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The ����Vlog director of accessibility provides reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities upon request. Students must self-disclose to receive services, which is voluntary. If you are interested in receiving accommodations, contact jeff.merkle@augie.edu at 605.274.4631.

Services are highly individualized, based on need, and vary depending on the essential components of a course or program; they may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Preferential seating
• Interpreters for the Deaf
• Textbooks in alternate format
• FM systems or other equipment
• Extended time on test
• Less distracted exam locations
• Peer note-takers
• Accessible desks/classrooms/furniture
• Study strategies, time management assistance, and organizational planning
• Other ongoing academic support

Some accommodations, such as securing alternate texts, require advanced planning. Accommodations are also not retroactive. For these reasons, we encourage you to contact us as early as possible. Learn more about  and .

Accommodations for Specific Housing Requests

The Dean of Students Office housing requests (single housing rooms) or exceptions to the current pet policy are considered in cooperation with Residential Life in the Office of Student Affairs. ����Vlog has limited housing space dedicated to single living; however, priority will be determined by the documentation received and the specific needs of our students. Contact Jeff Merkle, director of accessibility.

You are an important source of information about the effects of your disability and the effectiveness of accommodations. For this reason, when you request these services, we will ask you to describe your disability, past use of accommodations, and the disability’s impact on your educational experiences.

As we create your personalized accommodation plan, we seek to engage in a comprehensive assessment of recommended and beneficial accommodations that are tailored to your needs. For this reason, the Director of Accessibility may also request documentation to help ����Vlog better understand how courses, facilities, programs or other environmental factors may present barriers for you.

The  has stated that documentation may come in many forms. Types of helpful documentation supportive of such requests include medical records, psycho-educational evaluations, individual education program (I.E.P.) or summary of performance (S.O.P.) reports, and school records. If additional diagnostic testing or evaluation is needed, staff will describe the information that is necessary or refer you for such testing.

Presenting documentation as soon as possible in the process is beneficial to both you and accessibility staff. However, you do not need to have documentation in hand to have a meeting with staff or to start the accommodations process. If a student’s disability is apparent, additional documentation may not be necessary. Each student’s situation is unique and is handled on a case-by-case basis. Documentation that is shared with accessibility staff is kept confidential and separate from your academic record.

You may submit your disability documentation to the accessibility staff at ����Vlog by faxing it to 605.274.5293 or by mailing it to the following address:

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Attention: Jeff Merkle
Madsen Center, Room 223
2001 S. Summit Ave
Sioux Falls, SD 57197

All personal information or documentation regarding a student received by Accessibility Services is kept confidential as guided by ����Vlog  policies and federal law (FERPA). Information is only shared when absolutely necessary with other campus personnel on a “need to know basis”. Therefore disability personnel are very limited in the information they can share about students to anyone else, including the student’s parents. Students however may choose to sign a consent form for the release of information to facilitate conversation between parents, treating specialists and disability personnel.