PSU ADA Accommodation Policy

As an Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity institution, Portland State University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and is committed to ensuring that:

1. All PSU students with diagnosed and documented disabilities are provided with reasonable accommodations that will give them the opportunity for equal access to an education at PSU.
2. All PSU employees with documented disabilities may request and be provided with reasonable accommodations to help them perform the essential functions of their jobs.
3. All applicants for employment at PSU with documented disabilities may request and be provided with reasonable accommodations to help them in the application and hiring process.
4. Members of the public who require accommodations may request and be provided with reasonable accommodations that will help them to access PSU facilities or to participate in PSU-sponsored events or activities.**

**All PSU offices, student organizations, programs or departments, when publicizing PSU-sponsored public events, are responsible for including a contact name, voice phone/TTY number, e-mail and or office name for people who wish to request reasonable accommodations.

An example of appropriate wording to include in PR materials: "Requests for reasonable accommodations may be made to John Doe, (503) 111-2222, TTY: 111-2221, e-mail: jdd@pdx.edu." (If reasonable timelines are required, they should be stated here also; e.g., "Requests for reasonable accommodations must be made two weeks before performance date.")

Students: The PSU Disability Resource Center (DRC) office was created to ensure that students, who have disabilities which impact their ability to learn in the classroom, are allowed the opportunity for equal access to an education at PSU. The ADA requires that students, who want to make use of the services provided by Portland State University through the DRC, first register with the DRC. To register the student must make an intake/accommodations assessment appointment and provide appropriate evidence of her/his disability from a qualified health care professional. Reasonable accommodations are determined on a case-by-case basis and depend on the nature of the disability and the documentation provided.

Employees: Under the ADA any employee, who has a disability and requires one or more reasonable accommodations in order to perform the essential functions of his or her job, can request such accommodations from his or her employer. The request should begin with the employee's immediate supervisor, department chair, director, etc.** The employee need not disclose details of the disability to the supervisor. If the supervisor requests documentation of the disability before agreeing to provide any accommodations, the employee should contact the Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity (AFM/EO) Office. The AFM/EO Office has a form for a qualified health care professional (QHCP) to complete. The form, which is given to the QHCP along with the employee's position description, asks for documentation of the employee's disability and the QHCP's recommendations of possible accommodations that would help the employee to perform essential functions of his or her job. The AFM/EO Office would then use the QHCP's diagnosis and recommendations to work with the employee and department to provide appropriate accommodations for the employee. The documentation concerning the employee's condition is confidential, kept only in the AFM/EO Office. The supervisor or department administrators would not be privy to the medical/psychological information without the employee's permission. They may, however, need to know about certain symptoms in order to provide appropriate accommodations for the employee. If the supervisor and/or department are non-responsive or the request is denied, the employee may request assistance through the AFM/EO Office.
** If the employee does not feel comfortable in approaching the supervisor, department chair, director, etc., the employee may contact the AFM/EO Office for assistance.

Candidates for Employment: If a candidate for employment requires reasonable accommodations to participate in the search, interview or hiring process, the candidate should make a request for reasonable accommodations to the hiring department, or the secretary or chair of the search committee. If these people are non-responsive or if the candidate's request for reasonable accommodations is denied, the candidate may contact the Affirmative Action & Equal Opportunity Office for assistance. Note: Department secretaries, search committee chairs or search coordinators, and others who are responsible for contacting a candidate for employment in order to schedule interviews or on-campus visits, should make it a practice to inquire if the candidate requires any accommodations for the interview or on-campus visit. Someone who actually requires accommodations will understand the question. (Someone who doesn't require a disability accommodation may ask for a nice hotel room.)
NOTE: Departments have the primary responsibility for providing (i.e. paying for) reasonable accommodations for their employees, and for candidates who need accommodations during the search, interview or hiring process. The Affirmative Action/EO Office may provide assistance if the accommodation is substantially more than the department can afford.

Members of the Public Members of the public who require reasonable accommodations to participate in a PSU sponsored event or activity, should contact the sponsor of the event or activity to make the request directly. Each request will be handled on a case-by-case basis, depending on such factors as the nature of the disability and the type of event or activity. If the sponsoring office or program is non-responsive or refuses to provide reasonable accommodations, a complaint may be made to the PSU Affirmative Action/EO Office.

Service Animals in PSU Buildings Generally speaking, service animals are permitted to accompany persons with disabilities in their legitimate pursuits within PSU buildings, including residences, provided the service animal follows appropriate standards of conduct. Some exceptions may be made for certain health care and food service locations. A person with a disability, who requires a service animal to accompany him/her into PSU buildings, should register with, and obtain an I.D. for the service animal from the Disability Resource Center (for students) or the Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity (AFM/EO) Office (for PSU employees or members of the public). The animal's handler should, thereafter, carry the PSU registration I.D. at all times while on campus, and willingly present the I.D. when questioned about the service animal's presence in PSU buildings.

A service animal is any animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability, or an animal that provides some service for a person with a disability, where the work, task or service cannot be preformed by that person by virtue of his or her disability. Service animals are usually dogs but may be other animals who meet these criteria.

In recent years, companion animals have been prescribed as treatment for some persons with disabilities for their calming influence, affection, stability or even a feeling of security. They are not necessarily trained to do tasks or provide services, and are not afforded the legal status of service animals. At PSU, requests to have a companion animal accompany persons with disabilities in their legitimate pursuits within PSU buildings, including residences, will be considered as requests for a reasonable accommodation, and evaluated accordingly. In order for a companion animal to be so considered, the handler must show that the companion animal was prescribed or recommended by a health care professional, occupational therapist, or other recognized disability services professional, as treatment for a particular disability.

The documentation requirements for registering a service animal are listed below. For more information, please contact the DRC for students, or the Affirmative Action/EO Office for PSU employees or members of the public.

Documentation Requirements for Service Animals at PSU

The handler of the service animal must show proof that the animal has met the following regulations:

Licensing: The animal must meet the animal licensing requirements required by the state of Oregon. (For nonresidents, home state tags may be accepted.)

Health records: The animal must have a health statement, including vaccinations from a licensed veterinarian dated within the past year. Generally, legitimate service animals are well groomed and receive excellent veterinary care, including an annual checkup. A veterinarian's statement within the past 12-15 months as to good health is necessary. Preventative measures should be taken at all times for flea and odor control. Consideration of others must be taken into account when providing maintenance and hygiene of service animals.

Minimum training standards: Verification that the animal meets minimum training requirements (or is currently being trained as a service animal), including behavioral requirements by any well-recognized service animal training organization, such as Guide Dogs for the Blind. Or if the animal has not been trained by a recognized training organization, the animal must demonstrate appropriate behavior (to be determined by the Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Office).

Identification: The animal should wear some type of commonly recognized identification symbol or equipment, such as a PSU service animal I.D. tag, or a service animal vest.

PSU Disability Resource Center (DRC)
Room 435 Smith Memorial Student Union
Office voice phone: (503) 725-4150 TTY: (503) 725-6504
E-mail: drc@pdx.edu

PSU Affirmative Action & Equal Opportunity Office
Room 122 Cramer Hall
Telephone: (503) 725-4417 TTY: (503) 725-6503
E-mail: afmeo@pdx.edu

The PSU Affirmative Action & Equal Opportunity (AFM/EO) Office is the ADA Compliance Office at Portland State University. Any concerns or questions about ADA accommodations described above, as well as for any that are not specifically addressed above, may be directed to the AFM/EO Office.