Documentation Guidelines

Accessibility Services engages in an interactive, collaborative, and individualized process with each student to determine reasonable accommodations.

Documentation is one component of this process. It helps us understand your unique experience, how your disability interacts with the campus environment, and how to eliminate barriers to access.

The Review Process

Individualized Review: Documentation is reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Timeline: Eligibility determination is a thoughtful process and is generally not completed on the same day documentation is submitted.
Submission: Once received, materials are reviewed in the order they arrive. We strongly encourage you to submit documentation well in advance of the start of the semester or as soon as a need arises, so your accommodations can be established in a timely manner.

Examples of Documentation

We believe that you are the expert on your own experience. To establish accommodations, we look at a combination of information, which may include:

Student Self-Report: Your personal narrative, history, and description of what you need are highly valued parts of our interactive process.
Educational Records: An Individualized Education Program (IEP), 504 Plan, or Summary of Performance (SOP) from high school.
Professional Assessments: A psychoeducational or neuropsychological evaluation, medical records, or a diagnostic summary.
Provider Letters: A letter from a qualified healthcare professional, mental health provider, state agency, or vocational rehabilitation counselor.

Note: Documentation does not need to follow a specific format. If you already have records that describe your condition and needs, please share them with us.

What Is Helpful for Documentation to Address

To help us design the most effective accommodations, documentation is most useful when it describes:

The presence of a physical or mental impairment.
The current functional impacts or limitations of the condition within an academic, housing, or campus environment.
A logical connection between the impact of the condition and the requested accommodations.

To support your access, we want to understand how a disability may impact your engagement with common collegiate tasks and settings, including:

Classroom, laboratory, and online learning environments
Reading, writing, communication, and testing
Use of technology and digital resources
Campus housing, dining, and the physical campus environment

Important Institutional Context

Please keep the following guidelines in mind:

Documentation should reflect the current functional impact of the condition. However, older documentation (such as a high school psychological evaluation) is frequently sufficient if the condition is stable and the records accurately describe your current experience.
Diagnosis vs. Impact: A medical diagnosis alone may not automatically result in an accommodation if it does not outline a corresponding barrier or functional limitation in the college environment.
Past Accommodations: Prior accommodations—whether from high school or another college—provide helpful context and are fully considered, but they do not automatically dictate or guarantee accommodations at SUNY Corning Community College.
Professional Recommendations: Accommodation recommendations from healthcare providers are carefully considered. However, the final determination regarding reasonable accommodations rests with the College, ensuring that modifications do not fundamentally alter the essential requirements of a course or program.

If Additional Information Is Needed

If your initial documentation or self-report does not provide enough clarity to determine a reasonable accommodation, Accessibility Services will:

Connect with you directly to explain what specific information is missing or helpful.
Provide clear guidance and, if necessary, documentation verification forms to help you or your provider share that information easily.
Implement provisional or temporary accommodations whenever possible while additional information is being gathered, ensuring you are not left without support during the review process.