning and ability to participate in the curriculum. Functional limitations should address the student’s performance in an environment specific to an osteopathic medical school. Functional limitation can be documented in a variety of ways: o Psychoeducational evaluations, including both test scores and narrative. Use norms to support both the diagnosis and functional limitation. o Standardized test scores, including standard and scaled scores. Use national norms to support both the diagnosis and functional limitation. o Summary of the student's developmental, educational, and/or medical history.’

121