The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (section 504) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provides that “no otherwise qualified disabled individual in the United States…shall, solely on the basis of disability, be denied access to, or the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity provided by any institution receiving federal financial assistance.” This regulation requires that Doane programs are accessible to the disabled, but it does not require that every building or part of a building on campus is accessible. Some of the architectural barriers on this campus cannot be removed in the immediate future. Thus, it will be necessary to reschedule classes to accessible buildings or take other steps to open some of our programs to students with mobility impairments.
Students interested in services related to a disability should notify the college of any special circumstances that would affect their ability to compete equally in the college environment. To assist the college in providing services, qualified professionals upon request must provide documentation of such disabilities.
Students are encouraged to self-identify at any time by initiating the process described in number one above.
To initiate this process, students are encouraged to contact any of the following offices before arriving on campus so their needs can be anticipated, reviewed, and accommodated: Office of Admission, Student Leadership Office, Academic Support Center, or Academic Affairs Office.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) & Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Grievance Procedure
Doane College wants to ensure prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any discrimination or other conduct prohibited by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (20 U.S.C. 794.) If at any point a student, faculty or staff member believes that there has been a violation of ADA or Section 504, he or she should follow these steps:
- To file a grievance, the student, faculty or staff member must contact the college’s Section 504 Coordinator within 30 working days of the alleged discrimination or other conduct. (In special circumstances an extension may be granted for filing a grievance.) All grievances should be filed with Laura Sears, Director of Human Resources and the College’s designated Section 504 Coordinator. She may be contacted at (402) 826-6773 or via email at laura.sears@doane.edu.
- The 504 coordinator will make contact with the student or employee filing the grievance within two business days. The 504 coordinator will make a record of the meeting and may request person filing the complaint to present the grievance in writing.
- The 504 coordinator or her designee will conduct a thorough and impartial investigation of the complaint, during which all parties will have the opportunity to present witnesses and other evidence.
- Upon review of the documentation and information gathering, the 504 coordinator will render a findings report to Doane College and will provide a copy of the findings report to the student or employee grievant. The parents or guardians of a student grievant, if FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) permits, may request a copy of the findings report within 30 days after its filing.
- The person filing the complaint may request reconsideration of the report determination and findings if he or she is dissatisfied with the resolution. This request should be made to the Section 504 Coordinator within 10 working days. The findings report will be provided to the Vice President for Student Leadership when a student requests reconsideration and to the Vice President for Finance and Administration when a faculty or staff member requests reconsideration. The designated Vice President will be responsible for reviewing the report findings and resolution and making a determination in writing and providing copies of the written determination to the person filing the grievance within 10 working days. Report findings will also be filed with the 504 Coordinator.
The college will take steps, as appropriate, to remedy the effects of and prevent the recurrence of discrimination of which it has notice.
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