Individuals with disabilities are entitled by law to equal access to postsecondary programs, including career/technical programs, early college high school, dual credit, STEM programs, college affiliated clubs/organizations, and college sponsored activities. There are two laws that protect persons with disabilities in postsecondary education: The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The Rehabilitation Act
Title V of The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity by an entity or institution receiving federal funds. Section 504 (as amended) states: No otherwise qualified person with a disability in the United States…shall, solely on the basis of disability, be denied access to, or the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity by any institution receiving federal financial assistance. A qualified person with a disability is defined as a person who meets the requisite academic and technical standards required for admission or participation in the post-secondary institution’s programs and activities. Colleges and universities receiving federal financial assistance must not discriminate in the recruitment, admission, or provision of services for students with disabilities. Students with documented disabilities may request reasonable accommodations and/or auxiliary aids from CTC's Disability Support Services Office, to assist them to participate in and benefit from post-secondary
educational programs and activities. Post-secondary institutions must make reasonable and necessary changes to ensure that academic and other programs are accessible to students with disabilities. (Section 504: The Law and its Impact on Post-Secondary Education.)
The American with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA is a federal civil rights statute that prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. The Act defines a disability as “student with a disability is someone who has a physical or mental impairment, has a history of impairment, or is believed to have a disability that substantially limits a major life activity such as learning, speaking, seeing, hearing, breathing, walking, caring for oneself, or performing manual tasks”. ADA extends civil rights protection for people with disabilities to services and activities in the private sector. It also upholds, clarifies, and extends the standards for compliance set forth in Section 504 in areas of
- employment and promotion practices,
- transportation,
- public accommodations,
- services provided by state and local government, and e) telecommunications. The ADA affects post-secondary education by refocusing attention on disability access to the institution’s facilities and programs. The goal of the ADA is to remove the barriers that deny individuals with disabilities an equal opportunity to share in and contribute in American life.
Equal Access
All students with disabilities have the right to equal access of information that is presented to them. Equal access also includes the students’ right to not pay attention in class, forget assignments, forget test dates, fail courses and to miss class. Students with disabilities should not expect to be granted advantages that other students do not have. Likewise, the ADA does not require that students with disabilities must take an accommodation. The ADA states in part that "Nothing in this part shall be construed to require an individual with a disability to accept an accommodation, aid, service, opportunity, or benefit provided under the ADA or this part which such individual chooses not to accept."