Reasonable Accommodations in the Classroom – On-Demand Training

Shift from Compliance to Inclusion By Eliminating Accessibility Gaps & Providing Clear Guidelines for Faculty

Institutions of higher education are increasingly grappling with complex challenges related to implementing reasonable accommodations in the college classroom. While the legal and ethical imperative to support students with disabilities is clear, operationalizing these accommodations often reveals systemic gaps.

Resource constraints, inconsistent faculty training and awareness, and technology and accessibility gaps remain key concerns on many campuses and often impede accommodation processes. Misunderstandings and resistance abound, when faculty struggle to reconcile accommodations with course requirements, especially in disciplines with rigid assessment structures or technical standards. Communication barriers only add to the confusion and frustration for students, faculty and disability services.

Our expert presenter – Leigh Davis Fickling, whose expertise is in disability management and the implementation of reasonable accommodations with over 25 years of experience – will focus on shifting from compliance to inclusion, integrating assistive technology, empowering faculty development, and including students as focus group members when designing new curriculum methods. She’ll use case studies during the session for interactivity and exploration.

Foster a truly inclusive culture that goes beyond compliance. 

Topics Covered

Gain crucial, actionable takeaways that will help you: 

• Create and conduct required annual training on disability law, inclusive teaching practices, and how to implement accommodations effectively.
• Provide clear guidelines to faculty with easy-to-follow documentation and examples of common accommodations and how to apply them.
• Help faculty create a welcoming environment for disclosure about accommodations.
• Designate departmental accessibility liaisons to support faculty with questions and concerns.
• Encourage use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles to reduce the need for reactive accommodations by designing courses with flexibility from the start.
• Explore the importance of triangular communication between students faculty and adopt strategies to ensure timely and respectful dialogue that centers the student’s experience.

Presenter

Leigh Davis Fickling is the Deputy Director of the Title IX and Clery Compliance and an Accommodations Consultant at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Click here for full bio.