Disclosing a Disability

College students are considered legal adults with a right to privacy.  This is one of the reasons the staff of UWRF and professors do not monitor individual students to consider the possibility they may have a difficult medical, physical, sensory, or brain-related issue. Instead, students who want accommodation(s) are expected to voluntarily contact Ability Services and acknowledge it.  This is the self-disclosure process.  A convenient way to start the process is with a Self-Disclosure Form.  This form is also available at the Ability Services office, 129 Hagestad Hall.

Most students are expected to arrange and submit a written summary describing their medical, physical, sensory, or brain-related issue. This summary is called documentation.  Part, or all of the summary, should be written by a qualified expert.  It should contain certain kinds of detailed information.  Unfortunately, UWRF is not able to provide such an expert, nor pay any fees the expert may charge.  Arranging and submitting documentation often seems to take students considerable time and can delay their ability to have accommodation.  For advice about documentation, please review Documenting a Disability or contact Ability Services.

As a new semester approaches, Ability Services becomes very busy and may not be able to rapidly review and react to incoming documentation.  We recommend students submit documentation at least four weeks prior to the semester they want to start having accommodation(s).  We also suggest they should meet with Alicia Reinke-Tuthill in the Ability Services office, to discuss the idea of having accommodation either before or soon after being accepted to attend UWRF.