Starting college can be a new chapter to adulthood, but it can be challenging; especially keeping everything consistent. Most students with disabilities can feel stressed and overwhelmed about college as the financial and academic responsibilities will start to pile up. However, that doesn’t have to be the case. Students with any kind of disability can seek help from SNU’s Disability Services.
In an interview with Sylvia Lott, Disability Services Advisor, I asked her what SNU Disability Services is and she responded, “It’s an entity within SNU that helps students with visible and invisible reasonable accommodations within post-secondary education.”
Students with disabilities might question how SNU’s Disability Services can help them. Professor Lott said in response, “It depends on the student’s disability, and what accommodations they require that are reasonable for someone in college. If they have dyslexia, learning disabilities, chronic illness, or mental illness, I help the students.” This includes support through accommodations such as flexible attendance, extra time on assignments, note-taking abilities, as well as other specialized accommodations. Using the same question, I interviewed an anonymous, academically successful student with a disability, who added, “It helps provide accommodations for tests, transportation, special books, as well as a place of support for students with disabilities.”
I then asked Lott and the anonymous student, how SNU’s Disability Services can help students strengthen their weaknesses. Lott responded that Disability Services helps students, “Become an advocate for themselves, and understand when to ask for help.” The student also added that Disability Services helps you “Figure out your weaknesses that need to be tackled and better understand how one student’s needs might not fit another’s.”
Disability Services provides tools for students to advocate for their accommodations to their professors while maintaining confidentiality. The student said “Everyone has a different approach to it. Professors will know if you have applied to set up accommodation for their class, but they will not fully know what you need unless you talk to them. If you talk or email them, it gives professors a better understanding and allows them to better accommodate your needs.”
For encouraging words to students with disabilities, Lott responded, “Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and ask for help. Don’t stop yourself from achieving your goals, and finish strong. Don’t shy away from being successful because of what other people think of your disabilities. You’re not alone.” The student concluded by saying, “Your disability doesn’t define you and everyone can overcome the challenges of their disabilities and Disability Services will be there to help you along the way.”
If you are a student with a disability who is in need of accommodation, please email Sylvia Lott at sylvia.lott@mail.snu.edu to help get you set up with SNU’s Disability Services.
Photo by Nguyen Minh on Unsplash