American University of Central Asia,student academic accommodations and accessibility policy.

General Terms
This Policy assumes that success in college or higher academic institutions is largely up to the
students, thus, accommodations are not provided to change course syllabi or requirements for
particular students but only to provide support and reasonable modifications in the format of course
materials for eligible students with the approval of the responsible faculty.
The American University of Central Asia declares its adherence to principles of accessibility of
physical environment, under which the university has undertaken key steps to make the AUCA
environment accessible for all groups of individuals without discrimination. The AUCA campus as
well as its organizational culture are meant to be accessible to all groups and individuals.

Eligibility for Services and General Procedure

If a student is enrolled in one or more courses at AUCA and has a disability that limits their access to
the classroom or ability to fully engage with the class materials, affecting academic achievement, the
student may be eligible for academic accommodations.
If the student seeks academic accommodations or adjustments, they must contact and register with
Academic Advising Office as a student seeking accommodations. The Advising Office is the entity
that coordinates the process for academic accommodations on campus.
The student (usually at the beginning of their freshman year) must initially complete an
Accommodations Request and meet with an Academic Advising Office staff member. Eligibility is
based on information gathered during this initial meeting, past educational experiences and
accommodations, and disability documentation. The documentation must be current, provide a clear
diagnosis by an appropriate medical professional, and specify the functional limitations in an
academic setting related to the disability. Prior to proceeding with determination of the
accommodations, Academic Advising Office staff might request that the student provide additional
documentation from providers, recommended by AUCA.
General eligibility criteria include but are not limited to: physical disability including, neurological
conditions, sensory organ impairments, musculoskeletal impairments, emotional or mental health
disorders, respiratory conditions, digestive ailments, learning disabilities, and organic brain
syndromes.

Documentation Guidelines

Students who request academic accommodations from AUCA must provide diagnostic information
regarding their disability. The information is useful in determining accommodations. We ask students
to provide the most current documentation of their disability, which should include some or all of the
below listed items:
● A letter from a current or recent treatment provider that identifies the diagnosis and current
treatment plan

● A psychological or neuropsychological evaluation if necessary, conducted by a professional
psychiatrist or psychologist trained in diagnosis
● A letter from a school (guidance) counselor (for freshmen students) containing information on
conducted psychological or educational assessment and (provisional) diagnoses
AUCA reserves the right to request reassessment or additional updated documentation when
questions arise regarding previous assessment or previous service provisions. Reassessment can be
requested by the Academic Advising Office representative during the initial meeting with the student
when documents provided by the student are outdated, incomplete, or contain obvious mistakes or
inconsistencies. AUCA and the Academic Advising Office have a right to recommend that a student
see trusted providers who could complete or update the initial documentation. AUCA declares no
conflict of interest related to medical referrals and recommendations made to students requesting
accommodations.

Accommodations Committee

The Accommodations Committee will meet at the beginning of each semester, when necessary, to
determine specific accommodations after a student has requested accommodations within the first
month of the semester and upon having an initial consultation with the Academic Advising Office.
The Accommodations Committee is an entity that is comprised of the following representatives on a
case-by-case basis: Academic Advising Office representative or Head, Medical Office representative,
and the faculty member teaching the course. The student seeking accommodations is expected to
attend the meeting or a portion of the meeting. The student’s parents can attend the meeting with the
Committee’s approval. Specialists of the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology
(CTLT)may be included or consulted in order to assist faculty and students in modifying course
content to meet a student’s particular needs. Counseling Service staff can be included or consulted if
the counselor is familiar with the student’s difficulties. Also, the relevant academic Department Chair
can be invited to the meeting if necessary.

Decision process and decision effectivity

The decision of whether or not to grant any accommodations is made solely by the Accommodations
Committee. The list of accommodations granted in each case is approved only by the Committee.
The approval of requested accommodations might be made over the course of more than one meeting
of the Committee, based on the necessity to clarify the appropriateness of requested accommodations.
All faculty and students are expected to respect the Committee’s judgment and final decision.
The members of the Committee are to keep the information on the students requesting
accommodations strictly confidential.
Accommodations Committee has the right to refuse to provide specific accommodations if:
●  The request is not made within the timeline and procedures as specified in this handbook.
●  It constitutes a substantial change or alteration to an essential part of an academic program
or course.
●  It poses a direct threat to the health and safety of others.
●  It poses undue financial hardship on the university.
●  The faculty member has not been duly notified.
● The student requests accomodations retrospectively to be applied to courses already
completed.

Rights and Responsibilities of Students
A student with a disability has the right to:
●      Appropriate confidentiality of all information related to his/her disability, such as inclusion of
only necessary AUCA staff in the decision process and appropriate handling of information
obtained
●      Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities available through
the university
●      Receive reasonable accommodations according to his/her disability, determined on an
individualized basis dependent upon required documentation
A student with a disability has the following responsibilities:
●     Disclose their disability and provide documentation regarding their disability from an
appropriate health care professional to the Academic Advising Office
●     Complete the Accommodations Request Form and request a meeting with the
Accommodations Committee in a timely manner at the beginning of a given semester
●     Meet with the respective faculty member to discuss disability-related needs and
accommodations
●    Treat all university personnel with respect
●    Meet the appropriate course requirements

Rights and Responsibilities of Faculty:
Faculty members have a right to:
●     Fully determine their course content and general methods of teaching
●     Ensure that the standards of course(s) are not lowered or compromised for particular students
●     Ensure that a student has demonstrated a mastery of the essential course requirements in order
to obtain an appropriate grade
●     Fairly assess any student if he/she does not demonstrate a mastery of essential course
requirements, including students with accommodations
●     Question a specific accommodation request if it is either inappropriate for their course, or if
the nature of the request would alter the essential requirements of a course.     
● Request training and consultation from CTLT on syllabus design, multi modal methods to
present classroom materials, utilize technology in class, and offer a variety of assignments
to cover diverse learning needs    
However, faculty members are responsible for determining possible accommodations for each
class they teach based on the following guidelines:
o What are the learning objectives and activities (individual/group projects, field trips,
presentations) of the course? Are they clearly stated? Where?
o What do the course description and syllabus state about the learning process, instructional
methods, and student participation?
o Does the fundamental nature of the course rely upon student participation as an essential
method for learning? How?
o To what degree does a student’s failure to participate constitute a significant loss to the
educational experience of other students in the class?
o Do student contributions (e.g., presentations) during the class comprise a significant
component of the learning process?

o Is there classroom interaction between the instructor and students? Between/among
students?
o How are student achievement and mastery of the course objectives demonstrated? How are
they measured? Are there alternative measures that would be acceptable to you?
o How is the final course grade calculated? Are there alternative methods of calculating the
final grade that would be acceptable to you?
o Is this course a prerequisite for other courses? Is this course based on prerequisite courses?
Are there alternative courses that would meet the student’s course of study requirements?
 ● Consult the specialists of the Academic Advising Office and CTLT on the most appropriate ways
to adapt your course to the needs of a particular student without violating the confidentiality of a
specific student.
As a faculty member, you are responsible for:
● Trusting that students who are cleared by the Accommodations Committee have provided
adequate and appropriate documentation of their disability from a registered health care
professional; accommodations are based on this documentation
● Respecting confidentiality with regards to the specifics of a student’s disability and/or
accommodation(s)
● Providing a course syllabus and all other relevant course material in advance upon request of the
Accommodations Committee
● Understanding that some students with disabilities have academic or behavioral problems that are
not related to their disabilities. Faculty members are not obligated to treat such problems
differently than they would for a non-disabled student
● Enforcing the Code of Student Conduct equally for all students
● Making the course syllabus available to students as soon as possible
● Including information about the university policy related to academic accommodations into the
syllabus, and encouraging them to discuss these accommodations with the Academic Advising
Office. Examples of syllabus statements are:
● AUCA is committed to providing reasonable academic accommodations for all students with
disabilities. Students with disabilities who need accommodations in this course must contact
the Advising Office to discuss needed accommodations.
● Your success in this class is important to me. If there are circumstances that may affect your
performance in this class, please let me know as soon as possible so that we may work
together to develop strategies for adapting assignments to meet both your needs and the
requirements of the course.
● AUCA Academic Advising Office provides resources for students with disabilities. You will
need to provide documentation of a disability to them in order to receive official university
services and accommodations.

Available Accommodations

Accommodations are defined as any reasonable adjustment required for a student to have equal
access to the university’s programs and activities, inside or outside the classroom. Examples of
potential accommodations might include:
● Extended time, deadlines, for completion of exams or other assignments for a student with a
learning disability
● Ability to use speech-to-text software for a student with dysgraphia
● Provision of a private, distraction-free testing environment for a student with attention-related
problems (Attention Deficit (and Hyperactivity) Disorder)
● A class being moved to a space accessible to a student with a specific mobility impairment
● Provision of air conditioning for a residential student with a respiratory condition
● Permitting a visually impaired student to bring his or her service animal to class.
● Providing flexible scheduling options by offering course at various times of the day and for
different lengths of time
● Providing options for demonstrating knowledge, such as allowing a students with a disability
to submit a paper instead of making a presentation, where appropriate
● Designing a course profile at e-course (Moodle platform) that includes a complete syllabus in
electronic format, daily class notes, streaming video of lectures, etc.
● Providing multiple ways of demonstrating learning through take-home exams, papers, group
work, presentations, etc.

Accommodations within AUCA DO NOT include:

● Substantial modifications to academic standards
● Personal aids/devices
● Modification or adjustment of requirements essential to any program of instruction, program
or activity, or to any directly related licensing requirement
● Modifications or adjustments that result in undue hardship for faculty, considering the nature,
cost, and impact of the accommodation, and other factors,
● Retrospective change of grading criteria for students requesting accommodations.

Accommodations Request Form.