Documentation Guidelines

The University of Montana-Western adheres to the civil rights definition of disability. Eligibility for civil rights protection requires the applicant to meet one of the following three criteria in the civil rights definition of disability:

1. have a physical or mental condition that substantially limits one or more major life activities;
2. have a record of such a physical or mental condition; and/or
3. be regarded as having such an impairment, whether actually having the impairment or not.

Examples of disabilities include, but are not limited to:

• arthritis
• attention deficit disorders
• blindness/low vision
• cerebral palsy
• communication disorders, deafness/hearing impairments
• emotional/psychological disabilities
• multiple sclerosis
• seizure disorders
• specific learning disabilities
• spinal cord injuries
• temporary disabilities
• traumatic brain injuries, and
• other health impairments

Current written documentation that verifies the existence of the disability must be provided by each student. Verification of the disability should include a diagnosis, a description of the functional limitations that may affect academic performance, a rating of severity and a recommendation for accommodations. The documentation must contain the printed and signed name of a physician, psychologist, rehabilitation counselor, social worker or any authority qualified or certified to assess the disability. This person cannot be related to the student.

UMW must verify a student's disability prior to recommending reasonable accommodations. In order to ensure adequate documentation and thus timely provision of accommodations, UMW maintains documentation guidelines for Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders and psychiatric/psychological disabilities. Please take the links below to review these, and feel free to download them. They are intended to help ensure that the information you send to us helps you receive timely and appropriate reasonable accommodations.

Learning Disabilities

Attention Deficit Disorder

Psychiatric/Psychological Disabilities