Associate Director for Disability Services

POSITION OBJECTIVE

The Department of Disability Resources is the campus resource that ensures students with disabilities are afforded all the legal rights and protections as mandated in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The Disability Resource Department is responsible for ensuring that students who disclose disabilities are provided an equitable process for the implementation and accessibility across campus to ensure the university legal compliance.

To this end the Associate Director works directly with students, faculty, and staff to assist with all aspects of the student accommodation process on campus.

The Associate Director acts as a liaison to multiplecha departments on campus that impact academic, housing, dining, and campus accessibility. Engages in frequent communication between campus stakeholders to assure compliance with the Federal and State statutes relative to individuals with disabilities. The Disability Resources department manages a growing population of undergraduate and graduate students (1,500+) registered with the office that have ongoing and changing needs.

The Associate Director will manage a caseload of approximately 40 percent of the students registered. The Associate Director will implement the accommodation process by completing documentation review, intake evaluation, and determination of accommodations for students disclosing to the office. Facilitate the implementation of accommodations between departments to ensure compliance. This position will identify outside funding sources, including grant opportunities related to Disability Resources and bring them to the Associate Dean for review.

Finally, the Associate Director will work directly with the Associate Dean to develop programs to increase the visibility of the department on campus.

• Responsible for managing a large caseload of an extremely busy, high‑paced office with a very large caseload of students (600+), by educating newly registered students on the process of accessing approved accommodations and working with registered students each semester to handle problems and changing needs of disabilities. Review and evaluate applications and documentation, outreach to students, complete initial eligibility (intake) interviews with new and prospective students.
  
  Determine which, if any, reasonable accommodations may apply, author an individual accommodation memo, make any necessary arrangements with other departments.clickand instruct students on how to access any reasonable accommodation(s). Review and assess all documents and applications prior to an appointment. Evaluate professional qualifications of assessor, disability type and impact of disability on major life activities. Utilize background and knowledge of DSM‑V and assessment interpretation to critically examine diagnosis determination and recommended accommodations.
  
  Communicate with students regarding documentation requirements and policies. Work with registered students to provide coaching skills such as self‑advocacy, executive function, and essential skills for students with disabilities in the higher education setting. (40%)
• Investigate and review the ADA and the Federal Housing Act (FHA). Review and develop a plan to update the institutional policies related to students with disabilities. Consult with university Office of General Counsel regarding policy updates and the impact toward legal compliance and guidance through the ADA, FHA and the Office of Civil Rights. Review policy for the Office of Accommodated Testing and Services (OATS) to determine compliance.
  
  Present recommendations to the assistant dean for approval and implementation. (20%)
• Oversee the development and dissemination of best practices in relation to accommodations in undergraduate, graduate and professional programs, including research regarding relevant case law and current trends within the field of disability resources. Develop and present to the campus community programs related to disability issues/accommodation implementation comfortably. (10%)
• As system administrator, manage, edit and…