[NABS-L] Online clases, accessibility, and the law

Thu Jun 2 01:33:22 UTC 2022

Hi all!
When one attends college, it's important to disclose one's disability
because without doing that, one is much worse off due to accessibility
issues. Since online classes are not universal design and are also not
consistent across the board in the accessibility department, any more than
in person classes are, it's extremely important to disclose your
disability because it's the only way to have a remotely fair shot at
succeeding in college of all levels. I believe that if you're disabled and
you don't disclose it, you're practically asking to fail in the long run
because it's built for the sighted and able-bodied world, not the disabled
world. I don't care if the class is online, in person, over Zoom or any
form of a hybrid. If you're taking any class at all, you'll have your best
shot at success when you disclose your disability because your disability
alone can hold you back, particularly when it gets in the way of passing a
class without the right accommodations. I also believe in planning for
classes as though I were planning a space flight mission at NASA because
there are enough problems with accessibility even when you get the right
support that it could derail your education when these kinds of issues
prevent your ability to succeed. Some classes are totally inaccessible
without any form of accommodations. When you're taking online courses, I
think one disadvantage is that you don't have the same sort of access to
your school's disabilities department which makes the whole thing ten
times worse without a disability disclosure to your school. Even then,
you'll still have to use your resources, but this time, in combination
with the resources from your school. As for the legalese, if you're in
school and you sign up for an online class, you have the same rights to
your accommodations that you would if you were taking an in person class.
Some of the resources may be different, some are less accessible and
others may be impossible online, but none the less, the rights are the
same for online as in person, but unlike in person, you're spending more
time on your own with your own resources, even when you do combine them
with your school's resources. Because of this, in the online world, I
don't recommend anyone to just depend on their school's disability
department. Use them in tandem with your own resources, but do it as
required since every class is different, but the same goes for every
subject, every teacher, and even, every available resource. I hope this
helps!
Kendra

-----Original Message-----
From: NABS-L <nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of nspohn0--- via
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Sent: Wednesday, June 1, 2022 4:15 PM
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Subject: Re: [NABS-L] Online clases, accessibility, and the law

As far as I know, universal design is not written in the law. Therefore,
you have to disclose your disability if you are in need of accommodations.

I just took an online course this summer. I was accommodated because I
disclosed my accommodations/disability to the instructor.

-----Original Message-----
From: NABS-L <nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Sami Osborne via
NABS-L
Sent: Wednesday, June 1, 2022 7:07 PM
To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Cc: Sami Osborne <sami.j.osborne97 at gmail.com>
Subject: [NABS-L] Online clases, accessibility, and the law

Hi all,

I hope this email finds you well.

About two weeks ago, I was dismissed from my graduate program at Nyu due
to my obtaining less than a 3.0 cumulative GPA. However, I plan to appeal
my dismissal due namely to the fact that I only failed one class, while
passing the other to I was enrolled in with flying colors (with an A minus
and a B plus). The main reason I failed the one class was due to
accessibility issues. I naturally plan to include these rather unforseen
and extenuating circumstances in my appelate brief that I have to submit
to NYK by next week, but I'm also wondering about including something that
may very well make my case/arguments more compelling.

My graduate program is all online, meaning I've had no in-person classroom
instruction at all. I am aware that in-person instruction is 100 percent
covered by the ADA and IDEA, meaning essentially that professors are
required by law to provide students with all academic accommodations they
request, as well as ensuring that their mode of instruction is as
accessible to students with disabilities as possible. What I don't know,
however, is whether or not the same holds true for online classes/fully
online programs. So I was therefore hoping someone could clarify this for
me. If onine instruction is covered under the law, which one(s) do they
fall under? Second, I was also wondering whether or not students are
required to disclose their disability to the school for online classes the
way they have to do for in-person, or whether the school just has to
naturally make their online instruction modes accessible regardless of
whether or not there are disabled students present. I ran into a similar
dillema last spring semester as well, during which I failed that same
class due to accessibility issues, which resulted in my having to repeat
the course this semester. However, at that time, I did not disclose to NYU
that I was disabled because I didn't think it would be that important for
online classes especially. Fortunately, I learned from that mistake this
time around, and decided to take a more proactive approach by requesting
academic accommodations from the Office for Student Accessibility (which
did turn out all right but obviously not perfect given that  I ran into
accessibility issues with that same class yet again). If the student is
required to disclose their disability to the school in order to receive
academic accommodations, then that might not belp me a whole lot in my
appelate case. If, on the other hand, this responsibility falls purely on
the school, then that just might make my case all the more cmpelling.

I'm really hoping someone on here will be able to clarify these two points
for me. If you have any additional questions for me or need further
clarification on my case, please let me know.

Thanks,

Sami
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