Consider the Challenge

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You are 18 years old and excited about starting college. In addition to all of the other activities of college freshmen, you can expect to:

• Meet with a stranger on campus and prove you have a disability. This involves presenting documentation of that disability.



• Talk about how the disability limits your learning.



• Know which academic adjustments help compensate for those limitations and have a sense of what is reasonable to expect from the college.



• Negotiate for academic adjustments and services.



• Carry out the plan developed by you and the disability sevices provider.

Seems like a lot to ask of someone just beginning college. It is, but it is required of individuals who wish to receive appropriate academic adjustments. If a student chooses not to disclose a disability or can't provide appropriate documentation, disability services will not be provided. Unfortunately when the choice is made not to disclose disability, the risk of failure increases dramatically.

You may be thinking that college is still along way off. Why should my son or daughter learn all of this while still in high school? High school staff can help students learn to be effective self-advocates. Students need practice!

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