Accommodation Appeals Process

The Right to Appeal Accommodation Decisions

The goal of the Student Accessibility Council is to provide reasonable accommodations to students in accordance with the American Disabilities Act. The Student Accessibility Council requires updated and sufficient documentation to support accommodations requests. Please note that documentation supplied by a licensed clinician must include recommendations for accommodations. The recommendations are heavily considered in determination of accommodations, but are not necessarily binding. The Student Accessibility Council reserves the right to override recommendations made by a clinician. The Council reserves this right since, among other reasons, recommendations may not be reasonable or applicable to the college environment due to differences in K-12 services and college expectations. If a Trinity student believes that he or she has had a request for accommodation wrongfully denied, the student has the right to seek an appeal. Appeals can be resolved informally or formally.

Instructions to Submit an Appeal

The first step in the informal appeals process is for the student to contact the Coordinator of Accessibility Resources to talk about concerns regarding the denied accommodation. The responsibility of the Coordinator is to carefully consider the student’s concerns and if applicable, suggest alternative accommodations or resources to assist the student. If an agreement is not reached, the student then has the right to submit a formal appeal. Formal appeals must be submitted in writing to the Dean of Campus Life and Vice President for Student Affairs, Joe DiChristina. As part of the appeal process, the Dean may engage external accommodation specialists to review and make recommendations regarding the appeal. The student will be informed and provide written permission for the appeal to be shared with an external specialist. Based on information gathered, a final decision will be made. This decision cannot be appealed. If an agreed upon accommodation plan is reached, the plan must be implemented by the Office of Student Accessibility in a timely manner, usually no longer than 7 business days.