Reasonable Accommodations and Documentation: NYITCOM

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New York Institute of Technology adheres to the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504. No qualified individual with a disability shall, on the basis of disability, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of this institution's classes or facilities. The College of Osteopathic Medicine provides reasonable adjustments to policies, practices procedures, and/or facilities as needed to support students with disabilities. The Deans in the Office of Academic Affairs have been designated to coordinate compliance with the nondiscrimination requirements contained in the ADA and Section 504.

Role of the Director of Accessibility Services

Eligibility for Services

To be eligible for services and/or accommodations, students or applicants with disabilities must identify themselves and present professional documentation to the Director of Accessibility Services, Cheryl Newman at cnewma02@nyit.edu or 516.686.1446.

Documentation must be recent (no older than three years), relevant, describing the nature of the disability, and providing recommendations for accommodations appropriate to the disability. If the documentation is incomplete or outdated, the college has the right to require that the student obtain adequate documentation. The student bears the responsibility for any expense that may be incurred in the process.

Students should be aware that approved accommodations do not guarantee that the same or similar accommodations will be provided by national standardized examination organizations such as the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME) and/or United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). These organizations have their own accommodations intake processes and procedures. They also are not subject to the same laws and disability standards as NYITCOM. Students should carefully review those processes at their respective websites, nbome.org or usmle.org.

Limits on Accommodations

Admission requirements for students with disabilities are the same as for all other students. It must be understood that accommodations for disabilities are meant to facilitate educational opportunities. While reasonable accommodations are granted by NYITCOM in accordance with federal law, it is important for students to be aware of the limitations surrounding accommodations. Accommodations do not guarantee admission or success in a program, and New York Tech does not offer services such as the following:

Animal Assistance

Please refer to New York Tech's university-wide Assistance Animal Policy.

Documentation Requirements

Documentation is required for all types of disabilities. The evaluation and/or written documentation MUST NOT be conducted by a family member, and must be:

This documentation must include the following, as pertinent to the accommodations request:

Documentation requirements for cognitive disabilities that impact the brain, such as:

The following type of documentation must be provided:

The neuropsychological and psychoeducational evaluation must include detailed results of all testing measures used.

Documentation requirements for disabilities, such as:

The following type of documentation must be provided:

To be considered for accommodations, all documentation for existing conditions must be submitted. Once the documentation is received, recommendations for accommodations and support services will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Review of accommodations requests may take 14 calendar days after submission; however, the final determination may take longer depending on the complexity of the submission. For such reasons, students are encouraged to submit their request for accommodations as early as possible.

Following approval of accommodation for disability, the student may decline utilization of the accommodation by emailing the Director of Accessibility Services. If the student wishes to reinstate their accommodation, the student must contact the Director of Accessibility Services at least seven calendar days before the examination.

All students must adhere to the NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine Student Code of Conduct as well as the Academic Integrity Policy of the college. Sanctions for student conduct or academic honesty violations and guidelines for procedures must be equally applied without regard to a student's disability.

Formal Grievance Procedure

NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine has adopted these internal procedures to provide prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and/or their implementing regulations. Such laws prohibit discrimination in education on the basis of a disability.

Procedure for Disability Related Complaints at the College of Medicine

A complaint concerning alleged discrimination or harassment by employees, students or third parties may be made orally or in writing, and should include the complainant's name and address, and briefly describe the alleged violation of university policy or law.

Address complaints to:

Emily Whearty, Esq.
Director, Equal Opportunity,
Title IX, Title VI & Section 504 Coordinator
New York Institute of Technology
Tower House, Rm. 106
Old Westbury, NY 11568
516.686.1080
titleix@nyit.edu

A complaint should be submitted within fourteen calendar days after the complainant becomes aware of the alleged violation.

The Director of Equal Opportunity will oversee and direct any investigation to be conducted, as may be appropriate. This will typically be assigned to the Assistant Dean of Educational Operations on the Long Island campus or the Assistant Dean of Student Administration on the Arkansas campus. The investigation shall be informal but thorough and afford all interested persons and their representatives, if any, an opportunity to present witnesses and evidence relevant to the complaint.

The relevant assistant dean will make a written determination as to the validity of the complaint and a description of the resolution, if reasonably possible within fourteen calendar days after receipt of the complainant's submission. The determination will be sent to the complainant and the respondent.

The Assistant Dean of Educational Operations shall maintain the files and records relating to the complaints filed on the Long Island campus and the Assistant Dean of Student Administration for the Arkansas campus shall maintain the files and records relating to the complaints filed on the Arkansas campus.

The complainant and respondent can request a reconsideration of the case in instances of dissatisfaction with the resolution. The request for reconsideration should be made within five calendar days to the Associate Dean of Student Administration, Serota Building, Room 213. A written determination shall be issued by the Associate Dean of Student Administration, in consultation with the Director of Equal Opportunity, and forwarded to the complainant and the respondent within ten calendar days after the request for reconsideration.

If a grievance is against the Assistant Dean of Educational Operations of the Office of Academic Affairs, or the Assistant Dean of Student Administration for the Arkansas campus, this grievance procedure is followed except the investigation will initially be conducted by the Associate Dean of Student Administration or the Director of Equal Opportunity as appropriate, and the request for reconsideration should be submitted to the Dean of the Medical School or their designee.

The right of a person to a prompt and equitable resolution of the complaint submitted hereunder shall not be impaired by nor shall the use of this procedure be prerequisite to the pursuit of other remedies.*

NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine will take steps to prevent discrimination and harassment, to prevent the recurrence of discrimination and harassment, and to remedy its discriminatory effects on complainants and others, if appropriate. This grievance procedure shall be construed to protect the substantive rights of interested parties to meet appropriate procedural standards, and to assure that NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine complies with applicable regulations.

* Other remedies include the filing of a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights or other responsible federal agencies.

Important Note:

Grievants not enrolled in the NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine must follow the procedure contained in the New York Tech Student Handbook: U.S. Edition as the above procedure applies only to students actively enrolled in the College of Osteopathic Medicine.