Accommodations in College is something terrific that allows students with disability to have the same opportunity as others.
This opportunity allows disabled students to take advantage of a variety of services, such as note-taking assistance, extra time on exams, and special accommodations for classes and housing. Adaptive technology and video-captioning are also available to assist students with disabilities.
In addition, disabled students have access to health services, academic counselors, and peer support programs. With the help of these services, disabled students can achieve their educational goals and find success in college.
Where I work, we have a young man in a wheelchair – let’s call him Frank – Frank went to college with a 504 plan. He graduated with his 4-year degree with an excellent GPA.
Without a 504 plan, Frank would not have gone to college and would be living on social security instead of contributing to society as he does today. Being wheelchair-bound sucks, but having a well-paying job, full health insurance, and being respected by peers and management helps improve the situation. No need to say that at work, Frank “pulls his weight” like any other employee.
I’m grateful for these college accommodations, allowing many to learn, graduate, and have a life.
Without these accommodations, students would be unable to reach their educational goals. College is difficult enough, and these accommodations can help level the playing field for those who need a little extra assistance. Being able to pursue higher education is a privilege, and I am thankful to have these accommodations available.
The Downside of Accommodations in College
Yes, there is a big downside, and I discussed it with Frank. I have a real-life example.
A friend of mine, an executive for a medium-sized company, hired a business analyst to review, document, and propose process improvements. Anna, a fresh graduate in business management, got hired.
On day one, Anna was explained in detail the objectives of the position and communicated a few timed goals. Anna’s comments were, “Thank you for describing the work, but I need accommodations.”
Accommodations? Yes, extended time to complete tasks, permission to record meetings, reduced workload, additional break time, etc.
After the meeting, the manager met his boss (my friend) and the Vice President of HR to communicate his concerns about the new hire accommodations request.
His boss was, “Let’s fire her,” HR was let me talk to our human resource attorney.
As Anna spelled out the need for “accommodations,” she can’t be terminated or refused employment, which is a good rule, until it hit the fence.
It was a reminder to everyone that employers must follow the law and provide reasonable accommodations to employees who need them. Anna thoughtfully reminded everyone that if they could not provide those accommodations or prove to have made a good-faith effort to do so, they could be subject to legal action.
When I say hitting the fence, it’s the right word. Like her coworkers, Anna is making gross some $80k but produces one-third of what her peers produce. As you can imagine, this generates tons of anger among the team.
How do you fix that? You can’t, I do not see any solution but to move her in another position as a single contributor. That idea was submitted to Anna, who refused it, not what she wanted to do.
They had to put our heads together to come up with another solution. After a few hours of brainstorming, they were able to come up with a plan to transition her into a team leader role, mentor others on the team, and give her more ownership over her role.
This would allow her to be a part of the larger team, but still allow her to be more autonomous. To their surprise, they presented the plan to Anna, and she refused it. She wasn’t happy having a more defined role and not being able to use her skills!
Two years later, two of her teammates quit because of the unfairness of the situation. Imagine they have up to 1-hour lunch break, Anna has 2. They work up to 9-10 hours a day, Anna only 4 to 5. They never complain, Anna always has problems and issues. Their work is perfect, but Anna’s is sloppy, and incomplete, and they have to redo or modify it. Yet, Anna gets the same pay increase, and bonuses as everyone else.
Many say that Anna has strictly no issue but laziness and a severe tendency to abuse the system and can’t be terminated for poor performance.
However, Anna was not terminated for her poor performance and continual lazy attitude.
Accommodations in College is a terrific program to help students with disabilities. Unfortunately, there is a total lack of student preparation for the real world and a serious need for weeding out the creeps.
WOW… CREEPS, you are screaming. Yes, creeps, and I am not sorry. Imagine your coworker with the same pay as yours and is on an accommodation plan. You have to take more work to compensate for the lack of work or have another person hired. This would impact the company finances; thus, your bonuses and pay increase.
I discussed with Frank the real-world preparation he received in college. It was all about his rights, not about his duties. He understands why more and more use a 504 plan in college, not about their needs, all about their rights.
A question for college administrators: what about the rights of others?
- How can college administrators ensure that the rights of all students and staff are fairly respected?
- Are there adequate policies in place to protect those with minority opinions?
- Are students aware of their rights and the policies that protect them?
- What resources are available if students feel their rights are being infringed upon?
- What avenues of redress do students have if they feel their rights are not being respected?
- College administrators have an obligation to ensure that every student feels safe and respected on campus.
What do you think about employees using the system? How can you prevent it, knowing you can’t ask if the candidate needs accommodation during an interview?
When it comes to employees using the system, it is important to ensure that everyone is treated fairly to prevent any potential discrimination or bias from occurring.
Employers should strive to create and promote a culture of inclusivity and empathy within their company to prevent system misuse.
Additionally, employers should provide resources and education to employees about any potential accommodations that may be necessary for a candidate during the interview process.
By creating and implementing systems that ensure everyone is treated fairly and equally in the interview process, employers can help reduce potential misuse of the system while promoting a culture of inclusivity.
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