Disability Accommodations and Resources
Disability Accommodation & Grievance Policy
Statement of Non-Discrimination and Accommodation
Westcliff University (“the School”) does not discriminate on the basis of disability. Individuals with disabilities are entitled to a reasonable accommodation to ensure that they have full and equal access to the School’s educational resources, consistent with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. § 794) (“Section 504”) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. § 12182) (“ADA”), their related statutes and regulations, and corresponding state and local laws.
Section 504 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. The ADA prohibits a place of public accommodation from discriminating on the basis of disability. The applicable law and regulations may be examined in the office of the ADA Compliance Coordinator, or his/her trained designee who has been designated to coordinate the efforts of the School to comply with Section 504 and ADA.
ADA Compliance Coordinator & ADA Deputy Coordinator:
Christina Powers, Coordinator
Tayler Henslick, Deputy (trained designee)
16715 Von Karman Ave. #100
Irvine, CA 92606
(949) 825-5999
ADA@westcliff.edu
Requests for Accommodation
Individuals with disabilities wishing to request an accommodation must contact the ADA Compliance Coordinator. Disclosure of a disability or a request for accommodation made to any staff, faculty, or personnel other than the ADA Compliance Coordinator will not be treated as a request for an accommodation. However, if a student discloses a disability to such an individual, he or she is required to direct the student to the ADA Compliance Coordinator. Upon request, the ADA Compliance Coordinator (or his/her trained designee) will provide a student or applicant with a Request for Accommodations form. To help ensure timely consideration and implementation, individuals making a request for accommodation are asked to contact the ADA Compliance Coordinator and/or submit a Request for Accommodations form at least two weeks prior to when the accommodation is needed.
Below are the two forms to be completed. The first form is for the student to request for accommodations. The second form is to be completed by a qualified professional.
Individuals requesting reasonable accommodation may be asked to provide medical documentation substantiating his/her physical and/or mental impairment(s) and/or the need for the requested accommodation(s), including but not limited to when the limitation or impairment is not readily apparent and/or a requested accommodation does not clearly relate to the impairment(s). Such documentation should specify that a student has a physical or mental impairment and how that impairment substantially limits one or more major life activities. In general, the supporting documentation must be dated less than three years from the date a student requests a reasonable accommodation, and must be completed by a qualified professional in the area of the student’s disability, as enumerated below:
| Disability | Qualified Professional |
| Physical disability | MD, DO |
| Visual impairment | MD, ophthalmologist, optometrist |
| Mobility, orthopedic impairment | MD, DO |
| Hearing impairment | MD, Audiologist (Au.D)*audiology exam should not be more than a year old |
| Speech and language impairment | Licensed speech professional |
| Learning disability | PhD Psychologist, college learning disability specialist, other appropriate professional |
| Acquired brain impairment | MD neurologist, neuropsychologist |
| Psychological disability | Psychiatrist, PhD Psychologist, LMFT or LCSW |
| ADD/ADHD | Psychiatrist; PhD Psychologist, LMFT or LCSW |
| Other disabilities | MD who practices or specializes within the field of the disability. |
Evaluations and documentation developed by the Department of Defense (DOD) or Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) personnel may be used to request ADA academic accommodations at Westcliff University.
Documentation used to evaluate the need and reasonableness of potential accommodations may include a licensed professional’s current medical diagnosis and date of diagnosis, evaluation of how the student’s disability affects one or more of the major life activities and recommendations, psychological and/or emotion diagnostic tests, functional effects or limitations of the disability, and/or medications and recommendations to ameliorate the effects or limitations. The School may request additional documentation or testing as needed.
After the ADA Compliance Coordinator receives the Request Form and the required documentation, he/she (or his/her trained designee) will engage the student or applicant in an interactive process to determine what accommodations may be appropriate.
If the student or applicant is denied any requested accommodation, he/she may file a grievance using the Grievance Process below or he/she may file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights or a similar state entity. The School will make appropriate arrangements to ensure that a person with a disability is provided other accommodations, if needed, to participate in this grievance process. The ADA Compliance Coordinator will be responsible for such arrangements.
Grievance Policy Relating to Complaints of Disability Discrimination
The School has adopted an internal grievance procedure providing for prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any action prohibited by Section 504 and/or the ADA. Any person who believes she/he has been subjected to discrimination on the basis of disability, including disagreements regarding requested accommodations, may file a grievance with personnel:
Rebecca Jones
Vice President of Student Experience
(949) 825-5999
rebeccajones@westcliff.edu
Grievances must be in writing, contain the name and address of the person filing it, state the problem or action alleged to be discriminatory, and the remedy or relief sought.
The School will investigate each complaint filed, and will not retaliate against anyone who files a grievance or cooperates in the investigation of a grievance. All reasonable efforts will be made to provide a written determination to the student or applicant within 30 days after its filing. If a written determination cannot be made within 30 days of the complaint’s filing, the student will be advised and provided an update as to the status of the investigation. The student may also inquire as to the status of the investigation at reasonable intervals. Based on the results of the investigation, the School will take all appropriate actions to prevent any recurrence of discrimination and/or to correct any discriminatory effects.
The availability and use of this grievance procedure does not prevent a person from filing a complaint of discrimination on the basis of disability with the U. S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and/or a similar state agency.