What is a disability?
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protect individuals with disabilities from discrimination and mandate the availability of accommodations to ameliorate the impact of the disability to afford equal access to education.
Students must meet the statutory definition of disability under federal law. In order to determine whether an individual is entitled to these protections, the Health and Wellness Center and the Learning and Teaching Center require objective evidence (documentation) that verifies that the individual’s condition fits the definition of “disability.”
The ADA defines disability as:
- a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual,
- a record of having such an impairment, or
- being regarded as having such an impairment.
A condition is considered a disability if it prevents or substantially limits the ability to perform a major life activity or significantly restricts the condition, manner, or duration in performing the major life activity as compared to the average person. The analysis of “substantially limits” is a comparative term to the average person in severity, impact, and duration. Generally, a condition must be substantially limiting for more than several months. A condition is not a disability if it results in mild limitations.