Students who have an IEP or 504 Plan in high school often ask if those will "transfer over" to college, but the short answer is no, there is no automatic transfer of accommodation plans from one school to another. The longer answer is that while a student may be eligible for some of the same accommodations they received in high school, there is a different process for obtaining accommodations, and not all K-12 accommodations are appropriate in a college setting.
It is important that students develop their self-advocacy skills, and understand which accommodations best support their learning. The table below highlights some key differences in the accommodation process between K-12 and higher education, which are important to understand as students (and parents) prepare for the transition from high school to college. Below the table, there is more information explaining the higher education accommodation process in greater detail.
Comparison of K-12 and Higher Education Accommodation Processes
K-12 Accommodation Process | Higher Ed Accommodation Process |
Governed by the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) | Governed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) |
School identifies need for support services and/or accommodations | Student discloses disability and initiates request for accommodations |
The school and parents/caregivers’ direct disability-related needs | Each student directs their disability-related needs |
The school is obliged to meet most student needs, and may lower or reduce some academic requirements to meet the student where they are | “Reasonable” accommodations are provided to ensure disabled students have equitable access relative to their non-disabled peers without fundamentally altering course requirements or academic expectations. |
School administrators coordinate all aspects of implementing accommodations | Student is responsible for notifying instructors and coordinating services with Disability Services |
High parent/caregiver involvement | Limited parent/caregiver involvement |
Frequent school-to-parent/caregiver communication | Limited/no school-to-parent communication |
High teacher involvement and responsibility | High student involvement and responsibility |
May provide tutors, attendants, and/or paraprofessionals | Not required to provide tutors, attendants, and paraprofessionals (unless provided for all students) |
School sets goals and monitors student performance | Student initiates contact with campus resources if they are struggling academically |
Explanation of Higher Ed Accommodation Process at UMass
For more information about each line item in the Higher Ed Accommodation Process column of the above table, and what that means at UMass Amherst specifically, please explore the sections below.
The differences between the accommodation process in K-12 compared to higher education exist because they each fall under a different set of laws. While K-12 disability support and special education services is primarily governed by the Individuals with Disabilities Act, or IDEA, higher education disability services is governed by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (commonly referred to as the ADA).
IDEA is a law of entitlement that guarantees access to a “free and appropriate public education” (also known as FAPE), and strives to ensure that K-12 students demonstrate academic progress. The ADA, on the other hand, is an anti-discrimination law that ensures disabled students have the same opportunity as their non-disabled peers to pursue a college education, without being discriminated against on the basis of disability. The ADA is not a law of entitlement, and does not guarantee success like IDEA does.
In K-12, the schools drive the process of identifying the need for accommodations, whereas in higher education the students must disclose their need to Disability Services. Even if the student disclosed a disability(-ies) or need for accommodations in the admission process, that information is not shared and they still must register with Disability Services to request accommodations upon enrollment in the university.
The student’s self-report is considered a vital source of information when reviewing and determining accommodations. Gathering a self-report from the student is incorporated in multiple steps of our accommodation determination process. We recognize that people with disabilities are experts of their own experiences and important sources of information. Accordingly, we welcome self-disclosures and personal histories as critical elements of the application screening process.
The registration form walks the student through prompts designed to help the student and the Access Coordinator can make suggestions, but ultimately it is up to the student to self-advocate for their needs and accommodations.
The interactive process at times may include consultation with faculty and others to ensure reasonable access is facilitated, which may occur through academic accommodations or other measures (such as inclusive design).
The Disability Services team utilizes a structured review process for each accommodation request. An appeal process is available for students who do not agree with the initial determination.
Necessary, reasonable accommodations are facilitated when the accommodation addresses all the following:
- Establishes meaningful access or an equal opportunity to: 1) Fully engage and participate in the same activities, campus services, benefits and experiences offered to a person without a disability; 2) Utilize the same information shared with everyone; and 3) Have the same opportunity to achieve.
- Logically addresses the impacts of one’s disability relative to the barriers/challenges established by and rooted in the academic and/or campus environment. (Academic challenges in isolation of an academic barrier are not accommodated.)
- Is logically designed to and will effectively remove the identified academic/campus barrier to equitable access.
- Ensures that academic requirements or technical standards do not discriminate against a student based on disability.
In the K-12 environment, accommodations are generally outlined on the IEP or Section 504 Plan and communicated by school administrators to the teachers; the teachers are expected to have a thorough understanding of the plan to provide accommodations. In contrast, at UMass, students who have been granted reasonable accommodations in the classroom and/or for exams are required to notify the instructor(s) for each course in which they want to use accommodations, each semester. Our database system, Clockwork, facilitates this process but the student must initiate it. Students may then need to discuss how accommodations will be implemented in a given course directly with instructors.
Similarly, certain accommodations require that the student communicate with Disability Services to arrange the implementation of the accommodations. For example, students with exam accommodations who want to take their exams in the Exam Proctoring Center must schedule those in advance, through Clockwork, and students requiring physical access accommodations coordinate access with the Physical Access team.
In higher education, the student is the decision maker when it comes to requesting and implementing accommodations. Disability Services supports the student in navigating this transition and can support the student with developing the self-advocacy skills that they will use throughout college and the rest of their lives.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), also known as the Buckley Amendment, is the primary law that protects the confidentiality of students’ records in academic environments. FERPA applies to all of Disability Services’ work with a student.
With the student’s permission, parents/caregivers can attend Disability Services meetings and/or be copied on an email, but we will expect the student to self-advocate. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to support the student’s efforts to self advocate, as they will need this skill in college and beyond.
While students are welcome to pass along any communication they receive from Disability Services to their parents, Disability Services will be directing all communications to the student and will not include parents on the vast majority of communication. Disability Services will not reach out to parents/caregivers about their student and cannot share specifics with parents without the express permission from the student.
Parents who want to stay generally aware of some of the messaging being shared by Disability Services can subscribe to our monthly newsletter, follow us on Instagram, and/or periodically check out the News page on our website.
In the K-12 education system, schools comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which often involves significant modification of the curriculum and of assessments, necessitating high instructor involvement and responsibility.
Conversely, higher education complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which does not require instructors to make fundamental alterations to their courses. This shifts the responsibility to the student to participate in all UMass processes to engage with their accommodations. This includes, but is not limited to, and depends on the accommodations they receive:
- Sending accommodation letters
- Requesting course notes
- Scheduling exams in advance
- Enrolling in the Learning Specialist Program each semester
- Communicating class schedules to the Physical Access team
- Meeting with their academic advisor to determine which courses to take
- Registering for courses
- Requesting housing appointments and selecting housing during their appointed time
More information about the student’s rights and responsibilities can be found on our website.
Under ADA, the Disability Services is not responsible for providing any service that is personal in nature, such as providing a student with a personal tutor, a Personal Care Assistant (PCA), a paraprofessional, a mental health counselor, etc.
Although Disability Services does not offer personal services as formalized accommodations, there are many wonderful campus resources that are available to all UMass students. regardless of disability status. Some of these resources include:
- University Health Services for medical treatment
- The Center for Counseling and Psychological Health
- The Learning Resource Center for content-specific tutoring
- Dean of Students Office (food pantry, short-term loans, etc.)
Additionally, students with disabilities who are registered with our office can request to work with a Learning Specialist. If deemed eligible for the Learning Specialist Program, these students can receive executive functioning and academic skills coaching.
Disability Services does not monitor academic performance of disabled students. Sometimes an instructor, academic advisor, or other campus office will reach out to Disability Services to express a concern on behalf of the student, and the student’s Access Coordinator would reach out to offer assistance in those cases.
In general, however, if students are struggling academically, they are expected to initiate contact with any relevant campus resources for support. That may include contacting Disability Services to request an additional accommodation(s) or to seek advice. Accommodations cannot be applied retroactively, but students are encouraged to reach it out if they encounter barriers during their time at UMass.