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Students with Disabilities

Touro University (“Touro” or the “University”) complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, which protects persons from discrimination on the basis of physical or mental impairments for all educational and employment purposes. Reasonable Accommodations may be available for students who have physical or learning-related disabilities.

The University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to students with documented disabilities who request accommodations. Policies and procedures ensure that students with a disability will not, on the basis of that disability, be denied full and equal access to academic and co-curricular programs or activities or otherwise be subjected to discrimination under programs offered by the University. The University has a centralized Office of Student Disability Services headed by an Executive Director who oversees Student Disability Services operations in the Undergraduate, Graduate, and Professional Divisions. Graduate School of Business students with disabilities seeking reasonable accommodations should do so through the Office of Student Disability Services (OSDS) Coordinator for GSB, Dr. Elizabeth Loftus, elizabeth.loftus@touro.edu.

A student requesting accommodation for a documented disability under the ADA must meet with the OSDS coordinator and submit an Application for Accommodations & Services. Verbal disclosure of a disability and request for accommodation is not sufficient and cannot substitute for required documentation. Students may apply for reasonable accommodations at any time. Accommodations, if granted, are only done so on a prospective basis. Reasonable accommodations are never provided retroactively.

Students seeking reasonable accommodations must:

1)      Complete the Application for Accommodations & Services.

2)      Provide documentation as described in the Guide to Documentation Requirements.

3)      Participate in an interactive dialogue with the OSDS coordinator.

 The process, as described above, will result in the issuance of a Receipt of Accommodations form, which will either approve or deny the request. This form is signed by the coordinator, the Dean or Program Director, and the student.

The process, including all submitted documentation, remains confidential. The Receipt of Accommodations (“Receipt”) should not contain any disability-specific information; rather it only lists approved accommodations. The Receipt is shared with the program in which the student is registered to ensure that the approved accommodations are implemented.

A copy of the Application for Accommodations & Services may be available by contacting the Office of Student Disability Services Coordinator for GSB, Dr. Elizabeth Loftus, elizabeth.loftus@touro.edu.

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights

  • Confidentiality of all information pertaining to a student’s disability, except where disclosure is required by law.

  • Equal access to courses, programs, services, jobs, activities, and facilities available through the University.

  • Reasonable and appropriate accommodations, and/or academic adjustments determined by the coordinators of OSDS.

  • Access to all services and support available to all Touro students with reasonable accommodations where necessary and appropriate.

Student Responsibilities

  • Request reasonable accommodations as necessary and appropriate.

  • Meet University and programmatic qualifications, technical, academic, and institutional standards set for all students.

  • Identify themselves as an individual with a disability when seeking reasonable accommodation (please note that the approval process takes some time, and as such students are urged to file their paperwork as soon as possible).

  • Provide documentation (i.e. diagnosis, diagnostic exam results, etc.) from an appropriate professional source(s) to verify the nature of the disability and functional limitations as related to the requested accommodation(s).

  • Respond in a timely fashion to the Office of Student Disability Services’ requests for additional information.

  • Follow specific procedures for obtaining reasonable accommodations.

  • Attend all classes for enrolled courses, unless otherwise medically excused.

  • Immediately report to the OSDS coordinator if previously-approved accommodations are not being made.

  • Report to the OSDS coordinator if previously-approved accommodations require modification, which will result in an interactive dialogue and may result in modifications to reasonable accommodations.

  • Understand that accommodations are never provided on a retroactive basis.

  • Understand that receiving reasonable accommodations is not a guarantee of academic success.

  • Keep a copy of their submitted documentation. Touro is not the custodian of the student’s application or medical records.

Grievance Policy

If a student feels that he/she has been discriminated against on the basis of their disability or disability status, he/she has the right to file a complaint through the grievance or student complaint mechanisms stated in the applicable College Catalog or Student Handbook. A similar procedure can be followed by a student to appeal the University’s response to a request for reasonable accommodations.

For more information and a copy of the Office of Student Disability Services Handbook, please visit www.touro.edu/departments/student-disability-services/