The Academic Resource Center (ARC) remains committed to serving our faculty, staff, and students on both the Mequon and Ann Arbor campuses through the full catalog of academic and accessibility support services available. As we continue to navigate the impact of COVID-19 on our services and their delivery, it is imperative that we take necessary actions to protect the health, safety, and welfare of all members of our campus community.
In order to fully comply with strategies outlined by the CDC and our University for our safe return to campus, and in consultation with Disability/Accessibility Services professionals through the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD), it has been determined that changes in exam proctoring procedures must be implemented for the Fall 2020 semester. These changes will impact exam proctoring for students with testing accommodations on both campuses; in addition, at CUAA, this will also impact make-up exam proctoring for students without academic accommodations.
The ARC will continue to provide exam proctoring options for students with specialized testing accommodations (e.g. scribe, assistive technology, paper copy of exam, minimum distraction environment, medically at-risk) as well as those who prefer to utilize their accommodations in the Testing Center.
As of July 1, 2020, the following procedures will be in place within the ARC at both CUW and CUAA until further notice:
- To ensure a safe and equitable testing experience for all members of the CUWAA community, faculty are encouraged to conduct all testing through Blackboard or Examsoft. [1]
- Make up testing currently offered at CUAA is suspended until strict social distancing guidelines are relaxed. Make up testing at CUW is not currently offered through the ARC.
- Testing Center hours and capacity will be altered to ensure appropriate social distancing, sanitizing, and safety measures can be taken. For this reason, students may not be able to complete an exam in the Testing Center during their regularly scheduled class session.
- To reduce or eliminate the risk of contamination, hard copies of exams will not be accepted. Electronic exam copies should be submitted to the ARC; staff from the ARC will print exams for students who require a paper copy as an accommodation.
- Exam proctoring will be available via Zoom as well as in-person appointments. When utilizing the Testing Center due to accommodations, the Director and the Student Support Services Coordinator of the ARC will determine which modality the student will use to complete the exam, based accommodation needs, as well as health and safety risks.
Determining an individual student’s eligibility for accommodations is the sole responsibility of the Director of the ARC & Accessibility Services. Once in place, a student may elect to use all, some, or none of their accommodations in a specific class - the decision regarding which accommodations are utilized rests solely with each student. Faculty may not dictate which accommodations a student can or cannot use in their course. Preventing a student from utilizing an approved accommodation would be an action in violation of their rights as a qualified individual with a disability. [2]
Regardless of the exam proctoring procedures, the ARC is prepared to fully support faculty across modalities and campuses in delivering secure exams, while ensuring that student learning and accessibility needs are met. If questions or concerns arise regarding exam proctoring or accommodations, please contact the following ARC staff members.
Contact information
Tori Negash, MSW, LLMSW, PhD
Director, Academic Resource Center & Accessibility Services
734-995-7582
Tori.Negash@cuaa.edu
Reference information
CUWAA is mandated to follow certain laws relating to the accessibility of curriculum and co-curriculum programs, along with providing appropriate accommodations to students who choose to self-disclose a disability to Accessibility Services.
- Prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability.
- Covers all programs conducted by federal agencies or programs receiving federal assistance (Public & Private Colleges receiving Financial Aid).
- States “no qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall be excluded from, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any programs receiving federal financial assistance.”
- Requires universities to provide reasonable accommodations to students that self-disclose a disability, program accessibility, effective communication with people who have hearing or vision disabilities, and accessible new construction and alterations.
- Protects the rights of individuals with disabilities by prohibiting discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life to include higher education.
- The U.S. Department of Justice has stated that the ADA applies to all technology utilized in higher education.
- Title III under ADA: prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in the activities of places of public accommodations (e.g. CU) and requires newly constructed or altered places of public accommodation—as well as commercial facilities—to comply with the ADA Standards.
The ADA ensures that individuals with disabilities have the opportunity to fairly compete for and pursue educational and employment opportunities by requiring testing entities to offer exams in a manner accessible to persons with disabilities. When needed testing accommodations are provided, test-takers can demonstrate their true aptitude.
Testing accommodations are changes to the regular testing environment and auxiliary aids and services that allow individuals with disabilities to demonstrate their true aptitude or achievement level on standardized exams or other high-stakes tests.
Examples of testing accommodations that may be required include, but are not limited to:
- Braille or large-print exam booklets;
- Screen reading technology;
- Scribes to transfer answers to Scantron bubble sheets or record dictated notes and essays;
- Extended time;
- Wheelchair-accessible testing stations;
- Distraction-free rooms;
- Physical prompts (i.e. for individuals with hearing impairments); and
- Permission to bring and take medications during the exam (e.g. for individuals with diabetes who must monitor their blood sugar and administer insulin)
Individuals with disabilities are eligible to receive necessary testing accommodations.
- Under the ADA, an individual with a disability is a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity (such as seeing, hearing, learning, reading, concentrating, or thinking) or a major bodily function (such as the neurological, endocrine, or digestive system).
- A person with a history of academic success may still be a person with a disability who is entitled to testing accommodations under the ADA. A history of academic success does not mean that a person does not have a disability that requires testing accommodations.
- See ADA Requirements: Testing Accommodations from the U.S. Department of Justice for more detailed information on this topic.
[1] These changes may be necessary for additional semesters and will be dependent on Stay-At-Home orders in Wisconsin and Michigan, and changes to CDC, Health Department, and/or University guidelines regarding on-campus, in-person work and learning.
[2] Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states “no qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall be excluded from, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any programs receiving federal financial assistance.” Universities are required to provide reasonable accommodations to students that self-disclose a disability.