Requesting Accommodations and Documentation Procedures

Any student admitted to CNU who has a disability may request formal accommodations through the Academic Advising & Disability Services Center by following the steps listed below. If you would like to discuss your disability or concerns, please schedule an appointment with the Coordinator of Disability Services by calling (757) 594-8852.

1. Complete a Request for Services/Accommodations (pdf format) form located in the Disability Support Services handbook (pdf format), or you may obtain the forms from the Academic Advising & Disability Services Center.

2. Provide appropriate documentation of your disability. Appropriate documentation of a disability is required before services can be rendered. CNU does not provide testing or documentation. Documentation constitutes the basis for determining reasonable accommodations. It is in the student's best interest to provide recent (for most disabilities this means within the past three [3] years) and appropriate documentation to serve as the basis for designing appropriate accommodations in an academically competitive college environment.

• Documentation must come from a professional qualified in the area of your disability and should include the following:
  1. A diagnostic statement identifying the disability, date of the current diagnostic evaluation, and the date of the original diagnosis.
  2. A description of the diagnostic criteria and test used.
  3. A description of the current functional impact of the disability. Detailed and specific recommendations for university-level academic accommodations.
  4. Treatments, medications, assistive devices/services currently prescribed or in use.
  5. Diagnostic reports must include the names, titles, and license information (state and number, if applicable) of the evaluators as well as the date(s) of testing. All reports should be on letterhead, typed, dated, signed and otherwise legible.  A brief statement on a prescription form is not acceptable.

   

In some instances, documentation may be outdated or inadequate in scope or content. It may not address the student's current level of functioning or need for accommodations because observed changes may have occurred in the student's performance since the previous assessment was conducted. In such cases, it may be appropriate to update the evaluation report. Since the purpose of the update is to determine the student's current need for accommodations, the update, conducted by a qualified professional, should include a rationale for ongoing services and accommodations.

3. Once you have completed your request form and have the necessary documentation you should submit the information to:

Mail:

Christopher Newport University
Disability Support Services

McMurran Annex 101L
1 University Place
Newport News, VA 23606

Fax:

(757) 594-7465

Email:

dss@cnu.edu

Please note it is the student's responsibility to follow-up and ensure that appropriate documentation is received. It is recommended that you submit necessary documentation at least four weeks prior to the time formal accommodations are desired to avoid unfortunate delays.