Classroom Materials

Guidelines for Accessible Classroom Materials

WSU will make every reasonable good faith effort to ensure that students and other academic program participants (Participants) with disabilities requiring reasonable accommodations have meaningful access and an equal opportunity to participate in classes and academic programs at WSU. WSU faculty members should be familiar with their campus’s Access Center/Access Services procedures and to respond to reasonable accommodation requests in a timely fashion.

Reasonable Accommodations

Reasonable accommodations can include modifications to classroom materials, facilities, or activities to allow persons with disabilities to have an equal opportunity to demonstrate their ability. Accommodations should not fundamentally alter a course’s essential components. Typically, students are responsible for notifying their Faculty of approved reasonable accommodations from their campus Access Center/Access Services by presenting the approved accommodation form for signatures. Faculty members are responsible for implementing many student accommodations.

Questions about these guidelines and related policies may be directed to WSU Compliance and Civil Rights at 509-335-8288 or emailed to ccr@wsu.edu. Questions about student reasonable accommodation requests may be directed to the Access Advisors/Coordinators on your campus:

Responsibility for Classroom Materials Accessibility

Students may request accommodations on the basis of a documented disability through their campus Access Center/Access Services. Once reasonable accommodations are approved, typically, students notify faculty of the approved accommodations from the Access Center/Access Services by presenting the approved accommodation form for signatures. Students are expected to meet with their instructors to discuss how accommodations are facilitated. Generally, faculty are responsible for ensuring course information is reasonably accessible to students and that students have an equal opportunity to convey their knowledge. Faculty can work with the Access Center/Access Services for any questions they may have about implementation and for assistance with all reasonable accommodations, including, but not limited to the following items:

  • Alternative testing locations and times
  • Alternative print of course materials (e.g. braille, Kurzweil 3000 files, text files, audio files, etc)
  • Note takers
  • Interpreters
  • Transcription services
  • Screen readers
  • Scribes
  • Relocation of classrooms, if inaccessible
  • Specialized furniture
  • Flexibility with attendance/assignments deadlines
  • Closed captioning
  • Assistive Listening Devices

For student reasonable accommodations, the Access Center/Access Services is responsible for most costs associated with those accommodations. There may be specific instances where the cost of accommodations are absorbed or shared with departments.