Student Disability and Accessibility Center

Fundamental Alteration Review and Determination Process- April 1st, 2023

Purpose:

• Provide a process when there is a concern that implementation of a disability-related reasonable accommodation will fundamentally alter an essential course element.
• Align with federal and state laws, and CSU policy, for determining disability-related reasonable accommodations for students. 
  • At the postsecondary level, the University is required to provide students with appropriate academic adjustments and auxiliary aids and services that are necessary to afford an individual with a disability an equal opportunity to participate in a school's program.
  • The University is not required to make adjustments or provide aids or services that would result in a fundamental alteration of the University’s academic program or impose an undue burden.
• Allow diligent and individualized assessment of:
  • Disability/design related barriers experienced by the students.
  • Essential course and program requirements:
    • Learning outcomes
    • Assessments
    • Activities
    • Materials
    • Policies
• Establish an important collaboration to:
  • Identify what is essential in courses and programs.
  • Identify potential fundamental alterations. 
  • Identify possible alternative approaches when a fundamental alteration is established.
• Provide a thorough and well documented process. 

 

Who is involved in the Fundamental Alteration and Determination Process:

• Appropriate academic or program administrators
  • Explore/identify potential alternative accommodations, when necessary.
  • When questions arise where University officials don’t agree on the nature of a concern (e.g., between Student Disability and Accessibility Center (SDAC) and an affected Faculty member).
• SDAC: 
  • Become familiar with the student and their disability.
  • Explore and identify potential alternative accommodations.
• Faculty:
  • Provide essential course elements that may be impacted
• Committee:
  • A committee of objective University employees who collectively are knowledgeable about the academic area, any related licensing requirements, any applicable accreditation for the course of study, the student’s disability, and accommodation methods, will review the instructor's coursework. The committee must include faculty from outside of the department that provides the course or program.

 

Fundamental Alteration Review and Determination Process for Remote Attendance Accommodations:

1. SDAC Advisor will meet with the student and gather the disability verification.
2. If after review the SDAC Advisor is recommending consideration for a remote attendance accommodation, the SDAC advisor will reach out to the student’s faculty member(s) to confirm if the course can be attended remotely.
3. If the faculty member(s) does not have any concerns about the ability to accommodate, the SDAC Advisor will issue the accommodation letter
4. If there are concerns about the ability to accommodate, the SDAC Advisor will advise the SDAC Director, who will contact the faculty member and copy select staff of Center of Academic Technology (CAT), to review the available options listed on the SDAC Remote Attendance webpage for making the course accessible. 
5. If a decision on how to implement the accommodation is not determined during the meeting, follow up meetings will be scheduled by the SDAC Director with the committee of relevant stakeholders to address remaining issues, including additional resources. 
   1. Meetings should be scheduled and completed within 7 business days. 
6. The committee should address the following:
   1. Are there alternate ways that the student can acquire or demonstrate mastery of the skill that would meet the same fundamental objectives of the course or program?
   2. Have we diligently searched for potential alternatives?
   3. Have we included all the necessary people in this search?
   4. Have we identified whether other postsecondary institutions have identified alternatives that achieve the objectives of the College without fundamentally altering requirements?
7. An appropriate process should include the following:
   1. The decision is made by relevant stakeholders;
   2. The decision makers consider a series of alternatives, their feasibility, cost, and effect on the academic program; and after reasoned deliberation; and
   3. The decision makers reach a rationally justifiable conclusion that the available alternatives would result either in lowering of academic standards or requiring substantial program alternatives.
8. The committee should consider whether the requirement is consistent with similar programs at other educational institutions, and with relevant national and expert guidelines; and whether there is any unique justification for a requirement that is not generally adopted by other educational institutions.
9. A determination to accommodate or not accommodate will be made by the Director of SDAC (or their delegate), in consultation with the committee members. A written summary document will be created, and if the accommodation request is denied it will be signed by the Provost prior to delivering it to the student by the SDAC Director.
10. Documentation of the process to determine if a course can or cannot implement a remote attendance accommodation will be compiled and stored in SDAC. Documentation includes dates of meetings with named attendees and decisions made, with supportive information. The SDAC Director will be responsible for documenting meeting notes and confirming the determinations and next steps with all meeting attendees.
11. When faculty select possible remote attendance accommodations options, faculty will continue conversations with the student to obtain the student’s preference, and begin to implement the accommodation with or without CAT’s assistance.
12. If it is determined that remote accommodation is not immediately possible, the following process shall be followed. 
    1. Timely communication of the summary document is to be delivered to the student that a particular course cannot be available in the present semester for remote attendance accommodation. The student meanwhile must be informed of the timely option to drop or postpone enrollment in the course until the feasibility of a remote attendance accommodation is confirmed. This communication is to be delivered by the SDAC Advisor after the SDAC Director has begun communications with the faculty to engage in the Fundamental Alteration Review and Determination process.  Concurrently the University evaluates the course’s future ability to be effectively taught while meeting the learning outcomes with equal access as the original course modality. This process may take an entire semester to come to a determination. 
13. If the committee has followed processes as outlined above, and believes the accommodation would fundamentally alter the essential elements of the course or program and no reasonable alternative accommodations exist, then the accommodation will be denied by SDAC.

 

Related Systemwide Policies:

CSU Disability Support and Accommodations Policy

CSU Policy for the Provision of Accommodations and Support Services to Students with Disabilities

CSU Nondiscrimination Policy