Accommodations

The ADA defines a person with a disability as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity or body function.

What are considered major life activities and body functions?

• Major life activities include, but are not limited to, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working.
• Major Bodily Functions include, but are not limited to, functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions.For more information, you can look to www.ada.gov

Students should initiate the process by submitting an Accommodation Request. Once your request is submitted, we will schedule a meeting to discuss your needs. Often times, medical documentation is needed to create the accommodation.

Students with existing accommodations who need to modify their request should sign-in to Accommodate.
 

Accommodation requests are welcomed and reviewed upon receipt.  We understand that it is not always possible to anticipate if an accommodation will be needed, due to sudden or unexpected circumstances.  

Students that know they will require reasonable accommodation, however, are encouraged to submit their requests as early as possible. Students’ requests for academic accommodations should be made well in advanced of the start of the academic term, preferably before August 1.  We strongly recommend newly accepted students contact the Accommodations Administrator prior to matriculation to begin the process for the individualized assessment. This allows us to ensure appropriate accommodations are in place before classes, labs, and exams begin as acccomodations are not retroactive.

Third year students who think they will need accommodation in their clinical year, should make a requests before September 1, allowing time to create an appropriate accommodation plan that provides an equitable and accessible clinical experience for all students.

Medical documentation from your provider is required.  

Please ask each provider to complete an “Accommodation Authorization Form” or official document that provides equivalent information and either email it to Angela Jasper or fax it to 508-887-4820. This form will also be available through Accommodate.

Cummings School encourages students who think they may have a disability to contact us. We can determine if the student needs to complete an accommodation request, help to identify necessary documentation, and provide additional resources.

We require that medical documentation is no more than 5 years old. New medical diagnoses or diagnoses that fluctuate should have new, updated medical documentation.

It is important to determine if accommodations are needed and this helps to create a successful plan for each student on a case-by-case basis.

As long as your medical information stays the same, you will need to check in with either our office or Accommodate every semester during your academic years, and once for your clinical year. If your medical information changes or there is a new diagnosis, a new intake may be necessary.

With the student’s consent, only accommodation information will be shared with course instructors, rotation directors, faculty, etc. that need to be notified. This helps to ensure the accommodation is successful for the student.  Any disability or medical documentation given to the Accommodation Administrator is kept private. It is the student’s decision if they want to share any medical or disability information with Cummings community members.  

Accommodation information is not a part of the student’s academic transcript. We abide by Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act guidelines when discussing an intake and plan with all students. 

See NAVLE website where students can access information on "Candidates with Disabilities" in the drop-down menu.

Students are encouraged to participate in their religious holiday observances. Wherever possible, Cummings School will avoid scheduling mandatory work on religious holy days. This includes examinations and class sessions that are difficult to make up, such as laboratories. However, there may be times when such conflicts are unavoidable. Because there are many diverse religions represented at the School, it will not always be feasible to develop a schedule that avoids all conflicts with all students’ religious observances. In the unfortunate event that such a conflict arises, students should submit this form to the Student Affairs Office at least two weeks in advance, or as soon as possible, in advance of the religious observance.