Any UMF student with a physical, hearing, visual, medical, emotional or learning disability is eligible for services.
When a disability is not otherwise apparent, documentation may be required. Documentation should be current and include a description of the disability, disability-related needs, and specific recommendations for services. This information is confidential, is not part of the student’s permanent record, and will be released only upon express written request of the individual.
Accommodation Request Process
Requests for academic accommodations are made through the Learning Assistance Center in Franklin Hall 103. The procedure for requesting academic and housing accommodations is as follows:
STEP 1: Complete the New Student Registration Form
STEP 2: Submit documentation of your disability.
- If you had a 504 Plan or IEP (Individual Education Plan) in high school, please send us a copy of your most recent one. Please also include any recent evaluations that were completed as part of the 504/IEP process in determining your eligibility for services.
- Documentation should be authored by a licensed clinical professional or health care provider, who is both trained and qualified to evaluate the disability and familiar with your history. It is not necessary that the documentation be recent, but it must reflect your current status. Documentation may not be provided by a student’s relative, friend, or family friend.
- Documentation should include the following information:
- Name, credentials, and contact information of the evaluator
- The nature of the disability and relevant history
- Test results, including scores and written evaluation of scores (if applicable)
- DSM-V or ICD-10 diagnosis with information outlining the duration, severity, treatment and expected prognosis of the condition
- A description of how the disability impacts engagement in day to day activities as related to life at college
- Names of any medications and potential side effects
- Suggested accommodations
- Documentation may be submitted in person by e-mail to lac-umf@maine.edu or by fax to (207) 778-7298. If you have any questions about the process, please contact our office by e-mail (lac-umf@maine.edu) or by calling (207) 778-7295.
STEP 3: Mandatory Initial Appointment
Once your documentation has been received, our office will contact you to schedule an initial appointment.
Please check your maine.edu email regularly as this is the primary method we will use to communicate and schedule appointments. The initial appointment will take about a half-hour. We will review your documentation, past use of accommodations, your schedule, and discuss any current academic issues. Together we will determine appropriate accommodations. At the conclusion of your appointment, we will provide you with information on how to notify faculty of your accommodations using your electronic Faculty Accommodations Letter. Letters will be sent directly to your maine.edu email address from our Learning Assistance Center email address (lac-umf@maine.edu) within 5 business days of your initial appointment if the semester is already in progress or just before the semester begins if your request is between semesters.
If requesting an accommodation, auxiliary aid and/or services and you disagree with the determination by the Learning Assistance staff and it cannot be worked out, you can, within seven (7) calendar days, contact the UMaine System Equal Opportunity Officer equal.opportunity@maine.edu for assistance in resolving the matter informally. Formal complaints should be referred to the U.S. Dept. of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Boston, MA 02109.
STEP 4: Student provides Accommodation Letter to their instructors
You (the student) are then responsible for sharing the Accommodation Letter with your instructors. You can either print the letter and deliver your instructors a paper copy or you may email it to your instructors. You will be provided a template you may use when emailing your instructors when you receive your emailed Accommodation Letter. The Accommodation Letter serves as an avenue for you and your faculty to discuss the accommodation arrangements. It is essential that you share the letter with your instructors to receive accommodations. Instructors will not be aware of accommodations otherwise.
If accommodations are not provided after discussing them with your faculty, students are responsible for notifying the Learning Assistance Center staff as soon as possible for resolution.
STEP 5: Request your Accommodation Letter each semester you need one
Your accommodations stay with you throughout your time at the University; however, you must request a new Accommodation Letter each semester. After your first semester, you are considered a “returning student” and should complete our Returning Student Accommodation Letter Request form online.
It will then be drawn up and emailed to you within 5 business days of the request if during a semester or just before the start of the semester if requested between them. You will then need to share it with each of your instructors as described above.
Documentation Guidelines
Students seeking accommodations at the University of Maine at Farmington must document a disability as defined by the Rehabilitation Act, Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. This documentation must be provided to the Learning Assistance Center (LAC) prior to receiving services. Students qualified under these laws are protected from discrimination in all University programs, activities, services and facilities.
Under these laws, an individual with a disability means any person who:
- Has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, including caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, sitting, standing, lifting, and working, as well as mental and emotional processes such as thinking, concentrating and interacting with others;
- has a record of such an impairment; or,
- is regarded as having such an impairment.
Students with disabilities must provide evidence of both the disability and its current, significant, functional impact to become eligible for accommodations with the LAC. Designed to provide equal access, accommodations only are provided in response to the functional limitations of a disability as they clearly intersect with academic demands. Accommodations do not include interventions, which are remedial, needed for personal study and care, or designed to ensure desired outcomes.
Students with disabilities may request accommodations from the LAC. In order to consider this request, as well as ensure the provision of reasonable and appropriate accommodations, please submit documentation from a qualified professional providing current and comprehensive verification of the disability. In order to be considered current, the documentation should be within 3 years prior to the date of the most recent request to the LAC.
A qualified professional includes a trained and certified and/or licensed psychologist, learning disability specialist, speech and language pathologist, or licensed psychiatrist who have experience in working with an adult population.
Acceptable documentation includes:
- information that diagnoses the disability
- describes the disability in an educational setting
- indicates the severity and longevity of the condition
- offers recommendations for necessary and appropriate auxiliary aid(s), or service(s), academic adjustment(s) or other accommodations.
Housing Accommodations
Requests for medical singles will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Housing facilities include barrier-free residence halls, handicapped parking spaces, and Braille signage. Students requesting housing accommodations should complete the New Student Registration Form, indicating on it that they would like to learn more about housing accommodations.
Contact Us
Learning Assistance Center
University of Maine at Farmington
Franklin Hall
252 Main Street
Farmington, Maine 04938
tel 207-778-7295
TTY users may call Maine Relay Service at 711
lac-umf@maine.edu