Mission
Disability and Access (DAC) recognizes and appreciates disability as an integral part of the campus experience. We are committed to providing equal access and equal opportunity to the curricular environment for all students. Through collaboration with the entire campus community, DAC promotes disability pride, self-determination of the student, and universally accessible design principles so that everyone has full access to the St. Olaf experience.
Our Core Values
- Human variation is natural and vital to the development of dynamic communities.
- Disability is a social/political concept that includes people with a variety of conditions who share common experiences.
- Inclusion and the ability to fully participate are matters of social justice.
- Design is powerful and profoundly influences our daily lives.
- Universal design is essential for achieving inclusion and full participation.
- Creating usable, equitable, sustainable, and inclusive environments is a shared responsibility of the entire community.
Disability and Access in college vs K-12
This page will explain the differences of your rights as a student with disabilities in K-12 vs. in college. No longer are IEPs and 504 plans used. There are substantial changes in how accommodations are obtained, as well as FERPA (Family Education Right to Privacy Act) law which limits the type of information parents are allowed to receive from our office.
What are accommodations?
This link will describe accommodations and how they are similar and how they are different than IEPs or 504 plans from K-12. Below are some links describing the more typical accommodations seen in the college setting, but there are a lot more!