Cottey College is committed to assuring equal and equitable access for students, staff, and faculty with disabilities, as well as guests and visitors to the campus.
Cottey College is dedicated to providing qualified students with disabilities equal access to college programs, services, and activities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The College community, through reasonable accommodations, ensures that no otherwise qualified person with a disability is excluded from participating in, denied the benefits of, or otherwise subjected to discrimination with regard to any program or activity offered by the College.
To initiate a request for disability accommodations, students must complete the Voluntary Request for Equitable Access form and provide documentation of their disability. Student documentation must adhere to Cottey College’s Documentation Guidelines, which can be found on the College website or by emailing the director of student accessibility at henglish@cottey.edu. All documentation and information are confidential and will only be released to appropriate personnel on a need-to-know basis with expressed written communication from the student.
The director of student accessibility acts as a link between students and Cottey’s campus. As such, all accommodations are determined on an individual case-by-case basis, dependent upon the barriers that a student is experiencing. If students received special education services throughout K-12 schooling, no guarantee exists that the same accommodations will be granted to them in college. Students must initiate a request for services and are fully responsible for ongoing assistance. This request should be submitted as early as possible in the academic year, preferably within the first two weeks of each semester, so accommodations can be provided in a timely manner. Accommodations cannot be implemented retroactively.
Assistance is also available for faculty and staff who teach or provide services to students with disabilities. Accommodations are individualized and flexible, based on the student’s request, the nature of the disability, and the academic environment. Requests cannot be guaranteed to be granted. A thorough review of all submitted documentation and an interview takes place before it is determined whether a disability substantially limits a life function. Complete documentation is required to verify students’ disabilities and to be considered for accommodations.
Students requiring accommodations for access may contact the director of student accessibility and academic success at disabilityservices@cottey.edu, or in the Kolderie Center, RBAC, office 164. Any person dissatisfied with a decision concerning academic or residential accommodations may contact the vice president for academic affairs, Dr. Karla McCain, at ext. 2128, in person in the Office of Academic Affairs, or by email at kmccain@cottey.edu (academic accommodations); Dr. Landon Adams, vice president for student life and enrollment at ext. 2126, in person in the Office of Student Life and Enrollment, or by email at ladams@cottey.edu (residential accommodations); or Kelly Irvin, the director of human resources at ext. 2103, in-person in Main Hall, or by email at kirvin@cottey.edu. If, after contacting the appropriate vice president or the director of human resources, a student believes that the College has not met its obligations, they may file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights with the Department of Education. For more information, see OCR Complaint Process.