Office of Accessibility and Resources

Clovis Community College offers all students an equal opportunity for education. Our Office of Accessibility and Resources (OARS) assists students with disabilities and/or a disabling condition.

Any student with a disability or special need can come to our office for an individual consultation. It is important to note that disability services are handled differently at the post secondary level than in high school and that students need to self identify to be eligible for services and accommodations. OARS staff will help determine what services will best support each student.

• Testing accommodations
• Sign language interpreting
• Books in alternative format
• Computer assisted learning
• Back or neck support

OARS offers the use of adaptive equipment including:

• CPens
• Talking Calculators

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College is different from high school for students with disabilities. You are the key to initiating and implementing your disability services ("OARS") in the post-secondary setting.

 

1. You must ask and you must tell.
   Outreach is done to ask you to identify yourself, but it is not Clovis Community College's (CCC's) responsibility to discover if you are a student with a disability. In order to ensure your right to equal access to our facilities and programs, you are asked to self-identify to the Office of Accessibility and Resources to set the accommodation process in motion.
2. You must provide documentation of your disability.
   CCC has the right to require that you provide acceptable documentation of your disability. Documentation will be accepted if it is current (usually within three to five years), comprehensive, and conducted by an appropriate professional practitioner. If you have any questions about appropriate documentation or how to pursue documentation please contact OARS at 575.769.4098.
3. Accommodations are balanced with the essential integrity of the academic program.
   Essential degree or class requirements are not adapted to fit the student's ability at the post-secondary level. Instead, accommodations are made to ensure equal access to CCC facilities, services, and programs. Accommodations are individualized based on the documentation provided, and designed to provide students with disabilities the opportunity to participate fully in the post-secondary setting.
4. You make the decisions, not your parents/guardians.
   Students must self advocate to make the accommodation process successful. Provision of services and academic accommodations is a cooperative agreement between the student and the college. While your parent may have an active advising role if you so desire, your parent will not be called or consulted by OARS about your accommodation needs. The student must make all requests for services.
5. You will not have a special teacher or tutor.
   CCC provides necessary and reasonable accommodations for a disability. You will not have someone that you will see regularly who will make sure that you have finished your homework or have attended class. Use of accommodations on a student's part is voluntary. You may use any of the services agreed upon, however, this means you must continue to initiate use. OARS does not seek you out to make sure you are using the accommodations.
6. Your instructor may or may not call.
   Although an instructor may call OARS if they have concerns, the office will neither routinely call your instructors to check on your progress nor call to check on the implementation of a requested academic accommodation. Your success is ultimately your responsibility. If you have concerns about your status in a class or the implementation of your accommodations, please discuss them with your instructor and/or OARS, and we will work together to address them in the appropriate manner.
7. You must learn on your own more than ever before.
   You will be spending far less time with instructors and in the classroom but much more will be required of you outside the classroom. During your first semester, you should spend an average of 12 hours a week in class but no less than 24 hours a week reading and studying on your own. Because you now have much more unstructured time, you will need to manage it wisely in order to succeed. There are many services and supports at CCC to help you successfully transition and manage post-secondary life, including a Freshman Seminar course (ACS 102) recommended your first semester, free tutoring, peer mentoring, and TRIO Student Support Services.

*Adapted from Susie Wood, Director of Disability Services, Longwood University