FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

For Students
For Faculty

STUDENTS

1. I think I may have a disability but I’m not sure. What should I do?
If you think you may have a disabling condition, please call or stop by our office to speak with a member of the DSPS team. We will help you to determine what steps you will need to take to obtain an assessment from a health care professional.

2. How do I sign up for DSPS Services?
You will need to fill out a DSPS Application, Student Personal Information Form, and provide documentation of your disability.  Acceptable types of documentation include: a signed DSPS Disability Verification Form, a signed letter from your medical, mental or licensed health professional, Individual Education Plan (IEP) Records, or 504 Plan from High School. The documentation must identify your disability and describe the limitations it imposes on your ability to be a successful student. You may fax your documentation to our secure fax line (530-741-6942), email us at dspsinfo@yccd.edu or bring to the DSPS Office located in Building 1800 on the Yuba College campus. Once we have all the paperwork, we will schedule an initial intake appointment with a DSPS Professional Staff Member. Appointments can be conducted in-person, phone, or zoom.

3. How do I know if I am eligible for DSPS services?
Eligibility for services is determined by verifying a disability in one of the following categories:

• Physical disability – verified by a medical professional
• Psychological disability – verified by a mental health, medical, or psychiatric professional

Learning disability (LD) verified by the most recent Individualized Education Plan (IEP) from high school, psychological assessment of a recent LD testing by a qualified professional, or by testing conducted by a DSPS LD Specialist.

4. My disability is not “visible”, do I still qualify?
We serve individuals who have disabilities such as:

• Blindness or visual impairments
• Cerebral palsy
• Chronic illness (e.g., AIDS, cancer, Lyme disease, etc.)
• Recovering drug or alcohol addiction
• Epilepsy or seizure disorders
• Hearing impairments
• Learning disabilities
• Attention deficit disorders
• Mobility impairments
• Orthopedic disabilities
• Psychiatric (psychological) disorders
• Speech disorders
• Spinal cord injuries
• Systemic disabilities
• Traumatic brain injury

5. What are my rights and responsibilities as a student with a documented disability?
As a college student with a documented disability, you have the right to “reasonable accommodations based upon your educational limitations” under Title 5 of the California Education Code and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Provisions of the law state that “No otherwise qualified person with a disability in the Unites States shall, solely by reason of disability, be denied the benefits of, be excluded from participation in, or be subject to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

Colleges and Universities receiving federal financial assistance must not discriminated in the recruitment, admission, or treatment of students. Students with documented disabilities may request accommodations, or auxiliary aids which will enable them to participate and benefit from all post-secondary educational programs and activities. Post secondary institutions must make such changes to ensure that the academic programs are accessible to the greatest extent possible for all students with disabilities. You’re a given a form to sign/date during the intake process that you are aware of these rights and responsibilities.

6. Does Yuba College offer Adaptive PE classes?

Yuba College offers an Adaptive Physical Education program that includes assessment and prescriptive teaching in the areas of physical and motor fitness for students with disabilities is offered. The Adaptive PE program emphasizes strength, independence, and a healthy outlook. Classes are held in a separate building from the DSPS division in the 2000 building which includes:

• State-of-the-art equipment
• Individual exercise prescription
• Individual assistance
• Small classes
• Hydrotherapy pool with a lift
• Dressing facilities

7. Who can benefit from Adaptive Physical Education services?

• Students with disabilities
• Individuals wishing to continue their exercise regime after exiting physical/occupational therapy
• Active adults
• Athletes who are in the process of rehabilitating after an injury
• Physical education, allied health, and sports medicine majors seeking field experience
• Persons interested in developing lifetime leisure and fitness goals.

Adaptive PE Classes:

• PE 3R – Adapted Physical Education
• PE 4R – Low Impact Fitness
• PE 6R – Adapted Total Fitness
• PE 7R – Adapted Weight Training and Fitness
• PE 8R – Student Assistant – Adapted Physical Education

8. Does Yuba College DSPS Program offer the same services as Special Education departments in secondary schools?
Accommodations that are often provided in high schools, such as proofreading, reduction of course standards, and re-phrasing of exam questions are not offered. Students with disabilities must meet the same program requirements as students without disabilities.

High School vs College Comparison Chart

Accommodations are provided based on an assessment of individual need and professional documentation. Examples of academic accommodations include extra time for tests, reduced course load, and access to computers and assistive devices.
If you have any questions about the distinctions between “Disability Services” and “Special Education” please contact DSPS personnel.

9. Is all information that is disclosed to DSPS treated confidentially and respectfully?
Disability Services treats all student information and communication as confidential. We require written permission from registered students before we can speak with anyone regarding their disability.

10. Whom should I send my documentation to verifying my disability?
If you have documentation verifying your disability (such as a psych-educational assessment of a learning disability, or a medical certificate) please forward it to our office as soon as you have applied to a program. If you are already studying at Yuba College, please provide us with your documentation as soon as you wish to access our services.

You may fax your documentation to our secure fax line (530-741-6942), email us at dspsinof@yccd.edu or drop it off to us in Building 1800 on the Yuba College campus.

It is not necessary to provide the Registrar’s office with documentation of your disability.

FACULTY

1. How are academic accommodations determined?

The student makes a request for classroom accommodations from the appropriate DSPS certificated staff member. Certificated staff are also known as DSPS professionals and include DSPS Counselors, LD Specialists, DSPS Instructors, and the Director of DSPS. Reasonable accommodations are agreed upon via an interactive dialogue with students and finalized by DSPS.

2. What if I disagree with an approved accommodation?

Professors who have questions, comments, concerns or suggestions on classroom accommodations authorized by DSPS are encouraged to contact the DSPS professional who wrote the Accommodations Authorization form. The DSPS office phone number is 530-741-6795.

3. Why did I receive a memo from DSPS notifying me of a deaf or visually impaired student enrolled in my classes?

In the case of students with hearing and/or visual disabilities, authorization for accommodation memos will be sent through campus mail so they are received by the professor prior to the first class meeting. These memos are to alert instructors about expected alternate media needs of students such as the production of printed materials in large print, Braille, e-text and closed captioning.

4. What is closed captioning?

Closed captioning, when activated, provides text on the screen for all auditory signals on a live or pre-recorded show, movie, or other broadcast typically shown on a television, TV monitor, computer, or large screen projection devices. Closed captioning is similar to subtitles in foreign films. If a person has a hearing disability in your classroom, any films that are shown must be closed captioned under state and federal law.

5. What is the impact of alternate media needs on faculty and staff?

A student, staff or community member may ask that a video shown in a classroom, other instructional or service setting, or a public event be captioned. As many tapes are already captioned, this may simply mean turning on the captioning option via remote control on a TV monitor. The request could become as complicated as having the desired video be either manually closed captioned on the premises or sent out to a captioning facility.

• Remember to turn on the closed captioning option on TV monitors and large screen projection devices when showing videos when you are aware of a deaf or hearing impaired person in your class.
• Order and/or purchase videos that are already closed captioned whenever possible.
• Notify DSPS of any videos in your own libraries used for instruction, service delivery or public information that are not already captioned.

6. Why am I being asked to provide my instructional materials electronically and in advance of class meetings?

Students with disabilities have the right to receive their handouts on the same time frame as those provided to students without disabilities. Converting text into larger sizes, Braille, tactile graphics and audio files is time consuming. In order to initiate alternate media processing it is helpful to have the

• ISBN of textbooks
• Approximate timelines of dates for starting each chapter
• A syllabus for approximate dates of assignments, quizzes, and exams,
• All handouts and supplemental written materials

7. How do I know if something is captioned, and how do I turn on captions?

If the video has been purchased the label will show one of the symbols below if it has been captioned. If you have recorded something usually the captioning feature is found in the TV’s remote control “menu.” Ask Media Services for a TV with captioning capabilities. Often the student asking for captioning will know how to turn the captioning on.

8. I have an interpreter in my class. Why do I need to worry about captioning?

Movies and television shows are scripted which means that they usually move at a pretty fast pace. They also often include different characters. An interpreter does not have time to look and see who is talking so they must make a guess and inform the student who is talking. Captioning does that automatically. It takes an extremely skilled interpreter to accurately interpret all of the information on a video. Often some of the information is lost or does not come across clearly. While the student is watching the interpreter they are not watching the movie. It would be the equivalent of me reading a script to you very quickly and expecting you to know what is going on without visual reference to what we are talking about. This makes learning especially difficult when the video is showing a procedure or demonstration that the student needs to see.

9. What do I do if the video isn’t captioned?

First, try to find a captioned version of the video. This is especially important if you plan to use the video every semester. Let the student and the interpreter know as soon as possible that you plan to show the video.

10. Must an accommodation be provided if it would result in a fundamental alteration of the program?

The college may deny a student’s request for an accommodation which is not specifically recommended in the student’s documentation. Academic requirements that the institution can show are essential to the student’s course of study do not have to be modified/accommodated. In other words, the institution would not have to change a requirement if it could demonstrate that such a change would fundamentally alter the nature of the course.

11. Can a student ask for accommodation without providing documentation of a disability?

A student is required to provide the designated compliance office or disability services office with the necessary documentation from an appropriate professional verifying disability before any classroom accommodation is provided. This documentation must be current (within the last 3 years). In Salvador v. Bell, the OCR ruled that the institution was under no obligation to provide accommodation for a student with a disability who fails to provide documentation of the disability. (Jarrow, 1991).

12. Do faculty members have the right to access diagnostic information regarding a student’s disability?

Faculty do not have the right to access the student’s diagnostic information. Yuba College follows the rules of confidentiality that are described in Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act(1973) and Federal Education Right to Privacy Act (FERPA).