Faculty

Faculty

We provide academic accommodation and support to students with temporary or permanent disabilities in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s (OHRC) Policy on accessible education for students with disabilities and York University Senate Policy on Academic Accommodation for Students with Disabilities.

We use the term disability when we talk about registration with our office to be consistent with the language used in the OHRC and York Senate policies.

All students from neurodiverse, communities as well as students with sensory disabilities or impairments (deaf, deafened, hard of hearing, blind, low vision and partially sighted), chronic medical, health or mental health conditions, brain injuries and physical or mobility disabilities are welcome to explore registration with our office.

Understanding policies and resources related to teaching students with disabilities creates an equitable environment where respect for dignity of persons with disabilities is upheld. 

The Teaching Commons also provides resources on topics such as Inclusive Design and Making Your Course Accessible. 

Please consult with our office if you have specific accommodation related questions or concerns or contact the Teaching Commons if you have question about how to make your course more accessible.

Accommodation Guides

The resources provided below offer essential information for faculty, teaching assistants, and staff, equipping them with the knowledge necessary to effectively support students with disabilities at the University:

Faculty Resource Guide

This guide delves into legislation, identifies accessibility challenges within the higher education landscape, and offers insights into the accommodation process and best practices.

Read the Faculty Resource Guide

Accommodation Implementation Guide

Providing a comprehensive overview of individual accommodations, this guide serves as a valuable resource for understanding and implementing specific support measures within the classroom.

Read the Accommodation Implementation Guide

Placement Accommodation Guide

Focused on supporting students with disabilities in experiential and placement settings.

Read the Placement Accommodation Guide

Important/essential information for teaching students with disabilities

Information about Student Accessibility Services should be included in your course syllabus and discussed at the beginning of the course.

If you are concerned about a student's performance in your course, or a student reaches out to you, connect with them to discuss campus supports. 

If you suspect the student has a disability or they disclose a disability you can refer the student to our office.  For students who suspect that they have a disability we provide a consultation to discuss assessment and service referral options.  The OHRC policy includes information for faculty on responding to students with suspected disabilities.

For situations, such as a student becoming ill, having a personal/family emergency, or religious observance that require special consideration (permission to hand in an assignment late and/or write an exam/test at a later date) students do not need to register with our office.  Please speak with your peers, Dean/Chair to find out your faculty’s policy on supporting students with these types of special consideration requests. 

For additional support you may refer the student to the following offices:

  • Student Counselling, Health & Well-Being (SCHW) can help students develop strategies to manage stress and test/performance anxiety and provides health and well-being related workshops.
  • The Office of Student Community Relations (OSCR) provides critical incident support to students experiencing a personal or family emergency (e.g. loss of housing, hospitalization and the death of a loved one). 
  • The ESL Open Learning Centre (OLC) offers support to students for whom English is a Second/Additional Language

Faculty FAQ

The exam/test accommodations recommended in a student’s Letter of Accommodation are put in place by the course instructor.

The Alternate Exam Centre can provide support making time adjustments in eClass.  Please submit a request at least seven days before the test date (you are always welcome to submit requests earlier).

To request support:

  1. Add our administrative team to your course in eClass:
    1. Select “Participants” in eClass
    2. Select “Enrol Users”
    3. Add our administrative team using their email addresses (sagomes@yorku.ca, mquattro@yorku.ca, zjuman@yorku.ca, ahashim@yorku.ca, bonfanti@yorku.ca, lwest@yorku.ca )
    4. Change role to “Altexams” (this allows member of our team to adjust write times, they cannot access other areas of your course)
  2. Create the exam/test shell
    1. Add a quiz where you want it to appear on your eClass site. You do not need to populate questions, it can be empty.
    2. Go to the empty quiz so the URL address appears in your browser and copy the link. You will be asked to provide the URL in step 3 below.
  3. Complete an online Course Instructor eClass Support Request Form.  You will be asked to provide contact information where you can be reached for questions and clarification as well as course/test information (including the URL). 

Time adjustments in eClass will be made no later than 2 business days before a test date. Once the time adjustments have been made, you will receive an email confirmation.

If you change the duration of a test less than 7 days before the test date, we will not be able to process the change.

If you have any questions, please contact altprof@yorku.ca.

In-person, accommodated exams and tests are administered in an Alternate Exam Centre by our team.

Students must submit a request to access an Alernate Exam Centre.

  • You will receive an email from altprof@yorku.ca. Please confirm the date, time and duration of the requested exam/test.
  • A copy of the exam/test, instructions and any materials needed to write should be provided to the Alternate Exam Centre at least 3 business days before the write date. 
  • Exams can be emailed to altprof@yorku.ca or dropped off at N108 Ross.  Please do not send exams/tests via internal mail.
  • Completed exams will be returned to the course department.  Alternatively, they can be picked-up from the Alternate Exam Centre when the student finishes writing.

There are deadlines related to requests to write in an Alternate Exam Centre.

Please advise students to submit all requests at the start of the academic term, as soon as they receive a course syllabus.

Students who submit a late request will be directed to write with their class (without accommodation) or to speak with their course instructor about permission to write at a later date.

No.  A student might ask for academic consideration because they have experienced a personal/family emergency or they have had an acute, short-term illness such as the flu. Deferred Standing might need to be put in place.

If the student is making the request for reasons related to an ongoing or chronic medical condition or disability, they are encouraged to explore registration with our office. 

Connect with the Teaching Commons for assistance integrating the principals of universal design and accessibility in your courses. A universal design approach can improve the learning environment for everyone.

You can request a list of students in your classes who have academic accommodations by filling out this online Accommodations List Request Form.

Please contact the Accessibility Counsellor listed at the bottom of the student’s Letter of Accommodation.

If they are able to ask a classmate to share their notes or if you are willing to let the student record your lectures, then they do not need to register.

We suggest a student register with us if they:

  • require note-taking services
  • are unable to write an exam or test because of the injury
  • need support moving between buildings at Keele campus and need access to VAN Go. 

You may also discuss academic consideration (deferred standing) with them if they need to write a test or exam at a later date. You are welcome consult with our office if you have any questions or are unsure of what to do.

Yes! The Strengthening Transitions Program was made for collaborating with York Faculty and campus staff to deepen their understanding of the needs of autistic students in the classroom and throughout the wider campus environment.

For more information, please contact Raymond Peart (he/him), Autism Program Coordinator, Student Accessibility Services, Ph.D. Candidate, Faculty of Education at rpeart@yorku.ca.

Letters of Accommodation or Support are written by different offices in the Division of Students to Course Directors to help a student who is facing academic barriers or difficulties. Depending on what the student is going through, they will be referred by a different office.

Please see our page on Types of Formal Requests to Course Directors for Academic Adjustments for more information.