Housing Accommodations
UIW is committed to providing equal and equitable educational opportunity and full participation in its programs and services to students with disabilities, as mandated by federal law. Accordingly, UIW's Offices of Student Disability Services and Residence Life work collaboratively to provide reasonable and appropriate housing accommodations to students with disabilities who choose to live on campus. This section describes the process for requesting housing accommodation(s) due to barriers encountered in the on-campus facilities.
If I want to live on campus at UIW, when do I request on-campus housing accommodations?
All applicants (undergraduate or graduate) who are seeking housing accommodation(s) are strongly encouraged to make their requests as soon as possible. To ensure equal access, deadlines for submitting housing accommodation requests are as follows:
- March 1 if you are a returning student for the fall semester
- June 1 if you are an incoming student for the fall semester
- September 1st if you are an incoming student for the spring semester
- Deadline to request modifications to meal plan due to food allergy is no later than the last day to drop classes at 100% refund (as posted on the Academic Calendar)
- Identify the appropriate form that corresponds to your situation (Emotional Support Animal Packet or Specific Health-Related Accommodations Form).
- Review our housing documentation guidelines and share them with your licensed health professional. This individual is responsible for completing the packet/form.
- Once the packet/form is completed, it should be returned to the student to submit within their online request.
- SDS will confirm receipt of the request and review the information provided. You will be notified if additional information is needed or if the request has been approved.
What information do I have to provide about my disability when I request on-campus housing accommodation(s)?
To be considered for housing accommodations, students must submit an online request and upload the appropriate forms (Emotional Support Animal Packet or Housing Accommodations Form) to the Office of Student Disability Services. These forms may be obtained from the SDS office (Suite 51 Administration Building) or by downloading the forms found at the end of this section.
NOTE: A licensed physician, psychologist/psychiatrist, clinical social worker, or other healthcare professionals must complete their designated portions of the form. This professional cannot be related to the student and must be licensed to diagnose the student’s disability. Incomplete and/or illegible information may delay or impede the review of your request. Additional documentation may be requested depending on the application. Please review our housing accommodations documentation guidelines.
What happens once I submit a completed Housing Disability Accommodation Request Form?
Once you have provided all the requested information, an SDS team representative will review the application and recommend appropriate housing accommodations to Residence Life. The student will receive a cardinal email notification once the request is approved.
What factors does the Office of Student Disability Services consider in evaluating a request?
Does the information submitted on the Emotional Animal Support Packet or Housing Accommodations Form clearly answer these questions?
- Is the relationship between the accommodation requested and the documented disability clearly stated?
- Are the objectives of the residence life community in which the student is eligible to live clearly stated?
- What accommodations would effectively facilitate the student’s participation in the residence life program and community?
- What barriers are present that would limit the student’s participation in the on-campus living program?
What on-campus housing accommodations does UIW provide?
Examples of accommodations UIW may provide include (this list is not exhaustive, each request is evaluated independently):
- Modifying rooms to accommodate students with mobility impairments, or make other reasonable modifications as necessary
- Installing visual room alarms for fire alarms, phone, etc. for students who are deaf or hard of hearing
- Assigning students with psychological disabilities to appropriate living situations
- Permitting the use of service dogs or assistance animals (Emotional Support Animal) within residence halls/apartments
Examples of accommodation requests that UIW generally will not find reasonable include:
- Requests for single living accommodations by students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder on the basis of studying environments
- Requests for single living accommodations by students with asthma or allergies
For additional questions about this process, please contact Michelle Beasley, Manager of Student Disability Services, at beasley@uiwtx.edu – (210) 829-3997.