Mesa Community College

Home > Student Services

Disability Resources

Required Disability Documentation:

Purpose--To specify the disability documentation requirements that will qualify (i.e., support current and essential needs) Maricopa County Community College District students for reasonable and appropriate accommodations through each college's disability services office or designated professional.

This documentation needs to come from a licensed psychologist, psychiatrist, or medical doctor and printed on official letterhead. Documentation on handwritten prescription pads is not sufficient.

The documentation is submitted to Disability Resources and Services directly. The documentation is confidential and will be used for the sole purpose of determining which accommodations are appropriate. Please call (480) 461-7447 voice or (480) 969-5587 (TDD) or visit www.mc.maricopa.edu/services/disability .

General Eligibility Requirements:

Each applicant with a disability must meet MCCCD admissions requirements, or be enrolled as an MCCCD student, and must provide Disability Resource Services (DRS) with required documentation verifying the nature and extent of the disability prior to receiving any accommodation. The disability services office coordinator/program advisor is responsible for evaluating documentation and determining accommodation eligibility.

Specific Eligibility Requirements

Physical Disabilities -- Required Documentation: Student must submit a written, current diagnostic report of any physical disabilities that are based on appropriate diagnostic evaluations administered by trained and qualified (i.e., certified and/or licensed) professionals (e.g., medical doctors, ophthalmologists, neuropsychologists, audiologists). Disability diagnosis categories include:

Orthopedic disability
Blind or visual impairment
Deaf or hard-of-hearing
Traumatic brain injury
Other health-related/systemic disabilities

The written diagnostic report must include: A clear disability diagnosis, including a clinical history that establishes the date of diagnosis, last contact with the student, and any secondary conditions that might be present.

The procedures used to diagnose the disability.

A description of any medical and/or behavioral symptoms associated with the disability.

A discussion of medications, dosage, frequency, and any adverse side effects attributable to their use that the student has experienced.

A clear statement specifying functional manifestations (i.e., substantial limitations to one or more major life activities and degree of severity) due to the disability and/or medications for which the student may require accommodations.

A recommendation for accommodation, including rationale. If the accommodation recommendations are specific to limitations in learning (e.g., reading, mathematics, written expression), an appropriate psychoeducational or neuropsychological evaluation must be administered to document ability/achievement discrepancies.

Learning Disabilities-Required Documentation:

The student shall submit a current written diagnostic report of specific learning disabilities that is based on appropriate, comprehensive, psychoeducational evaluations that are no more than three years old, unless testing is done after 18 years of age. The assessment or evaluation which leads to the diagnosis must be administered by a trained and qualified (i.e., certified and/or licensed) professional (e.g., psychologist, school psychologist, neuropsychologist, or educational diagnostician) who has had direct experience with adolescents and adults with learning disabilities.

An appropriate psychoeducational evaluation must include comprehensive measures in each of the following areas: Aptitude (the evaluation must contain a complete intellectual assessment with all sub-tests and standard scores reported).

Academic achievement (the evaluation must contain a comprehensive achievement battery with all sub-tests and standard scores reported). The test battery should include current levels of functioning in the relevant areas, such as reading (decoding and comprehension), mathematics, and oral and written expression.

Information processing (the evaluation should assess specific information processing areas such as short- and long-term memory, sequential memory, auditory and visual perception/processing, processing speed, executive function, and motor ability).

Examples of Measures

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R)
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition
Stanford Binet Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition
Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-educational Battery-Revised: Tests of Cognitive Ability
Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test
Achievement

Wechsler Individual Achievement Tests (WIAT)
Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-educational Battery-Revised: Tests of Achievement (W-JR)
Stanford Test of Academic Skills (TASK)
Scholastic Abilities test for Adults (SATA)
Information Processing

Subtests of the WAIS-R or WAIS-Third Edition
Subtests on the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-educational Battery-Revised: Tests of Cognitive Ability

Diagnostic Report

The diagnostic report must include the following information:

A diagnostic interview that addresses relevant historical information, past and current academic achievement, instructional foundation, past performance in areas of difficulty, age at initial diagnosis, and history of accommodations used in past educational settings and their effectiveness.

A list of all instruments used in the test battery.

Discussion of test behavior and specific test results.

A diagnostic summary statement with the following information:

A clear and direct statement that a learning disability does or does not exist, including a rule-out of alternative explanations for the learning problems. Terms such as "appears," "suggests," or "probable" used in the diagnostic summary statement do not support a conclusive diagnosis.
A clear statement specifying the substantial limitations to one or more major life activities.
A psychometric summary of scores.
A recommendation for accommodations, including rationale.

Diagnosis of specific learning disabilities that do not contain psychoeducational measures may not be used for determining eligibility for academic accommodations. For example, school plans such as Individualized Education Plans (IEPS) or 504 Plans are not adequate documentation; however, they can be included with the required evaluation. DRS reserves the right to request reassessment when questions regarding previous assessment or previous service provision arise.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) / Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) -- Required Documentation

The student shall submit a current (no more than three years old unless testing was done after 18 years of age) diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)/Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) that is based on appropriate diagnostic evaluations administered by trained and qualified (i.e., certified or licensed) professionals (e.g., psychiatrists, psychologists, or neuropsychologists).
The diagnostic report must include: A diagnostic interview addressing relevant historical information, past and current academic achievement, age at initial diagnosis, discussion of medication, and history and effectiveness of accommodations in past educational settings.
The procedures used to diagnose the disability (including a list of all instruments used in the assessment).
Discussion of the testing results and behavior, including the symptoms that meet the criteria diagnosis. If the student was evaluated while on medication, the effect this may have had on performance must be noted.
DSM-IV diagnosis (including all five axes)

A diagnostic summary statement that includes the following information: A clear statement that ADHD/ADD does or does not exist, including a rule-out of alternative explanations for behaviors. Terms such as "appears," "suggests," or "has problems with" used in the diagnostic summary statement do not support a conclusive diagnosis.
A clear statement specifying the substantial limitations to one or more major life activities and the degree of severity. If the limitations are in learning (e.g., reading, mathematics, and written expression), an appropriate psycho-educational evaluation must be administered to document ability/achievement discrepancies.
A recommendation regarding medications or medical evaluation(s).
A recommendation for accommodations, including rationale.

Psychological Disabilities--Required Documentation

Student shall submit a current written diagnostic report (no more than five years old unless the testing was done after 18 years of age) of psychological disabilities that are based on appropriate diagnostic evaluations completed by trained professionals (e.g., psychologists, psychiatrists, neuropsychologists, school psychologists, certified professional counselors). If the diagnostic report is more than one year old, a letter from a qualified professional that provides an update of the diagnosis with a description of the individual's current level of functioning during the past year, and a rationale for the requested accommodations must be submitted.

The diagnostic report must include the following: A clinical interview, relevant historical information, age at initial diagnosis, duration and severity of the disorder.

Discussion of medications, review of past and current academic achievement, and history of disability accommodations and their effectiveness.

The procedures used to diagnose the disability (include a list of all instruments used in the assessment and test scores as applicable).

Discussion of the assessment results.

DSM-IV diagnosis (include all five axes).

A diagnostic summary statement that includes the following: A clear statement that a disability does or does not exist. Terms such as "appears," "probable," and "suggests" used in the diagnostic summary statement do not support a conclusive diagnosis.

A clear statement specifying the substantial limitations to one or more major life activities. If the limitations are in learning (e. g., reading, mathematics, and written expression), an appropriate psycho-educational evaluation must be administered to document ability/achievement discrepancies.

A discussion of medications and their possible impact on academic functioning (e.g., concentration, attention, sedation)

A recommendation for essential accommodations relative to the diagnosed disability, including rationale.

The duration for which these accommodations should be provided based on the current assessment.

A recommendation regarding reevaluation to determine ongoing need for disability accommodations (e.g., one semester, one year, two years).

Temporary Impairments
Some disabilities are temporary and may require accommodations for a limited time. Each case is considered individually. The following documentation is required:

Written correspondence on letterhead from a qualified professional stating diagnosis, functional limitations necessitating the accommodation, and the estimated length of time services will be needed.

Services will be provided for ten (10) working days pending receipt of documentation. If documentation is not received by that time, services will be cancelled.

Special Consideration

A requirement for documentation prescribed in this regulation may be considered at the discretion of each college's disability services office or designated professional if, in the professional opinion of the responsible college's disability services office or designated professional, such consideration is in the best interest of the student and will neither undermine the integrity of any college offering nor violate any mandate under state or federal law. All situations shall be considered on an individual, case-by-case basis.

Reasonable accommodation is required for students with known disabilities. MCCCD will make every attempt to provide "preferred" accommodations. However, "the most effective and reasonable" accommodation may be determined to meet sufficient accessibility needs.

< < back to services

Contact DRS: email | phone: 480-461-7447 | TTY: 480-969-5587 | campus map