Please identify yourself to UAF Disability Services by applying for accommodations. UAF  provides academic and access accommodations only to the known limitations of an otherwise qualified student who has a disability. To be considered for UAF Disability Services accommodations individuals should be enrolled for at least one credit as a UAF student.

If you would like to learn more about our registration process, check out our Registration Process or Forms site.

If you need assistance with completion of any form or have questions about our process, contact UAF Disability Services by email at disability-services@alaska.edu, by phone at 907-474-5655, or by TTY at 907-474-1827.

Suggestions for students

  • Understand your disability.
  • Be familiar with your documentation.
  • Know what your functional limitations are in the academic setting.
  • Know what you need to succeed.
  • Express your needs clearly.
  • Have reasonable expectations for the number of credits you can successfully complete in a semester.
  • Practice good health habits: enough sleep, nutritious food, physical exercise.
  • Know your strengths and use them to your advantage.
  • Initiate all accommodations at the beginning of each semester.

Eligibility

Determining eligibility and evaluating the need for accommodations is an interactive process that requires participation by the person seeking academic accommodations.

The interactive process includes:

  • The student’s self-report through completion of the application form.
  • A structured interview with the director of Disability Services.
  • The comprehensiveness of the documentation provided.
  • The course description and the syllabus.

Obtaining accommodations:

Students are responsible for initiating the accommodation process. Students who have disabilities and would like academic accommodations must:

  • Identify themselves to UAF Disability Services.
    • Though we appreciate calls from other concerned parties it is ultimately up to the students themselves to contact the Disability Services Office.
  • Provide appropriate and comprehensive documentation.
  • Deliver the letter of accommodation to the faculty at the start of each semester.
  • Alert the Disability Services office of difficulties or problems with accommodations.

For more information, please view Disability Services Accommodation Information

Student rights and responsibilities

A student with a disability has a right to an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from programs offered at UAF. Students who choose to exercise these rights have a responsibility to initiate and participate in the accommodation process.

  1. Students are entitled to an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from the UAF academic community. This includes access to instruction, services, extracurricular activities, housing, and transportation at a level comparable to any student.
  2. Students are entitled to an equal opportunity to learn. If the location, delivery system or instructional method limits access, participation or ability to benefit, they have a right to reasonable alterations in those aspects of the course (or program) to accommodate their disability.
  3. Students have a responsibility to identify themselves as needing accommodation in a timely manner.
  4. Students have a responsibility to provide documentation from an appropriate professional that describes the impact of their disability in the UAF environment and provides a rationale for the requested accommodation.
  5. Students have a responsibility to actively participate in the identification of appropriate accommodations and auxiliary aids.
  6. Students have the same obligation as any student to meet and maintain the institution's academic standards, technical standards, and codes of conduct.
  7. Students have a right to be evaluated based on their ability, not their disability. If their disability affects the outcome of an evaluation format, they are entitled to an evaluation by alternate means if the alternative measures the essential skills, knowledge or abilities.
  8. Students have a right to appeal decisions concerning accommodations. For information on appeal processes, see University Appeals Process

UAF rights and responsibilities

UAF identifies and maintains academic and technical standards fundamental to providing quality programs and insures access to students with disabilities.

  1. UAF has the responsibility to insure that all of its programs are accessible.
  2. UAF has the responsibility to inform its applicants and students about the availability and the range of accommodations.
  3. UAF has the right to request and review documentation in support of accommodation requests. The Office of Disability Services is designated to review student documentation. The university has the right to refuse a request that is unsupported by the documentation.
  4. UAF and its faculty have a right to select between equally effective methods of accommodating a student with a disability.
  5. UAF has the right to identify and establish the abilities, skills, and knowledge necessary for successful entrance into its programs and to evaluate applicants on that basis.
  6. UAF and its faculty have the right to identify and establish the abilities, skills, and knowledge that are fundamental to their academic programs/courses and to evaluate each student's performance on that basis.
  7. UAF has the responsibility to make reasonable adjustments in the delivery, instructional method, and evaluation format of a course when there is a substantial negative interaction with a student’s disability.
  8. UAF has the responsibility to adjust, substitute or waive any course or program requirement in which there is a substantial negative interaction with a disability and is not fundamental to the student's academic program.
  9. UAF has the right to refuse a requested accommodation that fundamentally alters an essential course or program requirement or creates an undue hardship as determined by the university’s ADA Coordinator.

Safety procedures for students with disabilities

As a student with a disability, it is important to take responsibility for your own safety. UAF encourages you to develop an emergency plan or a strategy in advance. How you respond to an emergency is dependent on the type of emergency, your specific disability, the location of your classes, and where you work or live on campus. Different plans and strategies will be necessary depending on your location and the type of situation that you encounter. However, for any emergency, and for students with any type of disability, the first step is to contact 911. When reporting the emergency, it is important to indicate any specific needs (i.e. you use a wheelchair, a respirator, or have breathing or stamina difficulties) that should be considered.