Animals on Campus – On-Demand Training

Handling Public Accommodation Spaces & Events to Limit Confusion & Remain Compliant

Whether it’s a request to bring a dog into a dining hall or a cat into a public event in the recreation center, college campuses are facing a rising number of people arriving on campus with animals. Administrators and staff are often confused about whether or not to allow the animal access to campus buildings and grounds or to exclude the animal from the premises due to a “no pets policy” on campus. Interactions between handlers and campus personnel are often muddled and handled improperly – which can lead to the potential of a disability discrimination complaint. It can be confusing, nerve-wracking and exclusive if not handled correctly.

Our expert presenter will help participants explore current regulations related to public accommodations and animals on campus. Adjust to the increasing number of animals that are appearing on campuses each day in public accommodation spaces, drawing from requirements for service animals under the ADA and also for access rights for ESAs under the Fair Housing Act.

You’ll be better able to prepare for the influx of animals on your campus and how to manage their presence once they are present – the questions that you can ask of a handler, the behaviors the animal must exhibit while on campus, and how to exclude them from campus if they are out of control of the handler, all while avoiding a potential claim of disability discrimination.

Topics Covered

Gain crucial, actionable takeaways that will help you:

• Establish and enforce policies related to service animal regulations and Title II and Title III obligations for places of public accommodation with regard to service animal access – be confident in the types of questions you can ask and actions you can take when members of the public visit places of public accommodation and are accompanied by an animal so you can avoid a potential claim of disability discrimination.
• Distinguish the difference between service, emotional assistance and therapy animals and the presence of these animals in campus facilities in general – develop, implement, and enforce legally defensible policies and procedures related to students’ rights to have animals on campus.
• Arm your staff with knowledge to empower them to make difficult decisions when necessary – know when and how to exclude animals that are out of the control of the handler or who are not service animals, at all, but are instead a personal pet of an owner being disguised as a service or ESA.
• Uphold your obligations under the Fair Housing Act for residence life housing providers with regard to emotional support animals or assistance animals on campus – create policies and procedures to protect your institution's mission and ensure a healthy, supportive living/learning community.
• Improve your campus climate for all community members – create an affirming and supportive environment for all students so that you can engage, retain and graduate them.

Presenter

Leigh Fickling is the Director of the Disability Resource Center at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Click here for full bio.